Poor Companion-Soldiers of the Christ Saviour and the Apostolic Temple
| Templar Companions Poor Companion-Soldiers of the Christ Saviour and the Apostolic Temple Particeps Militum Christo Salvatore Apostolica Templi Compagni-Soldati del Salvatore Cristo e del Tempio Apostolico | |
|---|---|
| File:CrossoftheTemplars.png | |
| Active | c. 1120-present |
| Allegiance | The Pope |
| Type | Catholic military order |
| Role | Protection of Christian Pilgrims (formerly) Charity, finance, education and security. |
| Size | 35,000-55,000 (as of 2015) |
| Headquarters | Basilica del Martire Soldato, Fabria, Fabria-Poveglia |
| Nickname(s) | Order of Man, Order of the Heavenly Host |
| Patron | Saint Andrea della Spada |
| Attire | White mantle with a red cross |
| Anniversaries | Offering of the Sword |
| Commanders | |
| Master Superior of the Order | Cesare Augusto Graziani |
| Grand Conductor of the Order | Pelagius Arruntius |
| Captain-General of the Cathedra of the Apostolic Temple | Lucca della Rochavino |
The Poor Companion-Soldiers of the Christ Saviour and the Apostolic Temple (Latin: Pauperes commilitones Christi Templique Apostolici; Fabrian: Compagni-Soldati del Salvatore Cristo e del Tempio Apostolico), also known as the Order of the Apostolic Temple, the Templar Companions or simply as Templars, is a Fabrian Catholic military order recognised in 1115 by papal bull. The order has been in uninterrupted service to the Church since its founding 1110, making it one of the oldest Catholic institutions in history.
History
Organisation
The Templars are organized as a monastic order, they were considered the first effective international organization in Belisaria for centuries. The organizational structure maintains a strong chain of authority and is highly centralised. Each country with a major Templar-Companion presence (Latium, Fabria-Poveglia, Sydalon, Vannois, Belfras and Liothidia) has a Grand Master of the Order Commandery, which oversees the Order's activities in that region. The Grand Master of the Commandery is appointed for life by the Master Superior of the Order, which his appointments being confirmed by the Magisterium. Prior to 1899, the Master-Superior was appointed internally by the Convent of the Apostolic Temple, however since the Master-Superior has been appointed by the Pope of the Fabrian Catholic Church.
The Master Superior exercises his authority via the Observer-Generals of the order, who are high ranking members specially appointed by the Master Superior and the Convent of the Apostolic Temple to visit the different regions, correct malpractices, introduce new regulations, and resolve important disputes. The Observer-Generals have the power to remove members from office and to suspend the Grand Master of the region concerned. However, with the advent of new communication technologies since the 20th century, the role of the Observer-Generals has diminished, to that as a mere inspector-general of practices.
The highest authoritative bodies in the Order are the Convent of the Apostolic Temple, which is the body tasked with assisting the Master Superior in governing the entire order, and below it, are the Commanderies of the Regions, the bodies tasked with assisting the Grand Masters in their particular nations. The Convent of the Apostolic Temple has numerous sub-branches that oversee particular activities, such as the charitable foundations, businesses, property management and the military activities.
Ranks within the order
Three main ranks
Following the Great Commission of 1775, the ranking system of the Order has changed to reflect modern times. As such, the previous three ranks of Noble-Knights, Non-noble Sergeants and Chaplains was abolished in turn for Companion-Knight, Companion-Servant and Companion-Cleric. The highest rank, Companion-Knight is reserved for those involved solely in the Order’s running and military affairs, while the Companion-Servant is reserved for lay-members, those involved in the political, charitable and financial activities of the Order. The last rank, that of Companion-Cleric is reserved for ordained priests within the Order; since 1836, the Companion-Clerics have been permitted to hold senior positions without military service.
The Master-Superior is required to be of either the Companion-Cleric or Companion-Knight rank. The Convent of the Apostolic Temple is comprised of both Companion-Knights and Companion-Clerics.
Of the estimated 55,000 members, between 15,000 and 18,000 members are Companion-Knights and Companion-Clerics, while the remainder are Companion-Servants.
Master Superiors
Starting with founder Giovanni Guglielmo Embriaco in 1120–1123, the order's highest office was that of Master-Superior, a position which was held for life, though considering the martial nature of the order, this could mean a very short tenure in the past. All but two of the Grand Masters died in office, and several died during military campaigns from 1120 till 1580. Since, all Master-Superiors have served until dying in office, usually from old age or illness.
The Master-Superior oversees all of the operations of the order, including both the military and the Templars' charitable, political financial and business dealings in Belisaria. Historically, some Master-Superiors also served as battlefield commanders, though this was not always wise: several blunders in Flavenius’ command during the Battle of Ercolano in 1404 resulted in defeat for the Order and his subsequent burning at the stake by Pope Alexander V.
Since 1899, the Master-Superior has been appointed for life by the Pope of the Fabrian Catholic, following the “Agreement of the Two Poveglians”, the Pope must always select a Knight-ranking member of the Order. The Agreement of the Two Poveglians secured the Templar’s close relationship with the Papacy, in virtually all cases, the Master-Superior appointed has been a close ally of the reigning Pope. Current Master-Superior, Cardinal Cesare Augustino Graziani was appointed by Pope Julius IV following the arrest of his predecessor, Lucius Tericio for child-abuse. Graziani has been a close ally of Pope Julius, politically and theologically for decades.
Behaviour, clothing and regulations
Activities
Military role
The Templar-Companions stand as the largest military order in Christendom, contributing 15,000 male members to the Ecclesiastical Army of Christ in the form of the 1st and 2nd Infantry Brigades. The Templar-Companions’ units in the EAC have consistently been the best trained and supplied, forming the “elite spear-tip” of the ground forces since the Latin Donation.
Since 1950, every Chief of Staff of the Ecclesiastical Army of Christ has been a member of the Templar-Companions. This has led many to claim that the Templars effectively dominate Fabria-Poveglia’s military and security apparatus. Due to the high level of veneration for Templar-Companion officers in the EAC, it’s also been noted that many volunteers join the Templar-Companions prior to seeking entry into military service.
The only other order that comes close to competing with the Templar-Companions in terms of influence within military tradition is the Order of Saint Eugenius of the Mountain, which provides the EAC the 8,400 elite Esploratori.
Economic
The Companion Templars over the centuries have established a prominent role within the Fabrian-Poveglian economy. Although the Order saw a considerable decline in its business empire during the mid-20th century, it is still estimated to dominate roughly 22% of the Fabrian-Poveglian economy. The Order operates numerous "Prezioso" operations, including business in construction, energy, telecommunications and finance. The three most renowned Companion Templar businesses are the Bank of Poor Companion-Soldiers, Sigillo del Profeta and Etere, these three represent the largest bank, construction company and telecommunications company respectively in Fabria-Poveglia.
An estimated 185,000 people are employed by the Order's businesses in Fabria-Poveglia, while an estimated 220,000 are employed across Belisaria and Scipia. According to one estimate, the Order has a combined economic revenue of $111.33 billion as of 2016.
Bank of Poor Companion-Soldiers
Bank of Poor Companion-Soldiers (Banca di Poveri Commilitoni-Soldati S.p.A.) known as BPCS is one of the oldest surviving banks in the world and the largest Fabrian-Poveglian commercial and retail bank. It was formed by the Order in 1417 as a Mount of piety. Since its forming, the bank grew exponentially, entering in business with numerous Poveglian trading families who dominated trading routes across the Delphic Sea throughout the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries. Today Banca PCS has approximately 2,500 branches, 27,000 employees and 10.1 million customers in Fabria-Poveglia, as well as branches and businesses abroad. A subsidiary, PCS Capital Services, handles corporate and investment banking.
Sigillo del Profeta
Sigillo del Profeta (literally: Seal of the Prophet) is the Order owned and run engineering firm. The firm, also known as SigPro, is the Order's major engineering arm and one of Fabria-Poveglia's largest contractors in industrial and development projects. Sigillo del Profeta was created in 1964 following the devastating 1963 Fabrian-Poveglian Earthquake to help rebuild the country, and has diversified over the years into companies dealing with mechanical engineering, energy, mining and defense.
Sigillo del Profeta is believed to employ nearly 54,000 people and has been rewarded hundreds of major contracts including the Fabria Metro, Poveglia Lagoon Defences, Papa Pio X International Airport, house construction, both private and social, hospital construction and construction and renovation of Churches, monasteries and cathedrals across Fabria-Poveglia.
Etere
Charity
The Templars operate several major charitable foundations and civic societies across Belisaria, the largest being the Foundation of the Lady of Clemency, which reportedly has $180 billion in assets and an annual revenue of $11.46 billion. The charity organizations are supposed to provide social services to the poor and the needy; however, "several of these organisations operating independently of Church oversight, the government doesn't know what, why, how and to whom this help and assistance is given." The Templar's charities do not fall under Fabria-Poveglia’s General Accounting Law and, consequently, are not subject to financial audits. Unaccountable to the Central Bank governor, the Order "jealously guards its books from prying eyes."
Despite the controversy, the Foundation of the Lady of Clemency has been successful in offering vocational training centers, rehabilitation centers, socioeconomic centers, drug-related rehabilitation centers, cooperative banking, through the Credit Union of Santa Teresa.