Blog #2: After the Templar Dissolution

By Sylvia Anginotti

When the Order of Christ was created from the remnants of the Knights Templar in Portugal, it lost the international status that the Knights Templar had enjoyed under the pope. The Order now owed its allegiance to the Kings of Portugal and was subject to the religious control of the Bishop of Aljubarrota.

Later, during the reign of King John I of Portugal the Order of Christ returned to the city of Tomar and the Castle that the Knights Templar had built in 1160.

King John’s third son. Prince Henry, was made Governor of the Order. He was the first secular leader of the Order and brought it under the control of the monarchy.

Prince Henry introduced fresh ideas to the role of the Order. They brought Christianity to the land of the Moors and discovered the secrets of the Silk Route which linked Europe with the Middle East and Asia.

The route transported luxury goods, such as silk and spices from places like China and India, then deposited the goods in Ceuta, a port in North Africa (Northern Morocco).

Henry and the Order of Christ, sailed across the sea, stormed the city and captured it, but the traders just changed the destination to another place. Henry came to realize that overcoming the Moors on land was not strategically possible. He also realized that he would need ships that could withstand the rough seas and currents of the Atlantic Ocean.

Although Christianity was the dominant religion in Portugal, it, Islam, and Judaism lived in relative peace. Henry, who came to be known as “the Navigator” was pragmatic enough to realize that the Jews and Muslims had knowledge that would benefit his ambition.

He invited learned men to his court and together they built the foundation for expanding maritime exploration, including the design of new style of ship called the Caravel. Other innovations begun were the navigation of the seas via charting the sun and stars, the use of tides and currents, and the art of cartography which mapped the African coast. 

The Age of Discovery had begun.

Henry the Navigator

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Information about Author Sylvia Anginotti

BA  Honors- History Sheffield University 1986

Lecturer - Sheffield College 1984 - 2009

Partner - Knights Templar tours 2011 - present

Publications

Sheffield Local History books. 

It was All Country Then - 

A Home of Our Own

A Fine Old Sheffield

Guide book of Knights Templar in Tomar - Central Portugal   

Sylvia Anginotti

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