Knights Templar Church Haltham on Bain Lincolnshire
St Benedict’s Church in Haltham-on-Bain Lincolnshire ~ was it a Knights Templar church ?
A chance find in a bookshop stopped me in my tracks - this is a good one and if correct may be best historical post to date !
I hope you’ll give it a read and help if possible
I was in a fantastic bookshop and the owner said ‘I’ve got a couple of old church leaflets saved for you’ - fantastic many thanks said I.
Flicking through one on Haltham-on-Bain I was suddenly rocked on my feet. I’d recently read The Temple and the Lodge by Michael Baigent and Richard Leigh, bought in the same shop incidentally, and on seeing a picture in the leaflet labelled as ‘curious Christian symbols’ I caught my breath especially when this quote from the book came to my mind a few seconds later (referring to a find in Scotland)
 Templar churches invariably had a cross either carved above the door, whether simple or embellished, was always of distinctive design, equal armed, with the end of each arm wider than its base . . .
Had this cross been found anywhere else in Europe, no one would have had any hesitation in recognising it as Templar and ascribing the chapel to the order |
Many are probably thinking ‘a cross above a church door - so what !’ Well it is very unusual, I don’t recall seeing on before and I’ve been to more than a few churches
Of course I had to go and check it out !
Left you’ll see the beautiful entrance and door, above the door is according to Arthur Mee, its oldest possession - a doorway of early Norman days
The tympanum is described in Pevsner as being a ‘barbaric jumble of motifs’ including a cross and defaced figure
Templar Cross ?
On seeing the carving a few things struck me:
The carvings are fairly arbitrary, they’ve not been designed and laid out aesthetically as one would expect of ’standard decoration’
Also, the quality of the carving is not what one would expect.
It has the feel of being added to the church and not part of the original doorway design.
All of these things are more than a little suggestive as to my theory that this was a church that came into the hands of the Knights Templar at some point
Further investigation, such as I’ve been able to make, failed to find any direct reference that this was indeed a Knights Templar building.
That could only mean two things:
-
1: There is no connection with the Knights Templar
2: It was connected and is, perhaps, something of a discovery !
I’m feeling fairly confident that it’s the latter
Haltham Church
Was St Benedict’s a Former Templar Owned Church ?
Records of the Knights Templar don’t really exist as such so research and evidence tends to be by association. You find out about a building they owned because it is referenced in a document somewhere else. Given I can find no accepted reference a case has to be built.
It should be said, I think this will be a case of building up as many snippets of information and connections as possible, the more found the more likely the probability of my theory becoming acceptable
To that end the task is to find as many connections or suggestive facts as possible as when it comes to the Templars these things do matter and small things can mean a lot
Painted Wall Panels Inside
Knights Templar Connections to Haltham on Bain, the Church and the Immediate Area
Saint Benedict
The church is dedicated to St Benedict (which is not common in Lincolnshire) and the Templars followed the “The Rule of St Benedict”
Marmyon or Marmion, Marmyun
The Marmyon, or Marmion, family have Templar connections and owned land all around the area.
Robert Marmion was a benefactor of nearby Kirkstead Abbey and also gave property to The Templars
The public house in Haltham is called The Marmion Arms
In 1185 Robert Marmion married Elizabeth, daughter of Gervase, count of Rethel, who was brother to Baldwin II, king of Jerusalem.
St Benedict’s
I want to avoid this article getting overly long, perhaps I’ve already failed, so I think it’s best to stop here and then move over to any new information coming in the form of comments below.
To that effect, if anybody knows anything at all related then please do leave a comment. It does not need to support the theory by the way.
Any little snippets about people or remote connections may lead to other things
Thanks in advance
Rod
Please feel free to click the Facebook link below to share with others - many thanks
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Amiguru said,
January 25, 2010 @ 11:22 pm
Rod,
It’s so obvious…..it’s a windmill or maybe a Norman helicopter
Seriously, what about a consecration cross? There is a curious feature to the patées though, they are skewed aren’t they?
Regards,
le
N
Amiguru said,
January 26, 2010 @ 9:15 am
Rod,
I’m now going to make a bold statement with no evidence to back it except logic, then we can see if it leads anywhere.
Firstly, I think it is recycled stone.
Secondly, I believe it is an early tomb lid, gravestone, call it what you will. If you rotate the image clockwise 90 degrees, you will see what I mean. The beaded edge, now on the left after the rotation would form one side of the slab and the right beading has been chopped away so that it fits more snugly into the tympanic arch. What put me on to this was the angular variation of the two edges.
Thirdly, is this a celtic/christian mix from the transitional period? Maybe the ‘cross’ wasn’t a cross as such but just a symbol, (maybe the known sun symbol?), that happened to be vaguely like a cross and fitted in nicely at the point when the Christian church adapted it. Then there is the Gordian/celtic knot next to it.
I’ll pause there for other’s thoughts.
Regards,
le
N
Rod said,
January 26, 2010 @ 9:44 am
Neville,
very interesting suggestion, it’s got me thinking.
I’ve rotated the shot and I see what you mean by the edge border but that would then make it a very wide tomb cover for anything to balance design wise.
I also just noted that the circle around the cross hits bottom’side edge - the far right design cuts into it as well.
If it was a tomb lid etc they’s surely have had plenty of room to set the design out ?
I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s been trimmed around the arch to meet the arch rebuild when the church was renovated.
The stone seems to be a pretty good match to the archway as well Neville.
I like the Celtic idea Neville
I’ve seen pictures of these sort of ‘carvings’ in Templar buildings - I don’t know somehow it feels right.
It realy does look as though some ‘amateur’ carver has stood on a box and set about adding those symbols to an existing doorway (as was then)
Great stuff Neville - any other opinions for or against greatly welcomed
Best
Rod
Amiguru said,
January 26, 2010 @ 10:38 am
Rod,
Yes, and as I said they’re just ideas thrown in the ring. Here’s another one; keep the orientation as it is in the arch, now imagine a section cut from the right limb of a classical pediment. That would allow for the intrusion of the right-hand circle which could be echoed in the left hand limb. I don’t see it as an amateur effort but then you have the advantage of having seen it in the flesh as it were.
The stone does seem a good match, from here it looks like limestone. Is it oolitic? Another factor which may make them appear to be a good match is the practice of painting decorated stonework in the past. There seems to be the remnants of a gold coloured wash but most of the colours disappear with time. Perhaps it was painted monochrome ‘gold’ to give an impression of the ‘door to heaven’ so to speak.
Ok, I’ll shut up now and let others have a go. Nice challenge Rod
Regards,
le
N
Rod said,
January 26, 2010 @ 1:30 pm
Neville,
having seen it I would like to do so again, with fresh eyes and the ideas you mention in my head.
As to the quality of carving, it’s certainly a lot better than I could manage, the thing that struck me was it was not as good and as ordered as normally seen in a church - hence my tentative theory of it being done later and perhaps not by a really skilled carver.
That said your idea of it having come from elsewhere would fit that side of things, also time and weathering will have removed detail leaving it looking less precise. It still looks ill planned though - even if we’re only seeing a part of a much larger piece.
The colouring certainly sounds right Neville - if I can get enough information then I’ll revisit, report back and get some more pictures
Best
Rod
Amiguru said,
January 26, 2010 @ 10:33 pm
Well Rod,
I did shut up for a while…..;)
Just found a full description of the tympanum in LN&Q for 1896. Sorry for the length of the post but I’m sure you will appreciate the fullness of the report. Took blood, sweat and tears to edit this together you know! Enjoy…………
“Tympanum at Haltham. —
The Church of Haltham is a most interesting building, with its Norman, or possibly Saxon, Tympanum.
Before giving a minute description of the figures on the Haltham Tympanum, I may mention that Norman doorways
and fonts have often been preserved when the rest of the contemporary church has disappeared, probably because they
were the most ornamental.
Durandus, a writer of the XIII. century, says, “The door of a church (symbolizes) is Christ: according to that saying in the Gospel ‘I am the door’.” Thus a cross of some form is usually placed, as at Haltham, in some conspicuous position on the Tympanum, or semicircular stone, under the arch and over the door of Norman churches; and even the strange monsters which sometimes appear in such places may refer to Christ, since the Agnus dei, though the most obyious emblem of Christ, is not by any means the only one taken from animals.
As regards the Maltese Cross and the Fylfot, which appear inscribed in circles on the Haltham Tympanum, Allen* says:
“One of the oldest forms of cross is that known as the Maltese within a circle. There are four examples of rude pillar-stones
on which this type of cross occurs, three in the county of Kerry in Ireland, and one in Pembrokeshire, South Wales, all
with Ogham inscriptions. Perhaps the most remarkable is that at Aglish, in the county of Kerry, which has in addition
to a Maltese cross within a circle two small Buddhist crosses, or Swasticas, on each side of an equilateral triangle.
The Maltese Cross took the place of the Px monogram, and survived in the crosses used for dedicating churches, as at Jarrow, and it was also placed over doorways in Syria in the sixth century.
As regards the cross within a square, Allen says of various kinds on slabs at Clonmacnois (on the bank of the Shannon, Ireland).
The idea is that of a cross within a square border and may have been suggested by the covers of the books of the
Gospels.” The date of these slabs is 786 to 926.
Description of Figures on Tympanum.
Within a Perpendicular porch, and beneath a semicircular arch, with bold roll moulding, is a Norman, or possibly Saxon,
Tympanum over the south doorway, which resembles the doorway at Monkwear mouth, Durham, in having no pillar
capitals. The Tympanum is 4ft. 3in. long by 2ft. high, and 5 1/2in. thick. In the centre is a Maltese Cross within a circle, and a small circle appears between the limbs of the cross. West of this is an eight-petaled flower within a circle, which touches the great central circle, while its stem, with two thorns at the top,
touches the west side of Tympanum. Below this is a small round object, with an oblong on each side of it, and below them, to the east, is an oval figure like a buckle, while below them, to the west, is a square, having three-quarter circles at its corners, and semicircles in the middle of its sides, which form the extremities of the limbs ofcross, and between the limbs and the sides of the square are roundels. Below this figure is a curious lobated object with what may be a fish placed perpendicularly on it.
East of the central circle containing the Maltese Cross are four rows of inverted triangles — five in each of the three upper
rows and four in the lowest \ below them, within a circle, is a curious figure, made up of twelve unequal curved lines,
arranged in four groups of threes, forming a Triple Fylfot, or Swastica. Touching the east side of this circle is another,
which cuts into the border of the base of the Tympanum, at its eastern corner, containing a cross within a square, similar
to that on the west side.
J. A. Penny.”
Regards,
le
N
Rod said,
January 27, 2010 @ 8:05 am
Neville,
very interesing indeed, I’ve read it a few times and it’s very educational.
Interesting to note the use of the term ‘Maltese Cross’ because we know where the Maltese Cross came from
I also found the info about placing crosses above doors very interesting. It’s not something I tend to see so presumably it it were widespread then the idea died out a bit and those remaining were lost to restoration ?
It is worth mentioning the Baigent quote again I feel
Fantastic Neville
Many thanks
Rod
Rod said,
January 27, 2010 @ 6:48 pm
Further to Neville’s Maltese Cross.
I was in the bookshop that originated this post today when a book came sailing down narrowly avoiding the skull of the proprietor.
It was that well known tome which no doubt graces the bookshelves of all our readers . . .
Buhagiar’s The Iconography of the Maltese Islands 1400-1900
There was in there of a cross which appeared incredibly similar to the one over the door, amazingly similar not just in design but actual execution !
It too looked ‘out of place’
I can report that the owner suffered no serious injury but the book is now ‘lightly bumped to tips’ as we booksellers say.
What a book - what a shop !
Best
Rod
Phil said,
February 7, 2010 @ 3:57 pm
Hi guys
This isnt my strongpoint but along the way ive seen these symbols as astronomical.
The central disc is the sun rising (or sometimes setting) over the horizon and followed by (generally)
Venus.
The idea is displayed at Newgrange in Ireland, where the rays of the rising sun and Venus were captured
above the entrance door and entered the building, presumably for some sort of ceremony. (Kingmaking?)
The rows of angles could be the rays of the sun and of course the fish is Pisces (representing the Age of)
Don’t shout me down its just a thought?
regards
Phil
Rick said,
March 29, 2010 @ 2:40 am
Not sure about this at all. True - it has the wider extensions of the arms of the cross, but it also has a circle inside the outer circle, connecting these arms. This reminds me more of an early christian “celtic” type cross, many of which also had wide extensions to the arms, and which sometimes had examples of celtic knotwork associated with them, similiar to the forfoil at the bottom right of the cross. Also, the time frame seems wrong - the symbol of the early knights templar was the cross of lorraine, the maltese cross came in a bit later.
Rick said,
March 29, 2010 @ 3:46 am
On the other hand (heh, heh). Two other symbols look significant from this decoration. The first is above and to the right of the cross and consists of a series of triangles, a decoration seen in Norman shield design, where the shield is covered with alternating triangles in 2 strongly contrasting colours. The second symbol is at the bottom left and looks a bit like a scallop shell. “the scallop shell badge of a pilgrim who has been to the shrine of St. James at Compostella. The scallop-shell is a common charge in the arms of English knights, many of whom stopped off en route to the Holy Land to serve against the Moors in Spain under the banner of the Order of Santiago.” The Order of Santiago was set up in 1175, but it’s symbol was a sword, not a cross. My theory, for the sake of argument, is that this might have been put in place by a local knight who ‘took the cross’ and joined a crusade, then settled near the church on it’s conclusion.
Rod said,
March 29, 2010 @ 8:51 am
Rick,
thanks for the fabulous and well-reasoned input and welcome to the site.
There’s much to think about in what you say and your final hypothesis.
As to the design, I don’t put huge import on the accuracy of the design but more the style and feel.
It is after all symbolism and I’m sure at the time basic shapes and symbols would have been near enough so to speak for all but the most important buildings and situations.
Very interesting stuff Rick
All the best
Rod
Rick said,
March 29, 2010 @ 1:50 pm
The Domesday book entry for Haltham village mentions a Guy de Raimbeaucourt and his son Ingelrann, as well as a church of Syston. Ingelrann doesn’t sound a typical Norman French name, so it could be that the de Raimbeaucourts were a mixed Norman/Saxon family, which might help with the mixed imagery.
Rod said,
March 29, 2010 @ 6:33 pm
Rick,
that’s a good name, Guy de Raimbeaucourt pops up all over in my initial searches - many thanks
Best
Rod
Tim Topham said,
June 25, 2010 @ 1:41 pm
Hi, Rod. Read your article on St. Benedict’s Church with interest. I visited about three months ago on a hunt for my ancestors; one (at least) of whom was Joseph Daft whose gravestone I found. There should have been a gravestone for his son, Harrap Daft, but I couldn’t spot it.
I know it doesn’t relate to our article but could you use your local knowledge to help me out? The above Joseph’s father, also Joseph Daft, was apparently a publican as well as a farmer. Would he have actually kept a pub separately or as part of his farm, do you think? Could he have kept the Marmion Arms (he died in 1772)? Finally - has the Marmion Arms become a casualty of the tough economic situation, do you know,? I don’t seem to be able to contact anyone at the pub.
Thanks for your time. Regards. Tim
Rod said,
June 25, 2010 @ 5:35 pm
Tim,
thanks for the comment. I would imagine that as a publican he owned and ran the public house. As publican his name would be over the door - that said he need not necessarily have had to ‘man the pumps’ himself of course.
I’m not sure about the Marmion Arms as I live some way off but perhaps somebody reading this may be able to help with more information for you Tim
Best of luck with the search
All the best
Rod
Amiguru said,
June 25, 2010 @ 6:10 pm
Tim,
The Marmion Arms is in Main Road, Haltham. If you go to Streetview you will see that when filmed, it was up for sale unfortunately.
Regards,
Neville
Templar said,
September 7, 2010 @ 8:59 am
Rod - Coptic Cross, lintel stone, Egypt, New York Metro Museum entered into google give you one answer to your question about what kind of cross you are seeing. One can only imagine the feeling a Knight must have experienced as the Templars marched into the Holy Land and saw designs on ossuaries and Churches that Templars had seen being used in their Churches since the time of the Romans. Affirmation of the Templar cause would have been in the heart of every Knight. The Coptic Cross and Rosette are two designs that do not get enough credit for their historical significants.