Temple Church
 |
The Temple Church. |
The
Temple Church is a late
12th century church in
London located between
Fleet Street and the
River Thames, built for and by the
Knights Templar. Two
Inns of Court (
Inner Temple and
Middle Temple) both use the church, which is famous for its
effigy tombs. It was heavily damaged during the
Second World War but has been largely restored. The area around the Temple Church is known as "Temple" and nearby is
Temple tube station.
Construction
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The Temple Church today. |
In the mid 12th century, before the construction of the church, the Knights Templar in London had met at a site in
High Holborn in a structure originally established by
Hughes de Payens. Because of the growth of the
order, by the
1160s the site had become too confined, and the order purchased the property of the current site for establishment of a larger
monastic complex as their headquarters in England. In addition to the church, the new compound originally contained residences, military training facilities, and recreational grounds for the military
brethren and novices, who were not permitted to go into the city without the permission of the Master of the Temple.
The church building comprises two separate sections. The original
nave section, called the
Round Church, and an adjoining rectangular section, built approximately half a century later, called the
Chancel. In keeping with the traditions of the order, the nave of the church was constructed on a round design based on the
Church of the Holy Sepulchre in
Jerusalem. The nave is 55 feet in
diameter is surrounded by the first-ever free-standing dark
Purbeck marble columns. It is probable that the walls and grotesque heads were originally painted in colours.
It was consecrated on
February 10,
1185 in a ceremony by
Heraclius,
Patriarch of Jerusalem. It is believed that
Henry II was present at the
consecration.
1185-1307
 |
Marble effigies of medieval knights in the Temple Church. |
The Knights Templar order was very powerful in England, with the Master of the Temple sitting in
parliament as
primus baro (the first
baron of the realm). The compound was regularly used as a residence by kings and by
legates of the
Pope. The temple also served as an early depository
bank, sometimes in defiance of the Crown's wishes to seize the funds of nobles who had entrusted their wealth there. The independence and wealth of the order throughout
Europe is considered by most historians to have been the primary cause of its eventual downfall.
In January
1215 William Marshall (who is buried in the nave next to his sons, under one of the 9 marble
effigies of
medieval knights there) served as a negotiator during a meeting in the Temple between
King John and the
barons, who demanded that John uphold the rights enshrined the
Coronation Charter of his predecessor
Richard I. William swore on behalf of the king that the grievances of the barons would be addressed in the summer, leading to John's signing of
Magna Carta in June.
William later became
regent during the reign of John's son,
Henry III. Henry later expressed a desire to be buried in the church and so, in the early
13th century, the
choir of the original church was pulled down and a new larger structure, now called the Chancel, was built. It was consecrated on
Ascension Day 1240 and comprises a central aisle and two side
aisles of identical width. The height of the vault is 36 feet 3 inches. One of Henry's sons, who died in infancy,
is buried in the
Chancel, but Henry later altered his will with instructions to be interred in
Westminster Abbey.
Crown seizure
After the destruction and abolition of the Knights Templar in
1307,
Edward II took control of the church as a Crown possession. It was later given to the
Knights Hospitaller, who rented the Temple to two colleges of lawyers. One college moved into the part of the Temple previously used by the Temple's knights, and the other into the part previously used by its priests, and they shared the use of the church. The colleges evolved into the
Inner and
Middle Temples, two of the four
Inns of Court.
16th-19th centuries
|
The interior of the Round Church in the early 19th century. |
In
1540, the church became the property of
The Crown once again when
Henry VIII abolished the Knights Hospitaller in England and confiscated their property. Henry provided a
priest for the church under the former title "Master of the Temple". In the
1580s, the church was the scene of the
Battle of the Pulpits, a
theological conflict between
Calvinists and supporters of the
Church of England. At that time,
William Shakespeare also knew it and hence, in his play
Henry VI, part 1, it and the Temple garden feature as the setting for the fictional scene of the plucking of two roses and the start of the
15th century Wars of the Roses. In
2002, this was commemorated with the planting of new white and red roses in the modern gardens.
Following a later agreement in
1608 by
James I, the two Inns were granted the use of the church in perpetuity and continue to use the Temple as their chapel to the present day on condition that they supported and maintained the church.
The church went undamaged in the
Great Fire of London in
1666. Nevertheless, it was refurbished by
Christopher Wren, who made extensive modifications to the interior, including an altar screen and the introduction of an
organ to the church for the first time. The church was restored again in
1841 by Smirke and Burton, who decorated the walls and ceiling in the high
Victorian Gothic style, in an attempt to bring the church back to its original appearance.
Second World War
On
May 10,
1941, during the height of the
Battle of Britain, a
German air raid of incendiary bombs set the roof of the Round Church on fire, and the fire quickly spread by wind to the nave and chapel. The organ and all the wood of the church, including the Victorian renovations, were destroyed and the dark Purbeck marble columns of the Chancel cracked from the intense heat. Although these columns still supported the vault, they were deemed unsound and replaced by replicas. The original columns had a light outward lean, an architectural quirk which was duplicated in the replacement columns.
During the renovation, it was discovered that the renovations made by
Wren in the
17th century were in storage and were replaced in their original position. The church was rededicated in November
1958.
The Temple Church continues to hold regular
church services, including
Holy Communion on Sunday morning. It also holds weddings, but only for members of the Inner and Middle Temple Inns of Court (two of the four London Inns of Court, the other two being Lincoln's Inn and Gray's Inn). The Temple Church serves both the Inner Temple and the Middle Temple as a private chapel.
The Temple Church has always been a
royal peculiar, and the choristers have the privilege of wearing scarlet cassocks as a result. This means that it is subject to the jurisdiction of the Crown, and not of the
Bishop of London. Modern-day relations with the Bishop of London are, however, very good; and he regularly attends events and services at the Temple Church.
The church was featured in the controversial "alternative history" novel the
Da Vinci Code by American author
Dan Brown and filming of the
film version also occurred there.
Some of the lunchtime talks by the present Master (Reverend Robin Griffith-Jones) recently have been on the subject of the church's role in this novel, whilst he is also releasing a book on the facts of the 'Da Vinci Code,' debunking certain elements of the novel, for which he had a book tour in New York in April 2006.
Music at the Temple Church
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The organ in the Temple Church. |
The church offers regular
choral music performances and
organ recitals. It has had a number of famous organists, including the blind organist and composer
John Stanley (appointed by the Inner Temple in
1734). A choir in the English cathedral tradition was established at the Temple Church in
1842 under the direction of Dr E J Hopkins, and it soon earned a high reputation. Hopkins was succeeded as organist and Director of the Choir in 1897 by Sir
Henry Walford Davies. Walford Davies was in turn succeeded by Sir
George Thalben-Ball who held the post from
1923 to
1982. For just three musicians of such distinction to have served between them for a total of 140 years at the church is remarkable.
In
1927, the Temple Choir under Thalben-Ball became world famous with its recording of
Mendelssohn's Hear my Prayer, including the solo "O for the Wings of a Dove" sung by
Ernest Lough. This became one of the most popular recordings by a church choir of all time, and it sold strongly throughout the twentieth century, reaching gold disc status (a million copies) in
1962 and achieving an estimated 6 million sales to date.
Dr
John Birch was appointed as Thalben-Ball's successor in 1982. The present Director of Music, Stephen Layton, was appointed in 1999 and will be succeeded by
James Vivian in September 2006.
The choir continues to record, broadcast and perform, in addition to its regular services at the Temple Church. It is an all-male choir, consisting of 18 young boys educated at the
City of London School with choral scholarships and 12 professional men. They perform weekly at Sunday services, 11:15-12:15 PM, including special services, such as the monthly communion service, held the last Sunday of every month. The choir gave the world premiere of Sir
John Tavener's epic "The Veil of the Temple", which took place over seven hours during an overnight vigil in the Temple Church in 2003. The following year it was performed by the choir at the
Lincoln Festival in
New York; a concert version was perfomed at
the BBC Proms the same year.
The church contains two organs: a chamber organ built by Robin Jennings in 2001, and a four manual
Harrison & Harrison organ.
The Temple Church's excellent acoustic has also attracted non-church musicians:
Paul Tortelier made his recording of the complete Bach Cello Suites there in 1983.
The church always has two clergy, called the Master and the
Reader respectively. The title of the Master of the Temple recalls the title of the head of the former order of the Knights Templar. The present Master of the Temple is the Reverend
Robin Griffith-Jones, appointed in 1999. The Master gives regular lunchtime talks open to the public.
The official title of Reverend Robin Griffith-Jones is sometimes said to be the "Reverent and Valiant Master of the Temple" although this is not used on
the official website or
the regular service sheet.
*Rev'd
Robin Griffith-Jones 1999-
*Rev'd
Canon Joseph Robinson,
BD M.Th FKC 1980-1999
*Very Rev'd
Robert Milburn,
MVO 1968-1980
*Rev'd
Canon Theodore Milford,
MA 1958-1968
*Rev'd
Canon Harold Anson c.38
*
List of churches and cathedrals of London*
Inner Temple*
Middle Temple*
Official website of the Temple Church
*
Middle Temple's website*
Inner Temple's website*
Temple Church - Sacred Destinations article with large
photo gallery*
Black and white images of the Temple - Pitt University
*
Colour photographs of Temple Church by Mathew Lodge
*
Ground plan and discussion of round shape - Rosslyn Templars
*
The History of the Knights Templar, by Charles Addison with extensive history and description of Temple Church
