The Order of the Faith and Peace or Order of the Sword was a military order in Gascony in the mid-13th century. The order was first mentioned by

Pope Gregory IX Pope Gregory IX ( la, Gregorius IX; born Ugolino di Conti; c. 1145 or before 1170 – 22 August 1241) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 19 March 1227 until his death in 1241. He is known for issuing the '' Decre ...

in 1231 in a letter to ''magistro militiae ordinis sancti Jacobi ejusque fratribus tam presentibus quam futuris ad defensionem fidei et pacis in Guasconia constitutis'' ("the master of the military order of Saint James and his brothers present and future constituted for the defence of the faith and of the peace in Gascony").Forey (1989), 7. It was founded by Amanieu I,

Archbishop of Auch The Archdiocese of Auch-Condom-Lectoure-Lombez (Latin: ''Archidioecesis Auxitana-Condomiensis-Lectoriensis-Lomberiensis''; French: ''Archidiocèse d'Auch-Condom-Lectoure-Lombez''), more commonly known as the Archdiocese of Auch, is a Latin Church ...

. Since Amanieu had been appointed to his see in 1226, the date of the foundation must be located in 1226–1231. Gregory had sent a letter to Amanieu in 1227 exhorting him to establish the peace, which may have prompted the founding of an order of knighthood. Amanieu and the order's earliest members travelled to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

in 1231 and there received confirmation from Gregory. The order had properties mainly west of

Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Pa ...

in the dioceses of Auch, Bayonne, Comminges, and

Lescar Lescar (; oc, Lescar) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department and Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of south-western France. Lescar is the site of the Roman city known variously as Benearnum, Beneharnum or Civitas Benarnensium, the lo ...

. Its main purpose was not to fight heresies like Catharism but rather to keep the peace in the ''Auxitana provincia'' (province of Auch). Gregory placed it under a rule adapted from the

Order of Santiago The Order of Santiago (; es, Orden de Santiago ), is a religious and military order founded in the 12th century. It owes its name to the Patron Saint of Spain, "Santiago" (St. James the Greater). Its initial objective was to protect the pilgri ...

and its first major patron was the

Viscount of Béarn A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status. In many countries a viscount, and its historical equivalents, was a non-hereditary, administrative or judicial ...

, Gaston VII. The order seems to have struggled to remain viable. In 1262 its master attempted to amalgamate it with the Cistercian abbey of Les Feuillants. In 1267

Pope Clement IV Pope Clement IV ( la, Clemens IV; 23 November 1190 – 29 November 1268), born Gui Foucois ( la, Guido Falcodius; french: Guy de Foulques or ') and also known as Guy le Gros (French for "Guy the Fat"; it, Guido il Grosso), was bishop of Le Pu ...

deposed the master for malice and neglect of his duties. The archbishop of Auch, now Amanieu II, tried to save the organisation in 1268 by purchasing for it a hospital at Pont d'Artigues from the Order of Santiago and appointing his nephew as master. The order was dissolved by

Gregory X Pope Gregory X ( la, Gregorius X; – 10 January 1276), born Teobaldo Visconti, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 1 September 1271 to his death and was a member of the Secular Franciscan Order. He was ...

in 1273 and its possessions ended up largely in the hands of the Order of Santiago and the church of Auch, though Les Feuillants laid claim to some. There may be a vernacular, narrative reference to the Order in the Occitan '' vida'' of the

troubadour A troubadour (, ; oc, trobador ) was a composer and performer of Old Occitan lyric poetry during the High Middle Ages (1100–1350). Since the word ''troubadour'' is etymologically masculine, a female troubadour is usually called a ''trobairi ...

Peire Guillem de Tolosa, who was said to have entered the ''ordre de la Spaza'' (probably "order of the Sword"). Ackermann mentions this

chivalric order An order of chivalry, order of knighthood, chivalric order, or equestrian order is an order (distinction), order of knights, typically founded during or inspired by the original Catholic Military order (religious society), military orders of the ...

as a historical order of France and proposes 1229 as founding year.

Bibliography

*Forey, Alan J. (1989). "The Military Orders and Holy War against Christians in the Thirteenth Century." ''

The English Historical Review ''The English Historical Review'' is a bimonthly peer-reviewed academic journal that was established in 1886 and published by Oxford University Press (formerly Longman). It publishes articles on all aspects of history – British, European, and ...

'', 104:410 (January), pp. 1–24. *Forey, Alan J. (1992). ''The Military Orders: From the Twelfth to the Early Fourteenth Centuries''. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. . *

Gustav Adolph Ackermann Gustav Adolph Ackermann (16 January 1791 – 19 February 1872) was a German lawyer and author of a notable book on European knightly orders. Ackermann was born in Auerbach in Vogtland, Saxony. He was ''Königlich Sachsischer Appelationsrat'' oyal ...

, '' Ordensbuch, Sämtlicher in Europa blühender und erloschener Orden und Ehrenzeichen''. Annaberg, 1855, p 208 n°76. "Orden des Friedens und Glaubens"
Google Books
(Former orders of France : p. 205-214)

Notes

{{reflist Military orders (monastic society) 1273 disestablishments in Europe Catholic orders of chivalry