l8O THE KNIGHTS TEMPLARS
brother condemned to expulsion was stripped of his mantle
before the chapter and transferred to another and stricter
Order—neither the Temple nor the Hospital would accept
the outcasts of each other. (This, however, was not a sign
of antagonism, but the result of a working arrangement.
Similarly, a Templar who became detached from his fellows
in battle was instructed to join the Hospital till the end of
the engagement, and the Hospitallers were enjoined to seek
the Templars in such circumstances. Bitter as they were
towards each other, neither the Temple nor the Hospital
broke either agreement.)
A brother who refused to obey a command from his
superior, threw off the mantle of the Order even in a moment
of anger, kept undesirable company (any woman was, of
course, undesirable company for the members), disposed of
goods of the Order to a member or an outsider, however
innocently, accepted a recruit irregularly into the Order,
charged the enemy before the command had been given, or
wounded a Christian was punished by exclusion from the
companionship of the brethren for a year and a day. The
Rule mentions that one brother was given this sentence for
failing to account for some butter entrusted to his care!
A Templar found guilty of any of these offences
surrendered his horses and arms, wore a white mantle without
a cross, ate on the ground, fasted thrice a week, and worked
and ranked with the serfs. Any man who underwent such
degrading punishment was denied promotion to the higher
offices and could not participate in the more important
ceremonies of the Order. Serfs ranked with the beasts, and
the Temple imposed the same penalty for the slaughter of a
serf as for the loss of an animal. Minor infringements of
the regulations were punished by condemning the brother to
perform menial duties for a few days. Members who, by
the provisions of the Rule, should have been expelled from
the Order were sometimes given long sentences of imprison-