Wales was the largest of the ancient Brittonic realms that survived into the medieval period. But after the invasion of England by the Normans in 1066, it faced a new threat to its independence. Norman nobles given lands in the border areas very soon sought to expand their holdings into Wales. Through the 12th and 13th centuries, Welsh princes fought hard, with periods of success, to resist English encroachment. They even got clauses inserted into the Magna Carta in 1215 to protect their rights. However, the writing was on the wall longer term – absorption into a bigger political entity was inevitable. And as Norman and then Angevin power in Wales increased, the Knights Templar also made their presence felt.
It’s been said that the Welsh princes took little interest in the Templars – if that’s true, it was a mistake. The Angevin empire supported and donated to the Templar cause with gusto and in return got hardy and holy warriors capable of defending the borderlands.
The ancient church of St Madoc dating back to the 7th century CE was gifted to the Templars in the 1150s. The knights operated in Wales much as they did elsewhere, running agri-businesses to raise money to fund their military activities in the Holy Land. They may also have been encouraged to expand into Wales as a means of subduing Wales or at least holding the line. Within Wales, there is little evidence of the circular churches that the Templars built elsewhere mimicking the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem.
The Templars take on Wales
The famous crusader William Marshal may have given the knights the mill they owned outside Pembroke castle and the church of Kemeys Commander in Monmouthshire, south-east Wales. The unusual name of the latter church refers to the Templar ‘commandery’ that once stood there. They also received small holdings in Glamorganshire and Gwent but their most significant possessions in region were across the border in Herefordshire and Shropshire. These counties, now in England, were part of the “Welsh Marches” in the Middle Ages, a border area where England and Wales vied for control.
King Henry II gave the Templars Llangarewi in the Welsh Marches, which became known as Temple Garway. The Knights Templar built a round church here but this disappeared after the church was taken over by the Knights Hospitaller after the crushing of the Templars in 1307. It seems they pulled down the circular nave and replaced it with the rectangular nave you can see today. However, the Templar tower – a great hulk of a construction – has survived.
This tower, separate from the church, was undoubtedly for defensive purposes as well as prayer. There’s little doubt that the Templars were expecting trouble from rebellious Welsh princes and fortified their commandery accordingly.
Jacques de Molay visits Wales – last Templar Grand Master
In 1294, Temple Garway had a very important guest. None other than Jacques de Molay. Yep, the last Grand Master whose final moments would be spent tied to a stake in front of Notre Dame cathedral as he and the last of the Templars went to their deaths.
Unfortunately, time has not been hugely kind to Temple Garway and farmers have done what farmers over the years are wont to do – incorporated much of the stonework in to their houses and boundary walls.
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