Templar or Mason? Untangling the two

One of the most common questions about the Knights Templar in Wales is whether the modern Masonic Templar bodies are a continuation of the medieval order. They are not. The medieval Templars were dissolved by papal bull in 1312, and there is no evidence of an unbroken chain.

The Masonic Order of the Temple is an eighteenth-century chivalric degree, inspired by the ideals and symbolism of the medieval knights but organised entirely within Freemasonry. It is a modern tradition that draws on a medieval memory.

That said, the two are connected in a real sense: many people first hear about the medieval Templars through the Masonic tradition, and Masonic pilgrimages to sites like Slebech have kept the story alive locally for two centuries. This site treats the two carefully and separately — see the Masonic Connection page for more.