By Dr. Margaret Hollis, Lead Editor Last reviewed 13 June 2026 First published 13 June 2026 Fact-checked by Dr. Niamh O'Donnell, Maynooth University

The Preceptories and Commanderies of the Knights Templar

The Knights Templar were one of the great international organizations of the Middle Ages, and they administered their vast estates through a network of preceptories and commanderies that stretched from Scotland to the Holy Land. These local houses were the foundation of the Order’s economic power and the primary means by which the Templars recruited brothers, managed their lands, and exercised their influence across Latin Christendom.

This cluster page examines the Templars’ network of local houses. It is a companion to Templar Banking and the Temple in London and to Temple Church in London.

The Structure of the Order

The Templars’ network of local houses was organized into a hierarchy that reflected the Order’s centralization:

The Grand Master, who was elected for life and served as the head of the Order.
The Convent (or Chapter) of the Order, the assembly of the senior brothers who advised the Grand Master.
Provincial Masters, who headed the Order’s regional divisions (the Provinces or Languages).
Preceptors (or Commanders), who headed the individual preceptories or commanderies.
Brothers, the knights, sergeants, and chaplains who lived in the local houses.

The Order was divided into provinces (sometimes called “Languages” because of the language of each province):

The Province of France, the largest and most important.
The Province of England.
The Province of Germany.
The Province of Italy.
The Province of Aragon.
The Province of Portugal.
The Province of Castile.
The Province of Hungary.
The Province of Upper Italy.
The Province of Apulia.

For a complete list of the leaders of these provinces, see The Grand Masters of the Order.

The Preceptory

A preceptory (sometimes called a commanderie in French, or a commenda in Italian) was a local house of the Knights Templar. It was typically:

A church or chapel, often round or with a circular nave, in imitation of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem.
A residential complex for the brothers, including a dormitory, a refectory, a chapter house, and a master’s house.
Agricultural buildings, including barns, stables, and granaries.
Workshops for the brothers, including a forge, a carpentry shop, and a textile shop.
A cemetery for the brothers who died in the preceptory.

The preceptory was the basic administrative unit of the Order, and it was here that the brothers lived, worked, and prayed. The preceptory was headed by a Preceptor (sometimes called a Commander or Master), who was a brother of the Order appointed by the Grand Master or by the Provincial Master.

The Commandery

The term commanderie (or commenda) is sometimes used interchangeably with preceptory, but the two terms have slightly different connotations. The preceptory is the term typically used in the Kingdom of England and in the Latin East, while the commanderie is the term typically used in France and in the Mediterranean countries.

A commanderie typically referred to:

A group of properties, possibly scattered across a region, that were administered by a single commander.
A central house that served as the headquarters of the commander.

A preceptory typically referred to a single house, with its surrounding lands.

In practice, the two terms were often used interchangeably, and the differences between them are largely a matter of regional usage.

The English Preceptories

The Templars in England had a substantial network of preceptories, including:

The Temple in London, the principal English house. See Temple Church in London.
Temple Ewell, in Kent.
Temple Hirst, in Yorkshire.
Temple Newsam, in Yorkshire.
Temple Bruer, in Lincolnshire.
Ribston, in Yorkshire.
South Witham, in Lincolnshire.
Garway, in Herefordshire.
Penhallam, in Cornwall.

The English preceptories were organized into a hierarchy, with the Master of the Temple in London at the top, and Preceptors of various ranks serving in the regional houses.

For more on the Order’s structure in England, see Templar Banking and the Temple in London.

The French Commanderies

The Templars in France had an even more extensive network of commanderies, including:

The Temple in Paris, the principal French house.
La Rochelle, an important seaport.
Tours, a major religious center.
Toulouse, a major commandery in southern France.
Avignon, a major commandery in Provence.
Béziers, a major commandery in Languedoc.
Comps, a major commandery in Languedoc.
Payens, near Troyes, the birthplace of Hugues de Payens, the founder of the Order.

The French Templars were the largest single provincial branch of the Order, and the Master of France was the most important provincial officer in the Order.

The story of the French Templars. See The Trial and Suppression of the Knights Templar.

The Iberian Commanderies

The Templars in Iberia had a substantial network of commanderies, including:

The Order of Christ in Portugal in Tomar, the principal Portuguese house. See The Order of Christ in Portugal.
Monzón, a major commandery in Aragon.
Jerez de la Frontera, a major commandery in Castile.
Miravet, a major commandery in Aragon.

The Iberian Templars played a major role in the Reconquista, and their commanderies were often located in frontier regions that had been recently captured from the Muslims. After the suppression of 1312, the Iberian Templars were absorbed into other orders, including the new Order of Christ in Portugal.

The Eastern Preceptories

The Templars’ preceptories in the East were, in many ways, the most distinctive. They included:

The Temple Mount in Jerusalem, the original headquarters of the Order. See Templar Sites in Jerusalem.
The Temple in Acre, the principal Eastern headquarters from 1191 to 1291. See The Fall of Acre 1291.
Limassol, the principal Eastern headquarters after 1291.
Safed, a major castle in Upper Galilee.
Gaston, a major castle north of Jerusalem.
Jacob’s Ford, a major castle on the upper Jordan.
Krak des Chevaliers, although this was a Hospitaller castle, not a Templar one.

The Eastern preceptories were the most important military bases of the Order, and they were the principal theaters of the Crusades. The story of the Eastern Templars. See The Knights Templar in the Holy Land.

The Suppression of the Preceptories

The suppression of 1312 had a major impact on the Templars’ network of preceptories. The Order’s estates were transferred, by the bull Ad providam, to the Knights Hospitaller. In practice, however, the transfer was uneven, and much of the Order’s property was simply confiscated by the various secular rulers.

In England, the Templars’ estates were largely confiscated by the crown, and many of the preceptories were eventually sold or granted to private individuals. In France, the estates were also confiscated by the crown. In Iberia, the Templars’ estates were absorbed into other orders.

The story of the suppression is told in The Trial and Suppression of the Knights Templar and in What Happened to Templar Treasure?.

Visiting Templar Sites Today

Many of the Templars’ preceptories and commanderies are still standing, often in ruins but sometimes in remarkable condition. Some of the most important surviving sites include:

Temple Church, in London. See Temple Church in London.
Temple Ewell, in Kent, with the remains of the Templar chapel.
Temple Bruer, in Lincolnshire, with the remains of the Templar church.
South Witham, in Lincolnshire, with the remains of the Templar church.
Garway, in Herefordshire, with the remains of the Templar church.
The Convents of the Order of Christ, in Tomar, Portugal. See The Order of Christ in Portugal.
The Castle of Monzón, in Aragon.
The Temple in Acre, in Israel. See The Fall of Acre 1291.

Conclusion

The preceptories and commanderies were the foundation of the Templars’ power. Through their network of local houses, the Order was able to recruit brothers, manage their lands, and exercise their influence across Latin Christendom. The destruction of this network by the suppression of 1312 was a major blow to the Order, and it had a lasting impact on the economic life of medieval Europe.