The Knights Templar in Scotland
The Knights Templar in Scotland: A Historical Overview
The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon, commonly known as the Knights Templar, were founded in Jerusalem around 1118 as a military-religious order tasked with protecting pilgrims in the Holy Land. By the mid-12th century, the Templars had become a powerful international organisation with extensive landholdings across Europe, including in the British Isles. Their presence in Scotland, while real, was limited in scale and often later exaggerated by myth and folklore.
Establishment of the Templars in Scotland
The Templars were established in Scotland during the reign of King David I (r. 1124–1153), who was instrumental in introducing continental religious orders into the kingdom. David I granted lands to the Templars, as he did to other monastic and military orders, as part of broader ecclesiastical reform.
The earliest documented Templar property in Scotland was Balantrodoch, near present-day Temple village in Midlothian. This site became the Templars’ principal Scottish preceptory (administrative centre). The settlement eventually took the name Temple, which remains today and is one of the clearest pieces of physical evidence for the Templars’ presence in Scotland.
Other confirmed Templar holdings included lands in:
Maryculter (Aberdeenshire)
Southesk (Angus)
Inverkeithing (Fife)
These estates functioned primarily as agricultural and administrative centres, supplying revenue rather than serving a military role.
Role and Activities
Unlike in the Holy Land or Iberia, the Templars in Scotland were not a fighting force. Their primary activities were:
Managing agricultural estates
Collecting rents and tithes
Supporting the Order’s wider international mission financially
There is no credible evidence that the Templars built castles, maintained armies, or conducted military operations in Scotland.
The Suppression of the Templars and Scotland’s Position
In 1307, King Philip IV of France ordered the arrest of the Templars, leading to the Order’s eventual dissolution by Pope Clement V in 1312. Across much of Europe, Templars were imprisoned, tried for heresy, and their assets seized.
Scotland was in a unique political position at the time. King Robert the Bruce had been excommunicated following his seizure of the Scottish throne in 1306, placing Scotland temporarily outside direct papal authority. This circumstance has led to later claims that the Templars found refuge in Scotland.
However, documentary evidence does not support the idea of a mass Templar escape to Scotland. Scottish records indicate that:
Templars in Scotland were arrested, though generally treated more leniently than elsewhere
No executions of Templars are recorded in Scotland
Templar lands were eventually transferred to the Knights Hospitaller, in line with papal directives
By the mid-14th century, the Templar Order had effectively ceased to exist in Scotland, as elsewhere in Europe.
Myths and Later Legends
Several popular claims about the Templars in Scotland lack historical evidence, including:
Templars fighting for Robert the Bruce at the Battle of Bannockburn (1314)
The survival of the Order in secret
Connections between the medieval Templars and later Freemasonry
The hiding of the Holy Grail or Templar treasure in Scotland
These ideas largely originate from 18th- and 19th-century romanticism, rather than medieval sources.
Conclusion
The Knights Templar were undeniably present in medieval Scotland, owning land and operating administrative centres under royal patronage. Their role was primarily economic and religious, not military. While Scotland’s political situation during the suppression of the Order has encouraged speculation, surviving records show that Scottish Templars ultimately met the same institutional fate as their counterparts elsewhere. The enduring legends surrounding them reflect later cultural fascination rather than historical reality.
Sources
Barber, Malcolm. The New Knighthood: A History of the Order of the Temple. Cambridge University Press, 1994.
Nicholson, Helen. The Knights Templar: A New History. Sutton Publishing, 2001.
Burgtorf, Jochen; Nicholson, Helen; and Nicholson, Peter. The Debate on the Trial of the Templars (1307–1314). Ashgate, 2010.
Cowan, Ian B.; Easson, David E. Medieval Religious Houses: Scotland. Longman, 1976.
Scottish Record Office (now National Records of Scotland), charters relating to Balantrodoch (Temple), 12th–14th centuries.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, entries on “Knights Templar” and “Military Orders”.