Middle Temple
Middle Temple or the Honorable Society of Middle Temple is one of the four English bar associations ( Inns of Court ) for barristers in England . In addition, the term Middle Temple also refers to the building complex in which this chamber has been located since the 14th century. In 1882 the main building of the Royal Courts of Justice was built in its immediate vicinity .
history
Since the Norman Conquest it was in England only clerics reserved to deal with legal matters or right to speak.
After the separation of ecclesiastical and secular law towards the end of the 13th century, the Inns of Court , a complex of buildings in the heart of London, were set up as living, dining and teaching rooms for the growing class of secular legal scholars.
It is assumed (no exact sources available) that the Middle Temple, like the three other building areas that belong to the Inns of Court , was taken over or new ones built in the middle of the 14th century. The name Middle Temple comes from the Knights Templar who owned this area as the western part of their temple district in London for more than 150 years until they were dissolved in 1312 and the whole area fell to the king. The secular legal scholars then split up into two local bar associations, the Middle Temple and the Inner Temple. Both chambers were first mentioned in a manuscript from 1388. To the Templars, the well-preserved reminds Round Church ( Temple Church ) located centrally next to the hall of the inside Temple ( Inner Temple is Hall) (there is a Außentempel- ( Outer Temple ) area on the edge of the area, but which no separate Houses bar associations).
This round church was consecrated as early as 1185 at the time of Henry II by Heraclius of Caesarea , the Patriarch of Jerusalem . The Templars always built their churches in a round shape, as they should remind of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem. In the church are the graves of English crusaders , whose cross-legged depiction is intended to commemorate their participation in the crusades . The sculpture from that time can be seen in front of the church, two Knights Templar on a single horse, which symbolically indicates the strong fellowship of the knights with one another.
Part of the Middle Temple was consecrated land that belonged to a monastery , the rest was not consecrated. The name Cloisters (monastery) for the building, the refectory of the Inner Temple Hall, still reminds of its earlier use. The lay people were housed in the eastern part of the Middle Temple , including the non-consecrated knights of the order.
At the time of the Templars, the Middle Temple was the political and economic center of royal activities, as the order guaranteed religious and military protection.
The master ( master ) of the Templars in this place was at the same time supreme of all branches in England and subordinated only to the grand master abroad.
This tradition still lives on in so far as the priest of the temple church is called masters , more precisely priests and nobles ( The Reverend and Valiant ). The Middle Temple describes himself today as the house ( domus ) and the two bar associations (Inns) are sometimes known as communities of this house ( Societies of this House called).
Today in the temple church, which is still used as a church, services as well as religious concerts or weddings take place. The whole district is often used as a film set because of its flair (e.g. Da Vinci Code ).
There are occasional festivities in Middle Temple Hall .
On the occasion of the 400th anniversary of the first known performance of Shakespeare's What You Want on January 20, 1602 in Middle Temple Hall, the ensemble of Shakespeare's Globe performed the play there with great public interest. The same ensemble also performed Richard II there in 2003 . Both times, the head of the Globe Mark Rylance was the initiator and lead actor.
location
The fastest way to reach the Middle Temple and Inner Temple, which belong to the Inns of Court and are located between the Thames and Fleet Street , is the Temple underground station . They are located west of the City of London , but have their own legal status.
Web links
- Middle Temple website (English)
Coordinates: 51 ° 30 ′ 44 ″ N , 0 ° 6 ′ 40 ″ W.