History of the Knights of St. Andrew

The origins of the Order date back to the period 1220-1232 A.D., when a Confraternity, was established in the City of Acre, of the then Crusader Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem (occupying approximately the same territory as the modern state of Israel) to protect pilgrims and merchants.

 

This Confraternity, consisting of burgesses and knights of largely French heritage, met in the City’s Castle—and chose the Holy Apostle, St. Andrew, as their Patron. They constituted themselves as a Crusading Order of Knights with the object of resisting tyranny and protecting public safety.

 

During the turmoil of the Sixth Crusade, these worthies of the Order defended the poor, the sick and the weak from adversaries. In the best traditions of the Military and Religious Orders of the time, they founded their lives on prayer, charity, service and protection.

 

At about this time, the Holy Roman Emperor, Frederick II, operating from his base in Sicily, was contesting possession of Acre. Through his marriage to Yolande (also called Isabella) daughter of John of Brienne, a leading Crusader, the Emperor had become embroiled in the affairs of the Crusader States. The Emperor sent an unauthorized fleet of ships against Acre in 1227, whereupon the Knights and Officers of the Order of St. Andrew of Jerusalem appealed to Pope Gregory IX, who excommunicated the Emperor for this action.

 

During the subsequent negotiations with the Muslims by the Emperor Frederick, the Knights of St. Andrew remained aloof. Though some progress for the Crusaders appeared at first to have been made, their adherence to treaty commitments made at that time eventually enabled an army of Kwarizmian Turks, in the pay of the Sultan of Egypt, to crush the remaining Crusader enclaves, by about 1244.

 

It was about this juncture that the existing historical records of the Knights of St. Andrew were lost. It is speculated that the records may have been transported to Byzantium in hope of safekeeping, only to be lost yet again when the city fell to the Turks in 1453.

 

The Order resurfaced in 1314 as the medieval Order of the Knights of St. Andrew, formed by King Robert the Bruce of Scotland to honor sixty-three Knights who, at the Battle of Bannockburn, with no prior notice appeared on the field of battle as a mounted unit, quickly turning the tide and defeating the English.

 

The modern Order was fashioned on the noble example of those sixty-three Knights who came to the service of Scotland when she was in dire need.

 

WHO WAS ST. ANDREW?

By James Kiefer

 

Most references to Andrew in the New Testament simply include him on a list of the Twelve Apostles, or group him with his brother, Simon Peter. But he appears acting as an individual three times in the Gospel of John. When a number of Greeks, perhaps simply Greek-speaking Jews, wish to speak with Jesus, they approach Philip, who tells Andrew, and the two of them tell Jesus (Jn 12:20-22). Before Jesus feeds the five thousand, it is Andrew who says, “Here is a lad with five barley loaves and two fish.” (Jn 6:8)

 

And the first two disciples whom John reports as attaching themselves to Jesus (Jn 1:35-42) are Andrew and another disciple, whom John does not name, but who is commonly supposed to be John himself. John never mentions himself by name, a widespread literary convention. Having met Jesus, Andrew then finds his brother Simon and brings him to Jesus. Thus, on each occasion when he is mentioned as an individual, it is because he is instrumental in bringing others to meet the Saviour.  In the Episcopal Church, the Fellowship of Saint Andrew is devoted to encouraging personal evangelism and the bringing of one’s friends and colleagues to a knowledge of the Gospel of Christ.

 

Just as Andrew was the first of the Apostles, so his feast is taken in the West to be the beginning of the Church Year. (Eastern Christians begin their Church Year on September 1^st.) The First Sunday of Advent is defined to be the Sunday on or nearest his feast, although it could equivalently be defined as the fourth Sunday before Christmas Day.

 

Several centuries after the death of Andrew, some of his relics were brought by a missionary named Rule to Scotland, to a place then known as Fife, but now known as St. Andrew’s, and best known as the site of the world-famous St. Andrews golf course and club. For this reason, Andrew is the patron of Scotland.

 

When the Emperor Constantine established the city of Byzantium, or Constantinople, as the new capital of the Roman Empire, replacing Rome, the bishop of Byzantium became very prominent. Five sees came to be known as patriarchates; Rome, Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem, and Byzantium. The congregation at Rome claimed the two most famous apostles, Peter and Paul, as founders. Antioch could also claim both Peter and Paul, on the explicit testimony of Scripture, and of course Jerusalem had all the apostles. Alexandria claimed that Mark, who had been Peter’s “interpreter” and assistant, and had written down the Gospel of Mark on the basis of what he had heard from Peter, had after Peter’s death gone to Alexandria and founded the church there.  Byzantium was scorned by the other patriarchates as a new-comer, a church with the political prestige of being located at the capital of the Empire, but with no apostles in its history. Byzantium responded with the claim that its founder and first bishop had been Andrew the brother of Peter.  They pointed out that Andrew had been the first of all the apostles to follow Jesus (John 1:40-41), and that he had brought his brother to Jesus. Andrew was thus, in the words of John Chrysostom, “the Peter before Peter”. As Russia was Christianized by missionaries from Byzantium, Andrew became the patron not only of Byzantium but also of Russia.

 

Andrew is the national saint of Scotland. George (April 23^rd) is the national saint of England, Patrick (March 17^th) of Ireland, and Dewi, or David, (March 1^st) of Wales. George, who was a soldier, is customarily pictured as a knight with a shield that bears a red cross on a white background. This design is therefore the national flag of England. It is said that Andrew was crucified on a cross saltire, that is an ‘X’-shaped cross. His symbol is a cross saltire, white on a blue background. This is accordingly the national flag of Scotland. A symbol of Patrick is a red cross saltire on a white background. The crosses of George and Andrew were combined to form the Union Jack, or flag of Great Britain, and later the cross of Patrick was added to form the present Union Jack. Wales does not appear as such. Whether there is a design known as the cross of David is unknown.

 From “KSA – Knights of St. Andrew,”

 

 

KNIGHTS OF ST. ANDREW—MASONIC

In 1993 the Ill. Weldon J. Good, 33°, of the Valley of Tulsa, Oklahoma, developed the first Chapter of the Knights of St. Andrew as a service organization comprised of “Black Hat” Scottish Rite Masons. Its goal is to help them become more active in the Consistory as a whole and to provide selfless dedication to and the promotion of our Masonic Fraternity within the Scottish Rite, our community, our Jurisdiction, and the Orient.

 

Each Chapter is attached to a Valley within the Scottish Rite and it is subordinate to that Valley; its purpose being a service organization to the Mother Consistory. There is no other governing body. Each Chapter adopts its own by-laws and determines its own membership requirements. The Knights of St. Andrew is open to all 32^° degree “Black Hat” Scottish Rite Masons who are members in good standing of the Scottish Rite. Knights pledge to be active members in the Valley and to be of service to her as her need may require.

 

The Nashville Chapter was Chartered in 2004.

 

If you would like to join this Noble Order, please contact the Valley Office (615-259­-3434) or talk to any KSA member.

 

Respectfully,

C. L. Dodson KSA