The Templars and the Parisian Builders 121before 1130.^19 Yet, the rapid erection of large and important buildings of
the Temple and of the city adjoining it presumes the existence of an exten-
sive organization. It could be that it was only the Templar community led
by the magister carpentarius and that this organization was the source of
the Parisian matrises of masons and carpenters. It is also within reason to
suggest that the Parisian metier was organized before that of London and
that the craftsmen in the English capital were influenced by it.
One bit of proof within the Templar rotunda suggesting a link
between the Parisian builders and the Templars is the Saint Anne Chapel
or Altar that lies to the left of the nave and choir and is maintained by
the toicturiers (roofers) of Paris.^20 There was also a small Saint Nicolas
Chapel in the Templar Church at one time that may have been the seat
of a confederation of carpenters. Masonry, carpentery, mortar making,
stonecutting, plastering, and other trades involved in the construction of
buildings would have required a number of patron saints among which
are Jesus Christ, Saint Blaise, Saint Nicolas, Saint Anne, Saint Thomas,
Saint John the Baptist, and Saint John the Evangelist.
Right next to the site of the former church of the Temple on the rue
Saint Martin, we find the church of Saint Nicolas des Champs, which
is also dedicated to Saint John the Baptist. A church dedicated to Saint
Nicholas had already been built on this spot at the beginning of the
twelfth century, before the arrival of the Templars.
The parish district was always under the jurisdiction of Saint
Martin des Champs, a priory of the Cluny Order. A bull from around
1119 issued by Calixtus II mentions a parish Saint Nicolas Chapel that
was separate from the convent church.^21 With respect to the adminis-
tration of justice, the parish territory was divided between the priory of
Saint Martin and the Temple—another example of the closeness of
Templar and Benedictine neighbors in the city itself. An agreement con-
cluded in 1292 confirmed the rights of the Temple over the moat of the
Saint Martin Convent (on rue Frepillon, or today's rue Volta).^22 We are
quite certain that until the Templars settled there, the town was only a
collection of peasant huts around the priory of Saint Martin. The monks,
who mainly devoted themselves to intellectual tasks customary of
Benedictines, hardly inspired any craftsmen to settle in their censive
district. This situation changed when the Templars moved onto parish