Templars and the Tau Cross

The Tau is a figure constructed of five lines and is considered an important emblem or insignia in Royal Arch Masonry and was the symbol of the Knights Templar of Saint Anthony of Leith. Find out why…

Among my Masonic illustrations I have many definitions of the Tau. Some are that it means TH or Templum Hierosolyma, Temple of Jerusalem; or meaning a treasure, or a place where a treasure is buried. The Tau is a figure constructed of five lines and is considered an important emblem or insignia in Royal Arch Masonry. There is also a triple cross like a T from the Egyptian, Roman, or English alphabet.

What is the connection with Leith? This symbol was the symbol of the Knights Templar of Saint Anthony of Leith. His church, landscaped burial place was on St Anthony’s Wynd, an ally opposite Kirkgate that no longer exists. However, his preceptory was in the area from the Kirkgate shopping center and community center to Yardheads (Yard in Yardheads comes, by the way, from Old High German Yarde, meaning garden or monastic wall) and Henderson Gardens. Evidence of this comes from a Charter of King Jaime VI that says All the Croft of arable land adjoining the garden of San Antonio, and also all that place and piece of land on which the Church and Preceptory of San Antonio de los Caballeros was located Templars”, which during the Siege of Leith bore the same name, as did the properties of most Scottish parishes held by the Knights Templar. Some houses in Edinburgh and Leith bore the Badge of the Order, a Tau Cross with the motto Lavs Deo” to show that they held Superiority, but not, as is generally supposed, indicating that they themselves occupied the premises.

Further evidence was found in the last century when gas mains were being laid in St Anthony Street and substantial amounts of human remains were discovered. What they had found was the cemetery of the San Antonio Preceptory. This churchyard was quite substantial, covering much of what is St Anthony and Great Junction Street down to the Foot of Leith Walk. When the New Kirkgate shopping center was built, more human remains were found.

The church or monastery was very large, approximately 325 feet long from east to west. It appears to have had a double nave similar to the Templar Church at Templecombe in England with a large central steeple. The evidence for this comes from two sources. First from Sir Thomas Fisher in a letter to Somerset, Lord Protector of England, dated October 11, 1548, signifies a substantial Church in the area. Second, from the Siege of Leith when the French gunners mounted their cannons inside the Tower. However. Within a few hours, the Tower was demolished by English cannon fire.

At this stage it is important to clarify an important point. According to many writers, Leith was a very poor place during the Middle Ages. This was not true. When Lord Somerset entered Leith during what was called the Rough Courtship in 1544, Leith was found to be extremely wealthy: as much as London, if not more. This wealth came from the export of wool to the Netherlands after the English razed Berwick in 1296 under Edward I. This led to Leith’s development into Scotland’s main port until the rise of Glasgow in the 18th century. The wool came from the border abbeys of Melrose and Kelso, who together with Dunfermline owned most of Leith and all the land from Melrose and Kelso to the Forth. They did not pay taxes to the treasury. The Church grew rich and so did Leith. This explains how a church as large as St Anthony’s Preceptory could be built and why many famous people from Scottish history came here.