IMPORTANT COMMUNICATION

to the CEREMONY MASTERS and PROTOCOL OFFICERS 

of the Traditional Chivalry Orders  - URBI et ORBI.

Please note that our Brother Fra. Heiko Bels, Sire de La Croix, has, by the Ordonnance Magistrale OM 41, dated 5 August 2017,

the Title, Rank, Functions and Prerogatives of a GRAND PRIOR.

It is as such authority that Fra. Heiko will represent our Order.

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Our Embassy is as of September 6, 2013 "non-active" !

All correspondence formerly addressed to the Diplomatic Mission must be, until further notice, transferred to the Magister Supremus : Frater Robert Adelsohn Bels at robertbels347@gmail.com.

As there is no Ambassador ad Interim, our Diplomatic Mission will be under the responsibility of the Magister Supremus Ordinis Balliolensis. 

The diplomatic services now function only on a slow and restricted basis and many of its functions are no longer carried out.

Our Order opened as of 1 July 2019, a General Consulate in Belgium.

THE TWO DIPLOMATS OF THE ORDER ARE :

- The Grand Master

- The Ambassador

To them applies the Diplomatic Immunity and International Conventions on Diplomats and Diplomatic Missions. (Convention de Vienne (A) du 18/4/1961 sur les relations diplomati­ques).

Since the events of September 11, 2001 in the United States of America, as well as others, far more recent, under the effect of its own pressures and interests, and of those of certain so-called peer States, this Convention has lost a large part of its value. Said Convention may today be regarded as a vestige, among others, of a time when democracy still possessed a few credentials.

Due to the accession to power of individuals who show little regard for conventions, for good manners, for the elementary rules of politeness, and for fundamental principles of conduct, both in countries with institutionalized dictatorships and in those that were once the beacons of democracy, we can only, often helplessly, witness the gradual erosion of those values that once still bestowed a measure of humanity upon the world.

Conclusion:
We harbour no illusions as to the real value attributed today to this Convention, nor, still less, to its practical application. Nevertheless, let us continue to apply it as it stands, as a guarantor of Human Dignity, following the example of Politeness and Good Manners within the world of Traditional Chivalry, which is our own.

This phraseology is in no way subversive. It merely brings awareness to a state of affairs that concerns the whole of humanity. Televote CM 245.

The Master of Ceremonies is assigned a Protocol Officer.

The latter exercises no diplomatic function.

POLITENESS, MANNERS, PROTOCOL

To the attention of the Officers of Protocol

We believe we are fully entitled to expect from our guests the same respect and consideration for our Grand Master, our Ambassador, and our Grand Priors and Princes of the Order as the Ordo Balliolensis itself accords, with the greatest care, to the authorities of other Orders and/or Grand Priories.

The Hymn of the Ordo Balliolensis shall be played in the same manner as the national hymns of other Orders or Grand Priories during ceremonies of an international character. Likewise, the flag of the Ordo Balliolensis shall open the procession and be presented in the same manner as the national flags of other international Orders or Grand Priories.
Televote CM 397.

ERRANT KNIGHTS

IMPORTANT NOTE

Partial excerpt of the Statutory Document of the Ordo Balliolensis.

Some Orders, more than others, unfortunately suffer from a reputation for recurring internal quarrels, rather than directing their full energy toward the true aims and purposes of Knighthood. In certain cases, the virulence of these disputes, accompanied by slanderous remarks, is even displayed publicly on the Internet for all to see. Needless to say, while such behaviour may be common and perhaps understandable among the general public, it is wholly unacceptable within the world of Traditional Knighthood.

Chivalry is, and must remain,an institution reserved for an elite.

Within the Ordo Balliolensis, a Knight duly armed according to Tradition remains a Knight for life. He remains a Knight even if he leaves the Order to which he was affiliated, whether of his own free will or as a result of dismissal.

In such a case, he becomes an “Errant Knight” (Chevalier errant).

An Errant Knight may, nevertheless, be invited to take part in an event within the world of Traditional Knighthood by any sovereign Order of Knighthood. As the inviting Order is sovereign, it is answerable to no other institution for such an invitation.

Nor does it fall within the remit of our Protocol Department to interrogate or challenge an Errant Knight should he, in honouring such an invitation, appear wearing the insignia or attributes of an Order to which he no longer belongs. A fraternal remark may be addressed to him; however, the final decision as to whether or not to comply rests entirely with the individual concerned.

It is for him alone to judge, in full conscience, whether his attitude accords with the Chivalric Ideal and spirit, and with the legitimate expectations of his Brothers and Sisters in Arms, who wish to see him respect the rules, customs, and usages of Knighthood, for the greater good of Chivalry as an elite institution.

APPELLATIONS

The protocol request to address dignitaries

of Knight Orders as follow :

-  A  Grand Master of a Knight Order. Verbal :Monseigneur. (Mgr.) Prince

        In Text and only for the Ordo Supremus Militari Templi Hierosolimitani                (OSMTH International): Son Altesse Sérénissime (SAS) or

        His Serene Highness (HSH).

-  A   Grand Master.  Verbal  :Monseigneur. (Mgr.).

         In Text : Magister Supremus (Mgr.) or Grand Maitre.

-  A   Grand Commandeur, Verbal : Monseigneur.

         In Text : Grand Commandeur  (for the Chevaliers de France).

-  A   Magisterial Advisor, Verbal and text : His Excellency (H.E) or Son                Excellence (S.E). Are in Dynastic Knight Orders, part of the Order's                  principality.

-  An Ambassador, Legat Magistral or a Grand Prior :

         Verbal and text : His Excellency (H.E) or Son Excellence (S.E).

-  A   Consul or another Dignitary : His Exceĺlency (H.E), as above.

-  A   Knight : Messire Chevalier. The appelation is a "Titel".

-  A   Squire and a Postulant : Gentilhomme - Gentedame.

       The appelation "Squire" is a "Rank".

       The appelation "Postulant" is a "Grade".

These addresses are only applicable in the world of the Traditional Chivalry. As our Order will never fail to respect these procedures, it is entitled to claim compliance with the provision by other Orders ! 

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For any questions, please feel free to contact our DIPLOMATIC MISSION.

Our Diplomatic Mission, through its translation Office, will answer any in-coming correspondence written in English - French - German - Russian - Spanish and Dutch.