Inner Temple
The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional association for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and Wales, a person must belong to one of these Inns. It is located in the wider Temple area, near the Royal Courts of Justice, and within the City of London. As a liberty, it functions largely as an independent local government authority.
The Inn is a professional body that provides legal training, selection, and regulation for members. It is ruled by a governing council called "Parliament", made up of the Masters of the Bench (or "Benchers"), and led by the Treasurer, who is elected to serve a one-year term. The Temple takes its name from the Knights Templar, who originally (until their abolition in 1312) leased the land to the Temple's inhabitants (Templars). The Inner Temple was a distinct society from at least 1388, although as with all the Inns of Court its precise date of founding is not known. After a disrupted early period (during which the Temple was almost entirely destroyed in the Peasants' Revolt) it flourished, becoming the second-largest Inn during the Elizabethan period (after Gray's Inn).
The Inner Temple expanded during the reigns of James I and Charles I, with 1,700 students admitted between 1600 and 1640. The First English Civil War's outbreak led to a complete suspension of legal education,[1] with the Inns close to being shut down for almost four years. Following the English Restoration the Inner Templars welcomed Charles II back to London personally with a lavish banquet.
After a period of slow decline in the 18th century, the following 100 years saw a restoration of the Temple's fortunes, with buildings constructed or restored, such as the Hall and the Library. Much of this work was destroyed during The Blitz, when the Hall, Temple, Temple Church, and many sets of barristers' chambers were devastated. Rebuilding was completed in 1959, and today the Temple is an active Inn of Court with over 8,000 members.
History[edit]
The Knights Templar and the founding of the Inner Temple[edit]
The history of the Inner Temple begins in the early years of the reign of Henry II (1154–1189), when the contingent of Knights Templar in London moved from the Old Temple in Holborn to a new location on the banks of the River Thames, stretching from Fleet Street to what is now Essex House.[7] The original Temple covered much of what is now the northern part of Chancery Lane (originally New Street), which the Knights created to provide access to their new buildings. The old Temple eventually became the London palace of the Bishop of Lincoln. After the Reformation it became the home of the Earl of Southampton, and the location is now named Southampton Buildings. The first group of lawyers came to live here during the 13th century, although as legal advisers to the Knights rather than as a society. The Knights fell out of favour, and the order was dissolved in 1312, with the land seized by the king and later granted to the Knights Hospitaller. The Hospitallers probably did not live on the property, but rather used it as a source of revenue through rent.[8]
The secular, common law lawyers migrated to the hamlet of Holborn, as it was easy to get to the law courts at Westminster Hall and was just outside the City.[9]
Two groups occupied the Hospitaller land, and became known as the "inner inn" (occupying the consecrated buildings near the centre of the Temple) and the "middle inn" (occupying the unconsecrated buildings between the "inner inn" and the Outer Temple). These became the Inner Temple and the Middle Temple, and were distinct societies by 1388, when they are mentioned in a year book.[8] The Hospitallers leased the land to the Inner Temple for £10 a year, with students coming from Thavie's Inn to study there.[10]
Plate[edit]
The Inner Temple is noted for its collection of silver and pewter plate,[45] described in the early 20th century as similar in value to that of Oxford or Cambridge University.[46] The first reference to plate is in 1534, with a silver cup left to the Temple as part of the estate of a Master Sutton. Further pieces were added over the next century, with Robert Bowes giving a silver gilt cup to Sir John Baker in 1552. The cup, which was shaped like a melon with feet formed from the "tendrils" of the melon, is a prized possession of the Temple.[46] Nicholas Hare left three silver salt cellars for the use of the Benchers in 1597. Two silver candlesticks were bought in 1606, another salt cellar in 1610 and six silver spoons in 1619. A large part of the "house plate" was stolen in 1643, and it is unknown whether it was recovered, although money was spent in prosecuting the offender.[47]
Two silver cups were bought in 1699, and records from 1 January 1703 show that the Temple owned one gilt cup (the "melon" cup) five salt cellars, ten large cups, twelve
little cups, and twenty-three spoons. Twelve more spoons were bought in 1707, along with another silver cup, and at some point in this period the Temple purchased or was given a nef.[47] A dozen teaspoons were bought in 1750, a coffee pot in 1788 and an "argyle" or gravy holder in 1790.[45]