karl borchardt order received the inheritance. Others argued – for example in 1587 – that after taking solemn vows religiosi were dead to the world and unable to inherit anything.8 This case concerned the Hospitaller Fr. Louis de Lastic († 1576), Grand Prior of Auvergne and Grand Marshal of the Order.9 To justify this decision, the sixteenth century Frenchiurisconsultus Pierre Rebuffe (1487–1557)10 was quoted, having argued that Hierosolimitani non vovent paupertatem, sed vovent sine proprio vivere.11 In 1588 the Grandmaster on Malta declared on the contrary that all brethren had the right to accept and administer inherited properties.12 Be that as it may, in real life manyreligiosi held belongings for their personal use, that is in usufruct, especially clothes, harnesses, books, cash, and valuables made from gold or silver. And similar toclerici, religiosi could also be granted a licentia testandi, either by the pope or by superiors in their respective order.13 Opinions were divided as to how far dispensations might go. Innocent III held that even the pope could not grant licences against the abdicatio proprietatis andthecustodia castitatis, whereas Innocent IVapparently thought the contrary.14 In fact, however, many medieval religiosi did draft and authenticate documents which were calledtestamentaand which did stipulate some kind of last will concerning their personal belongings. As far as we know the only order that avoided the termtestamentumwere the Hospitallers, the military-religious Order of the Hospital of St. John in Jerusalem founded 8 Rebuffus (1587), Responsa et consilia, p.227b:… de consuetudine regni religiosi non possunt suis succedere parentibus nec consanguineis, quia non possunt habere proprium. 9 Bouillet (1848), pp. 348–71. 10 Pierre Rebuffe (1487–1557) was a French lawyer anddoctor utriusque iuris from Baillargues near Montpellier. He taught at Toulouse, Montpellier, Cahors, Poitiers, and then at Paris, where he died: Philippe Fabry (2018). 11 Rebuffus (1587), p. 228b: … Hierosolimitani non prohibentur habere bona in vita, sed in testamento disponere non possunt. 12 According to an attachment to the 1583 statutes: Waldstein-Wartenberg (1969), p. 164. 13 The vow of poverty but not the testamenta religiosorumwas discussed by Dannenberg (2008), pp. 349–54. 14 Melville (2014), pp. 193–94. 107 Hospitaller despropriamenta
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