Canonesses of the Holy Sepulchre

The Canonesses Regular of the Holy Sepulchre, or Sepulchrine Canonesses, are a Catholic female religious order earliest documented 1300. They were originally the female branch of the ancient Religious order of that name, the Canons Regular of the Holy Sepulchre. The Canonesses follow the Rule of St. Augustine.

The traditional habit was black, and, when in church, over the tunic the choir Sisters would wear a white, sleeveless, linen rochet, on the left side of which was embroidered a red, double-barred Cross. Where still used, a black veil is worn by the professed, and a white one by novices and lay sisters; the later category, however, was abolished among religious orders by order of the Holy See in the 20th century.

Concerning the foundation, there is a tradition connecting the way of life of the canonesses with St. James the Great, and depicting St. Helena, the mother of Constantine the Great, as being given the religious habit of a canoness by St. Macarius, Bishop of Jerusalem. It was he who accompanied the Empress in her search for the True Cross. The Order of the Holy Sepulchre adopted the rule of St Augustine in 1114.

The earliest historical date on record is 1300, the year in which the monastery was founded in the province of Teruel, by the Marquise, Doña Gil de Rada. In 1306 the community was incorporated as part of the female branch of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre, a military Order founded in Jerusalem. The Prior General of the Knights confirmed the prioress as Religious Superior of the community. The Spanish canonesses still live in their ancient monastery in Zaragoza, built in the Mudéjar style when they moved there later in the 14th century.

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