Cistercian Order adopts the Carta Caritatis

Timeline

1. c. 1113–1119Cîteaux Abbey · BurgundyAfter becoming the third abbot of Cîteaux, Stephen Harding faced the rapid growth of daughter houses like Clairvaux and set about codifying the relationship between motherhouse and daughter houses in a written charter: all houses followed a single interpretation of the Rule of Saint Benedict, the motherhouse conducted visitations, and a general chapter convened annually at Cîteaux.
2. 1119Cîteaux Abbey · BurgundyCalixtus II confirmed the Carta Caritatis, granting the Cistercian Order's charter document papal authority. Later texts contain revision layers such as the 'Prior Charter' and 'Later Charter,' but the 1119 confirmation was a key milestone in the order's institutionalization, supporting the Cistercian expansion in Western Europe in the twelfth century.