Page:Collier's New Encyclopedia v. 06.djvu/275

MILITARY ORDERS were to tend sick pilgrims at Jerusalem and on their way to the Holy City. The order of the Templars soon followed; their purpose was to protect pilgrims and guard the Temple at Jerusalem. The orders of Alcantara, of Calatrava, and of Santiago of the Sword, in Spain, had for their immediate object the defense of their country and creed against the Moors. The Teutonic Knights had their origin in the Crusades, but afterward made the S. E. and E. shores of the Baltic the theater of their activity. These religious associations have mostly been abolished or have fallen into disuse, though some still subsist as orders of knighthood.  MILITARY ORGANIZATION, UNITED STATES. During the World War the organization of the Army of the United States was controlled by acts of Congress passed on June 3, 1916, which placed in the hands of the President practically absolute authority in the raising and maintaining of American forces. See,.  

 At the conclusion of peace, steps were taken to perfect a reorganization of the