The name Boni Homines ('Good men' in Latin) or Bonshommes (the same in French) was popularly given to at least three religious orders in the Catholic Church:

Grandmontines

The Order of Grandmont, were an austere order founded by St. Stephen of Muret. By the end of the twelfth century they had more than sixty monasteries, principally in Acquitaine, Anjou and Normandy. The rules of the order were relaxed to a great extent after 1643. In the Eighteenth Century they had three convents of nuns. The order was suppressed in the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are conside ...

The Fratres Saccati, or Brothers of Penitence

The Fratres Saccati, or Brothers of Penitence, were an order that were active in Spain, France and England. It is said that they controlled

Ashridge Priory Ashridge Priory was a medieval college of Austin canons called variously the "Brothers of Penitence" or the "Boni Homines". It was founded by Edmund of Almain in 1283 who donated, among other things, a phial of Christ's blood to the abbey. It wa ...

and

Edington Priory Edington Priory in Wiltshire, England, was founded by William Edington, the bishop of Winchester, in 1351 in his home village of Edington, about east of the town of Westbury. The priory church was consecrated in 1361 and continues in use as the ...

in England, but this has been completely repudiated in an article by Richard Emory in the journal ''Speculum'' (1943), who attributes the original connection to Helyot's ''Dictionnaire des Ordres Religieux'', which was compiled in Paris between the late 17th and early 18th centuries.

The Portuguese Boni Homines of Villar de Frades

The Portuguese Boni Homines were founded by John de Vicenza in the fifteenth century.Boni Homines
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Catholic Encyclopedia The ''Catholic Encyclopedia: An International Work of Reference on the Constitution, Doctrine, Discipline, and History of the Catholic Church'' (also referred to as the ''Old Catholic Encyclopedia'' and the ''Original Catholic Encyclopedia'') i ...

article and was confirmed by

Pope Martin V Pope Martin V ( la, Martinus V; it, Martino V; January/February 1369 – 20 February 1431), born Otto (or Oddone) Colonna, was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 11 November 1417 to his death in February 1431. Hi ...

under the title of "Boni Homines". They had charge of all the royal hospitals in Portugal and sent missionaries to India and Ethiopia.

References

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