The Knights Templar are among history's most enigmatic figures. Founded in 1119 to protect pilgrims in the Holy Land, they became one of the most powerful and wealthy orders in the medieval world. Their sudden fall in 1307 generated centuries of mysteries and legends.
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we conjure images of the Knights Templar, our minds are swift to paint pictures of warrior monks clad in white mantles emblazoned with a red cross, charging into battle in the Holy Land. We see them as the elite fighting force of the Crusades, pious and formidable soldiers of Christ. While this i...
Read articleThe Knights Templar represent one of the greatest enigmas of medieval history. Born as humble protectors of pilgrims, they became within two centuries the most powerful organization in Europe, with properties in every Christian kingdom, their own fleet, and a banking system that preceded modern financial institutions.
Founded in 1119 by Hugues de Payns and eight companions, the Templars were born to protect pilgrims on the dangerous roads of the Holy Land. Pope Innocent II, with the bull Omne Datum Optimum of 1139, made them independent of any secular authority.
The Templars invented a system of letters of credit that allowed pilgrims to deposit money in one commandery and withdraw it in another. This incredibly modern system made them bankers to kings and popes.
King Philip IV of France, heavily indebted to the Order, orchestrated an unprecedented coup. At dawn on Friday, October 13, 1307, all Templars in France were arrested simultaneously on charges of heresy. Grand Master Jacques de Molay was burned alive in 1314.
Foundation of the Knights Templar in Jerusalem
Pope Innocent II grants the Templars extraordinary privileges
Saladin defeats the Crusaders at the Battle of Hattin
Philip IV of France orders the arrest of all Templars
Friday the 13th is considered unlucky likely because of the Templars' arrest on Friday, October 13, 1307.
The Templars invented the concept of the 'traveller's cheque': deposit gold at one commandery and withdraw it at another.
At the time of their arrest, the Templars owned over 9,000 properties across Europe.
we conjure images of the Knights Templar, our minds are swift to paint pictures of warrior monks clad in white mantles emblazoned with a red cross, charging into battle in the…
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""Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but unto Thy name give glory."
They were a religious-military order founded in 1119 in Jerusalem to protect Christian pilgrims in the Holy Land.
In 1307, King Philip IV of France had them arrested on charges of heresy, likely to seize their wealth.
No. The legendary Templar treasure remains one of history's greatest mysteries.
Dan Jones (2017)
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Umberto Eco (1988)
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History Channel (2017)
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