INTRO TO THE ORTHODOX HISTORY OF THE TEMPLAR KNIGHTS & THE TEMPLAR-CATHAR CONNECTION.

As far as we know, the first historical material on the Templars is given to us by Guillaume de Tyre, a Frankish historian who was actively writing between 1175 and 1185. This was during the height of the Crusades, after Western armies had already invaded the Holy Land and founded the Kingdom of Jerusalem - or, as the Templars named it, 'Outremer', the 'Land Beyond the Sea.'

However, by the time Guillaume de Tyre began writing, Palestine had already been under Western hands for seventy years, and the Templars had been around for more than fifty, meaning Guillaume was actually writing about events that occurred before his own lifetime, occurrences that he had not directly witnessed or experienced, but had learned about second hand, and on the foundation of unknown and likely not the most reliable authority. Between 1127 and 1144, there were no Western chroniclers in Outremer - as a result, there are no written records for those pivotal years.

So, we don't know much about Guillaume's sources, which gives us good reason to take his word with a grain of salt. He could have been going off of widespread rumors, an untrustworthy oral tradition, or, he may have approached the Templars and relayed what selective information they shared with him. If this is the case, it means he is simply divulging what the Templars wanted him to divulge. But, Guillaume does supply us with some basic facts, and it is this material that has served as the foundation for all stories of the Templars that came after, all explanations of their origins, and records of their operations. However, because of Guillaume's ambiguity and sketchiness, as well as the period of time in which he wrote and the scarcity of documented sources, he provides a shaky foundation upon which to build a cohesive image. Guillaume's chronicles are unquestionably helpful but it is an error - and one that many historians have made - to treat them as infallible and entirely truthful. Even Sir Steven Runciman emphasizes that even Guillaume's 54 dates "are confused and at times demonstrably wrong” (Runciman, 1987).

The Order of the Poor Knights of Christ and the Temple of Solomon was created in 1118, according to Guillaume de Tyre. Its creator was Hugues de Payen, a nobleman and vassal of the count of Champagne (Esquieu, 1897). One day, unexpectedly, Hugues appeared with eight comrades at the palace of Baudouin I, king of Jerusalem, whose elder brother, Godfroi de Bouillon, had seized the Holy City nineteen years before. Baudouin appears to have welcomed them warmly, as did the Patriarch of Jerusalem, the new kingdom's religious leader and a special ambassador of the Pope.

The Templars' proclaimed goal, according to Guillaume de Tyre, was to "keep the roads and highways safe... with special regard for the protection of pilgrims" (Tyre, 2014). This goal was supposedly so important that the monarch assigned the knights a full wing of the royal palace. And, notwithstanding their oath of poverty, the knights settled into this sumptuous quarters. According to legend, their lodgings were built on the ruins of the old Temple of Solomon, which gave rise to the Order's name.

According to Guillaume de Tyre, the nine knights did not admit new members to their order for nine years. They were still thought to be poor, so poor that official seals depict two knights riding a single horse, symbolising brotherhood and also poverty. This type of seal is widely regarded as the most famous and distinctive of Templar devices, dating back to the Order's early days. However, it really dates back to a full century later, when the Templars were rarely destitute - if they were ever poor at all.

50 years later - again according to Guillaume de Tyre - the Templars were founded in 1118 and relocated into the king's palace, probably based there while pilgrims on their way to the Holy Land. The king also employed an official royal historian - Fulk de Chartres - who wrote during the time period and not half a century later. Surprisingly, Fulk of Chartres makes no mention of Hugues de Payen, his companions, or anything remotely related to the Knights Templar. There is a definitive hush about Templar activity in the early days of their existence.

There is no evidence of the knights doing anything to protect pilgrims anywhere, not even later on. And one has to question how only 9 men could hope to complete such a massive self-imposed goal. Nine men to guard pilgrims along all Holy Land thoroughfares? Just nine? To protect all of the pilgrims? If this was their goal, one would expect them to be keen on new recruits. But, according to Guillaume de Tyre, they did not admit any new applicants to the Order for nine years. Nonetheless, the Templars' popularity appears to have infiltrated Europe within a decade. Ecclesiastical authorities praised them and praised their Christian endeavor. By 1128, or shortly afterwards, Saint Bernard, abbot of Clairvaux and the age's foremost spokesman for Christendom, released a letter praising their virtues and qualities. Bernard's 'In Praise of the New Knighthood' declares the Templars to be the pinnacle and apotheosis of Christian principles.

In 1127, the majority of the nine knights returned to Europe to a huge welcome organized by Saint Bernard. In January 1128, a Church council was called in Troyes, the court of Hugues de Payen's liege lord, the count of Champagne, with Bernard once again serving as the driving voice. The Templars were declared an official religious-military organization at this council. Hugues de Payen was elevated to the rank of Grand Master. He and those under him were to be warrior-monks, soldier-mystics – a 'militia of Christ,' as they were known at the time. And, once again, Saint Bernard was instrumental in developing the code of conduct to which the knights would abide - a code based on that of the Cistercian monastic order, of which Bernard was a strong influence. The Templars pledged poverty, chastity, and obedience. They were required to cut their hair but not their beards, allowing them to stand out at an era when most men were clean-shaven. Diet, clothing, and other aspects of everyday life were strictly enforced in conformity with monastic and military norms. All Order members were required to wear white habits or surcoats and cloaks, which evolved into the distinctive white mantle for which the Templars became famous. 'It is granted to none to wear white habits, or to have white mantles, excepting the ... Knights of Christ' (Addison, 1842).

Pope Innocent II, a former Cistercian monk at Clairvaux and Saint Bernard's pupil, issued a Papal Bull in 1139. The Templars, according to this Bull, would owe fealty to no secular or ecclesiastical entity other than the pope himself. In other words, they were made completely autonomous of all monarchs, princes, and prelates, as well as all political and religious authorities. They had effectively become a law unto themselves, a self-contained multinational empire.

During the 20 years following the Council of Troyes, the Order grew at an astonishing rate and on an astounding scale. When Hugues de Payen visited England in late 1128, King Henry I received him with "great worship." Younger boys of noble families hurried to join the Order's ranks across Europe, and immense donations - in money, goods, and land - were given from every corner of Christendom.

Hugues de Payen gave his own property, and all new recruits were required to do the same. People were required to sign over all of their belongings, including their property, upon admittance to the Order. Given such measures, it's no surprise that Templar holdings grew in number. Within a year of the Council of Troyes, the Order had acquired considerable properties throughout France, England, Scotland, Flanders, Spain, and Portugal. Within a decade, it had conquered Italy, Austria, Germany, Hungary, the Holy Land, and points east. Despite the fact that individual knights were constrained by their poverty vow, the Order amassed money on an unprecedented scale. All presents were accepted. At the same time, the Order was barred from disposing of anything. The Temple received abundantly but, as a rule, never gave. When Hugues de Payen went to Palestine in 1130, he left behind extensive tracts of European territory in the care of other recruits, despite the fact that his entourage was large enough.

The Templars obtained the iconic spread red cross - the cross pattee - in 1146. The knights joined King Louis VII of France on the Second Crusade with this cross pattee inscribed on their mantles. Here, they earned a reputation for martial ardour combined with almost mad foolhardiness and furious attitude. Overall, they were brilliantly disciplined - the world's most disciplined combat force at the time. The French king himself stated that it was only the Templars that kept the Second Crusade from devolving into a total disaster, despite its ill-conceived and corrupt nature.

Over the next hundred years, the Templars rose to international prominence. They were continually involved in high-level diplomacy between nobles and monarchs from all over the Western world and the Holy Land. In England, for example, the Master of the Temple was summoned to the King's Parliament on a regular basis and was recognized as the supreme authority on religious orders, which had priority over all priors and abbots in the kingdom.

The Templars, who maintained close ties with both Henry II and Thomas a Becket, were essential in attempting to reunite the ruler and his estranged archbishop. Successive English rulers, notably King John, frequently stayed in the Temple's London preceptory, and the Master of the Order was present when the Magna Carta was signed (Addison, 1842).

But the Order's political participation was not limited to Christendom. Close ties were also established with the Muslim world, which was frequently at odds with the Templars on the battlefield, and the Templars commanded more respect from Saracen leaders than any other Europeans. Secret ties were also kept with the Hashishim or Assassins, a well-known sect of fierce and often fanatical adherents who served as Islam's equivalent of the Templars. The Hashishim paid homage to the Templars and were rumored to be under their command.

The Templars served as official arbiters in practically every political level, and even kings deferred to their authority, but the objectives of the Templars extended beyond battle, diplomacy, and political intrigue. In effect, they founded and formed the modern banking institution. They became the financiers for every kingdom in Europe, as well as certain Muslim potentates, by lending huge sums to poor rulers. They also organized, at low interest rates, the safe and quick transfer of money for merchant traders, a class that became increasingly reliant on them, through their network of preceptors throughout Europe and the Middle East. Money deposited in one location, for example, may be claimed and withdrawn in another using promissory notes imprinted with complex codes. As a result, the Templars became the principal money changers of the period, and the Paris preceptory became the center of European finance.

And the Templars traded not only in money, but also in ideas. They came to operate as a clearinghouse for new ideas, new aspects of knowledge, and new sciences as a result of their persistent and sympathetic engagement with Islamic and Judaic culture. They had dibs on the best and most advanced technology of their day, the best that armourers, leather artisans, stonemasons, military architects, and engineers could produce. They contributed to the advancement of surveying, mapping, road construction, and navigation. They had their own seaports, shipyards, and fleet - a commercial and military fleet that was among the earliest to use the magnetic compass. As soldiers, the Templars' need to treat wounds and illnesses trained them in the use of pharmaceuticals. The Order maintained its own hospitals, complete with its own physicians and surgeons, whose use of mold extract implies a grasp of antimicrobial qualities. Modern hygiene and cleaning standards were grasped. And, with foresight, they saw epilepsy as a treatable sickness rather than a demonic possession. (Melville: 1974).

However, while the Templars rose to prominence in Europe, conditions in the Holy Land had deteriorated significantly. King Baudouin IV of Jerusalem died in 1185. In the ensuing dynastic conflict, Gerard de Ridefort, Grand Master of the Temple, broke a pledge given to the dead monarch, bringing the European society in Palestine to the brink of civil war. This was not Ridefort's only problematic behavior. His flippant attitude toward the Saracens shattered a lasting truce and sparked a new round of fighting. Then, in July 1187, Ridefort led his knights and the rest of the Christian army into a hasty, misguided, and ultimately fatal combat at Hattin. The Christian armies were almost destroyed, and two months later, Jerusalem, which had been taken nearly a century ago, was once again in Saracen hands. The position became extremely bleak over the next century. By 1291, practically all of Outremer had fallen under Muslim rule, and the Holy Land was almost totally under Muslim control. Only Acre remained, and this last fortress was destroyed in May 1291. The Templars were at their most courageous in protecting the fatal city. Despite being seriously wounded, the Grand Master fought until his death. Due to limited room in the Order's galleys, women and children were evacuated, while all knights, including the wounded, decided to remain. When Arce's last fortress fell, it collapsed with apocalyptic ferocity, the walls falling and burying attackers and defenders alike.

The Templars had also presided over the formation of another chivalric, religious-military order, the Teutonic Knights, a century before. The latter were engaged in the Middle East in limited numbers, but by the mid-thirteenth century had shifted their focus to the north-eastern frontiers of Christendom. They had carved out an independent principality for themselves here, the Ordenstaat or Ordensland, which included nearly the entire eastern Baltic. The Teutonic Knights had unrivaled autonomy in this province, which stretched from Prussia to the Gulf of Finland and what is now Russian territory, and was beyond the reach of both secular and ecclesiastical administration.

The Templar-Cathar connection

The Templars have envied the other order's independence and immunity since the Ordenstaat's establishment. Following the collapse of the Holy Land, they began to dream of establishing their own kingdom in which they could exert the same unrivaled authority and independence as the Teutonic Knights. The Templars, unlike the Teutonic Knights, were not interested in the harsh environment of Eastern Europe. They were too used to wealth and opulence at this point. As a result, they envisioned establishing their state on a more readily available, hospitable ground: the Languedoc.

The Temple had always had a friendly relationship with the Cathars, particularly in the Languedoc. Many wealthy landowners, either Cathars themselves or Cathar sympathizers, had donated enormous areas of land to the Order. According to a recent writer, at least one of the Temple's founding partners was a Cathar. This may seem unlikely, yet Bertrand de Blanchefort, the Order's fourth Grand Master, was descended from a Cathar family. Forty years after Bertrand's dying, his heirs fought alongside other Cathar lords against Simon de Montfort's Northern invasion (d’Albon, 2011).

The Templars nominally remained neutral throughout the Albigensian Crusade, relegating themselves to the duty of witnesses. At the same time, the Grand Master of the period appears to have clarified the order's position when he announced that there was only one true Crusade - the Crusade against the Saracens. But, a close examination of historical reports demonstrates that the Templars served as a safe haven for numerous Cathar refugees. On occasion, they appear to have taken up weapons in support of these refugees. In addition, an examination of the Order's records near the start of the Albigensian Crusade reveals a significant influx of Cathars into the Temple's ranks - where not even Simon de Montfort's crusaders would dare to fight them. Indeed, the Templar rolls of the time demonstrate that a sizable fraction of the Order's high-ranking nobles were descended from Cathar families.

In Languedoc, temple authorities were more often Cathar than Catholic. Furthermore, the Cathar nobility who enrolled in the Temple do not appear to have traveled as widely as their Catholic counterparts. They also appear to have lingered in the Languedoc for the most part, providing the Order with a long-standing and stable foothold in the region.

The Templars already understood numerous concepts foreign to traditional Roman Christianity as a result of their contact with Islamic and Judaic civilizations. Templar Masters, for example, frequently employed Arab secretaries, and many Templars were fluent in Arabic after learning it in captivity. A close relationship was also kept with Jewish groups financial interests and scholarship. The Templars have thus been exposed to numerous things that Rome would not normally tolerate. They had been introduced to Gnostic dualism through the flood of Cathar recruits, if they had ever been truly unfamiliar with it.

The presumed fall of the Templars

By 1306, Philippe IV of France, often known as Philippe le Bel, was desperate to cleanse his country of the Templars. They were haughty and rowdy. They were a professional military force that was significantly stronger and more efficient and more well-organized than he could conjure. They were well-established throughout France, and their loyalty to the Pope was only notional at this point. Philippe had little influence over the Order. He owed money to it. He'd been humiliated when, fleeing a hostile Paris mob, he was forced to take sanctuary in the Temple's preceptory. He envied the Templars' enormous fortune, which his visit to their headquarters made quite clear to him. And, after applying to the Order as a postulant, he had undergone the humiliation of being denied. This, along with the looming threat of a self-governing Templar state at his back door, were enough to compel the monarch to act. And again, heresy was a suitable justification.

Philippe had to first enlist the help of the pope, to whom the Templars owed fealty and obedience (in theory). Between 1303 and 1305, the French king and his ministers orchestrated the kidnapping and assassination of one pope (Boniface VIII) and the poisoning of another (Benedict XI). Then, in 1305, Philippe succeeded in having his own nominee, the archbishop of Bordeaux, elected to the empty papal seat. The next Pope was known as Clement V. He couldn't deny the king's demands because he was so reliant on Philippe's power. And among these requests was the eventual abolition of the Knights Templar.

Philippe meticulously prepared his moves. A list of charges was created, based partially on the king's spies infiltrating the Order and in part on the voluntary confession of an alleged rogue Templar. Armed with these charges, Philippe could finally move, and his blow was sudden, quick, effective and devastating. The king issued sealed and secret orders to his seneschals throughout the land in a savvy security operation.

These orders were to be exacted simultaneously worldwide. All Templars in France were to be taken and arrested by the king's troops at dawn on Friday, October 13th, 1307, their preceptories placed under royal confinement, and their goods seized. However, while Philippe's unexpected goal appeared to have been met, his real interest - the Order's enormous fortune - escaped him. It was never discovered, and we still don’t know what happened to the fantastic Templar treasure.

In truth, it's debatable if Philippe's surprise assault on the Order was as surprising as he or later historians thought. There is a lot of evidence that the Templars got some type of help. Ahead of time. For example, shortly before the arrests, the Grand Master, Jacques de Molay, summoned many of the Order's writings and existing rules and had them burned. The treasurer advised a knight who resigned from the Order at this time that he was extraordinarily 'smart,' as disaster was on the way. An official note was sent to all French preceptories, emphasizing that no information about the Order's traditions and rites would be shared.

In any event, preparations were unquestionably taken. First and foremost, the captive knights appear to have surrendered calmly, as if under orders to do so. There is no record of the Order in France openly opposing the king's seneschals. Second, there is compelling evidence of an organized flight by a specific group of knights, almost all of whom were in some way linked with the Order's Treasurer. It is perhaps not unexpected, then, that the Temple's treasure, as well as practically all of its archives and records, vanished. Rumours persist, but are unproven, that the treasure was smuggled by night from the Paris preceptory just before the arrests. According to legends, it was taken by wagons to the shore, possibly to the Order's naval base at La Rochelle, and placed aboard eighteen galleys that were never seen or heard from again. Whether this is accurate or not, the Templars' fleet appears to have eluded the king's grasp because there is no mention of any of the Order's ships being taken. Contrarily, the ships appear to have vanished completely, as well as whatever they were carrying.

The arrested Templars were tried in France, and many were tortured. Strange admissions were obtained, and even crazier allegations were leveled. Grim rumors began to spread throughout the country. The Templars were said to worship a sinister idol named Baphomet. They allegedly prostrated themselves before a bearded man head who spoke to them and bestowed occult powers on them during their secret ceremonies. Unauthorized witnesses to these rites were never been seen afterwards. There were also vaguer charges, such as infanticide, instructing women how to abort, obscene kisses during postulant induction, and homosexuality. But, of all the charges brought against these Christ-followers who had battled and died for Him, one sticks out as the most odd and obviously implausible. They were accused of ritually rejecting Christ, of stomping and spitting on the cross.

At least in France, the destiny of the jailed Templars was basically decided. Philippe pursued them ruthlessly and cruelly. Many were burned alive, while many more were detained and tortured. Simultaneously, the king continued to pressure the pope, seeking increasingly harsh actions against the Order. After a period of defiance, the pope yielded in 1312, and the Knights Templar were officially disbanded - without a definitive finding of guilt or innocence ever being declared. However, in Philippe's areas, the trials, inquiries, and inquiries lasted another two years.

Finally, in March 1314, the Grand Master, Jacques de Molay, and the Preceptor of Normandy, Geoffroi de Charnay, were roasted to death over a slow fire. The Templars supposedly vanish from history with their execution. Nonetheless, the Order did not vanish. It would be astonishing if it had, given the number of knights who escaped, stayed at large, or were convicted. Philippe had attempted to persuade his fellow kings, intending to assure that no Templar would be spared wherever in Christendom. The king's devotion in this regard is almost questionable. One may understand his desire to cleanse his territory of the Order's presence. It is less apparent why he was so hell-bent on exterminating Templars elsewhere. Certainly, he was no model of virtue, and it is impossible to image a ruler who planned for the assassination of two popes being truly disturbed by violations of faith. Was Philippe simply afraid of retaliation if the Order remained intact outside of France? Or was there something else going on?

The survival after the attack

Anyway, his endeavor to exterminate Templars outside of France was a failure. Philippe's own son-in-law, Edward II of England, for instance, initially came to the Order's defense. Ultimately, under pressure from both the pope and the French king, he agreed to their requests, but only in part - and hesitantly. Although most Templars in England appear to have escaped, a number were apprehended. Most of these, however, got short punishments - often as little as a few years’ penance in abbeys and monasteries, where they lived in relatively decent conditions. Their territories were finally given to the Knights Hospital of Saint John, although they were not subjected to the heinous persecution that befell their colleagues in France.

It was much more difficult to get rid of the templars in other parts of the world. For example, Scotland was at war with England at that time, and the resulting instability allowed little room for legal graces to be implemented. As a result, the Papal Bulls abolishing the Order were never declared in Scotland, and the Order was never officially dissolved in Scotland. Many English and, it appears, French Templars sought sanctuary in Scotland, and a sizable force is claimed to have fought alongside Robert Bruce at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314. According to mythology – and there is evidence to back it up – the Order remained a cohesive body in Scotland for another four centuries. William of Orange deposed James II of England during the conflict of 1688. In Scotland, supporters of the embattled Stuart ruler rose in revolt, and John Claverhouse, Viscount of Dundee, was murdered on the battlefield at the Battle of Killiecrankie in 1689. When his body was discovered, he was purportedly wearing the Grand Cross of the Order of the Temple - not a current symbol, but one dating prior to 1307 (Waite, 1921).

The Templars were supported by the duke of Lorraine, which was part of Germany at the time and not part of France. A few were tried and found not guilty. Most, it appears, obliged their Preceptor, who allegedly instructed them to shave their beards, dress secularly, and blend in with the locals. The Templars publicly challenged their judges in Germany, threatening to take up arms. Infuriated, their judges acquitted them, and when the Order was officially abolished, many German Templars sought refuge with the Hospitallers of Saint John and the Teutonic Order. The Templars battled against their oppressors in Spain as well, and fled to other organizations.

In Portugal, the Order was found innocent and simply changed its name to Knights of Christ. They continued to operate under this title long into the sixteenth century, dedicating themselves to marine business.

Vasco da Gama was a Knight of Christ, and Prince Henry the Navigator was the Order's Grand Master. The Knights of Christ's vessels sailed under the distinctive red pattee cross. Christopher Columbus' three caravels crossed the Atlantic to the New World under the same cross. Columbus got access to his father-in-law's charts and journals because he was married to the daughter of a previous Knight of Christ.

So, in a sense, the Templars survived the October 13th, 1307 assault . In 1522, the Teutonic Knights, the Templars' Prussian offspring, secularised themselves, abandoned their loyalty to Rome, and backed an upstart rebel and heretic named Martin Luther.

Two centuries after their collapse, the Templars were indirectly taking revenge on the Church that had deceived them, albeit indirectly.

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• ADDISON, C. G. 1842. The History of the Knights Templars, the Temple Church, and the Temple, p.19

• ADDISON, C. G. 1842. The History of the Knights Templars, the Temple Church, and the Temple, p. 148

• D'ALBON, A. 2011. Cartulaire général de l'ordre du Temple, 1119?-1150: recueil des chartes et des bulles relatives à l'ordre du Temple formé par le Marquis d'Albon, p. 112

• ESQUIEU, L. 1897 'Les Templiers de Cahors', in Bulletin de la societe des etudes litteraires, scientifiques et artistiques du Lot, vol. 22, p. 282

• MELVILLE, M. 1974. La vie des Templiers. p. 213

• TYRE, W. 2014. A History of deeds done beyond the sea, vol. 1, p. 525

• RUNCIMAN, S. 1987. A History of the Crusades, vol. 2, p. 477

• WAITE, A. E. 1921. A New Encyclopaedia of Freemasonry. Vol. 2, p.223

• Lincoln, H., Baigent, M. & Leigh, R. 2013. The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail, Random House.