Post by Lucy of Ravenscar on May 14, 2023 13:24:40 GMT
This is part one of an article that appeared in Nothing's Forgotten issue 3, April 1996.
Pauperes Commilitones Christi + Militia Templi Solomonis
The Knights Templar
By Kin Ming Looi
John: Who are they?
Marion: Templars.
Tuck: Poor Knights of the Temple of Solomon.
Scarlet: Poor?! I'd hate to see the good ones!
Even before I first saw Seven Poor Knights from Acre, I already had a strong interest in the Knights Templar. The episode, with its sinister, fanatical and utterly ruthless Templars was therefore something of a treat for me. Enshrouded as they are in an almost mystical aura of speculation and myth built up over centuries, the Knights Templar are a fascinating organisation. They certainly made for a very entertaining set of foes in Seven Poor Knights from Acre. In this first half of a two-part article, I will first present a brief history of the Knights Templar, followed in the next part by an examination of some of the more lurid allegations concerning the Templars and then finally a discussion of the implications of all this for Robin of Sherwood.
Part 1: History
The Knights Templar, or the Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and the Temple of Solomon, to give them their full title, were a military and religious order founded in Jerusalem in 1118 by nine knights. (Founder members: Hugues de Payns, Godefroi de Saint Omer, Andre de Montbard, Gundomar, Godfroy, Roral, Geoffrey Bisol, Payen de Montdesir, Archambaud de Saint Aignan). The order derived its title from its original headquarters, assigned to it by King Baldwin II of Jerusalem: a building known at the time as Solomon's Temple. The professed aim of the nine founder members was the protection of pilgrims to the Holy Land.
The Templars were among several monastic military orders founded after the end of the First Crusade (1095-1099) which had achieved the conquest of Jerusalem from the Muslims and the foundation of four states Crusader in the Holy Land. (From South to North, the Kingdom of Jerusalem, the County of Tripoli, the Principality of Antioch and the County of Edessa). Other contemporary orders included the Knights of Saint John of Jerusalem (in full The Sovereign Military Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes, and of Malta), founded in 1113 and the Teutonic Knights, (full name Teutonic Knights of Saint Mary's Hospital at Jerusalem), formed by German Crusaders in 1190-91 in Acre, Palestine. Like the Templars, the primary aim of these orders was to protect the Holy Land and pilgrims travelling there.
By most accounts, including a letter written by Hugues de Payns, the early years of the order were a difficult struggle. The Templars suffered from a lack of recognition and money and ideological disagreements over their exact role (primarily the balance between their religious and military duties).
However, the fortunes of the Knights Templar began their rise in 1128 with the Council of Troyes. There, the Templars obtained papal sanction for their activities and St. Bernard of Clairvaux lauded the order and formally established its structure and rules. St Bernard, founder of the Cistercian Order, drew up the austere Rules of the Order based on those of the Cistercians, instilling in them a strong monastic trait. The Templars were to be headed by a grand master, under whom were three ranks: knights, chaplains, and sergeants. The knights were the dominant members, and they alone were allowed to wear the distinctive dress of the order, a white mantle with a large splayed red Latin cross (the cross patté).
The Council of Troyes also bestowed on the Templars their official seal, as seen in Seven Poor Knights from Acre. This design was inaugurated in conjunction of the adoption of the Rule of the Order. In the Seal we see two knights riding one horse, and the legend "Sigillum Militum Christi" (Sign of the Knights of Christ) surrounding the image. The image stems from two sources; firstly the poverty vow of the knights, with two knights economically riding one horse and, secondly, from the knight carrying his wounded comrade from battle.
Following the Council of Troyes, the fortunes of the Templars rose dramatically. The Order received an influx of recruits from Europe's noble families, as well as substantial donations of money and land. Thus, despite their humble origins and vows of poverty, the Templars came to be one of the richest and most influential organisations in the Christian world. It became exempt from taxes and local authority, even to the extent that it was only accountable to the Pope, and then sometimes only nominally. Consequently, the Templars came to be noted for both for their power and arrogance.
Sheriff: Now, Frere Reynald, you were about to tell me what you were doing here.
De Villaret: Je ne crois pas (trans: I think not).
Sheriff: Oh? And why not?
De Villaret: Because I don't choose to.
However, the Templars were also an astonishingly successful business venture as well as a military Order. The Order's financial activities began because it needed to supply the Holy Land with soldiers and money. The Order used its extensive network of preceptories across Europe and the Holy Land and its powerful fleet in the Mediterranean to transfer funds. This network came to be used by nobles and monarchs. Money was deposited at one preceptory in exchange for encoded chits and which could be redeemed for money by presenting it at another preceptory. By charging a commission and also by lending funds, the Templars became richer still.
Nonetheless, the primary purpose of the Knights Templar was the protection of the Holy Land. In prosecuting this aim, the Templars executed their duty with a fanatical dedication and quickly acquired a reputation for ruthlessness and reckless courage. The Order remained headquartered at Jerusalem until its fall to the Muslims in 1187. It then relocated successively to Antioch, Acre, Caesarea and Cyprus. However, after the fall of Acre, the last major Crusader stronghold in Palestine, in 1291 and the effective end of the Crusades, the Templars were no longer needed to secure the Holy Land and so increasingly no longer had a major role to play. By this time, their power, wealth and arrogance had made the Templars many powerful enemies.
These enemies included King Philip IV of France, nicknamed with more than a touch of irony Philip le Bel or Philip the Fair. Philip was sorely in need of money and indebted to the Templars to an extent he had no hope of repaying. To extricate himself, Philip had his candidate, Clement V, appointed as Pope and the order charged with heresy and immorality in 1307.
The accusations against the Order fell into seven main categories:
-The denial of saints, the Virgin Mary, and Jesus Christ as Saviour. It was said that the Templars held Christ to be a false prophet and therefore no redemption would be forthcoming from Him. This charge also included spitting on the Crucifix, trampling on it or dragging it on the ground in mockery of the suffering of Christ.
-Idolatry, especially the adoration of a certain head called Caput (or Capud) LVIII, or Head 58 and a goat-headed, horned, cloven-hoofed being called Baphomet.
-The renouncement of holy sacraments and omission of words of consecration in mass.
-The Grand Master and other high officials of the Order heard confession and offered absolution, even though they were laymen.
-Charges of homosexuality and other sexual misbehaviour. Even the seal design of two knights sharing a horse was used as evidence of homosexual conduct!
-Seeking funds though unlawful methods and misusing donated funds by hoarding them instead of putting them to good use.
-Keeping secret, heavily guarded meetings with disclosure of Order secrets punishable by death.
The attack on the Order began on Friday 13th October 1307 when every Templar building in France was stormed in a carefully coordinated surprise attack. It should be noted that most of these accusations bore great similarity to those brought in prior trials of Philip's enemies. Furthermore, although many arrested Templars confessed to the offenses listed (eg 134 out of 138 Templars arrested in Paris), no confessions were made outside Philip the Fair's realm.
Templars burned at the stake, painting from 1480.
Similar attacks were mounted against the order across Europe, and Pope Clement V suppressed the Knights Templar by papal bull at the Council of Vienne in 1312. The trials themselves lasted seven years and during their course, the Templar Grand Master, Jacques de Molay, and other leaders of the Templars initially confessed then retracted their forced confessions and declared their innocence and the innocence of the order. Consequently, Philip had them burned at the stake at Paris on 18 March 1314.
With de Molay's execution, the official history of the Knights Templar comes to an end. However, the mystique of the Order did not. As mentioned earlier, a massive body of folklore and myth has grown up around the Templars and in the next part of the article, I will look at some of the myriad conspiracy theories surrounding the Templars and also at just what the story of the Templars, official or otherwise, means for Robin of Sherwood.
Pauperes Commilitones Christi + Militia Templi Solomonis
The Knights Templar
By Kin Ming Looi
John: Who are they?
Marion: Templars.
Tuck: Poor Knights of the Temple of Solomon.
Scarlet: Poor?! I'd hate to see the good ones!
Even before I first saw Seven Poor Knights from Acre, I already had a strong interest in the Knights Templar. The episode, with its sinister, fanatical and utterly ruthless Templars was therefore something of a treat for me. Enshrouded as they are in an almost mystical aura of speculation and myth built up over centuries, the Knights Templar are a fascinating organisation. They certainly made for a very entertaining set of foes in Seven Poor Knights from Acre. In this first half of a two-part article, I will first present a brief history of the Knights Templar, followed in the next part by an examination of some of the more lurid allegations concerning the Templars and then finally a discussion of the implications of all this for Robin of Sherwood.
Part 1: History
The Knights Templar, or the Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and the Temple of Solomon, to give them their full title, were a military and religious order founded in Jerusalem in 1118 by nine knights. (Founder members: Hugues de Payns, Godefroi de Saint Omer, Andre de Montbard, Gundomar, Godfroy, Roral, Geoffrey Bisol, Payen de Montdesir, Archambaud de Saint Aignan). The order derived its title from its original headquarters, assigned to it by King Baldwin II of Jerusalem: a building known at the time as Solomon's Temple. The professed aim of the nine founder members was the protection of pilgrims to the Holy Land.
The Templars were among several monastic military orders founded after the end of the First Crusade (1095-1099) which had achieved the conquest of Jerusalem from the Muslims and the foundation of four states Crusader in the Holy Land. (From South to North, the Kingdom of Jerusalem, the County of Tripoli, the Principality of Antioch and the County of Edessa). Other contemporary orders included the Knights of Saint John of Jerusalem (in full The Sovereign Military Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes, and of Malta), founded in 1113 and the Teutonic Knights, (full name Teutonic Knights of Saint Mary's Hospital at Jerusalem), formed by German Crusaders in 1190-91 in Acre, Palestine. Like the Templars, the primary aim of these orders was to protect the Holy Land and pilgrims travelling there.
By most accounts, including a letter written by Hugues de Payns, the early years of the order were a difficult struggle. The Templars suffered from a lack of recognition and money and ideological disagreements over their exact role (primarily the balance between their religious and military duties).
However, the fortunes of the Knights Templar began their rise in 1128 with the Council of Troyes. There, the Templars obtained papal sanction for their activities and St. Bernard of Clairvaux lauded the order and formally established its structure and rules. St Bernard, founder of the Cistercian Order, drew up the austere Rules of the Order based on those of the Cistercians, instilling in them a strong monastic trait. The Templars were to be headed by a grand master, under whom were three ranks: knights, chaplains, and sergeants. The knights were the dominant members, and they alone were allowed to wear the distinctive dress of the order, a white mantle with a large splayed red Latin cross (the cross patté).
The Council of Troyes also bestowed on the Templars their official seal, as seen in Seven Poor Knights from Acre. This design was inaugurated in conjunction of the adoption of the Rule of the Order. In the Seal we see two knights riding one horse, and the legend "Sigillum Militum Christi" (Sign of the Knights of Christ) surrounding the image. The image stems from two sources; firstly the poverty vow of the knights, with two knights economically riding one horse and, secondly, from the knight carrying his wounded comrade from battle.
Following the Council of Troyes, the fortunes of the Templars rose dramatically. The Order received an influx of recruits from Europe's noble families, as well as substantial donations of money and land. Thus, despite their humble origins and vows of poverty, the Templars came to be one of the richest and most influential organisations in the Christian world. It became exempt from taxes and local authority, even to the extent that it was only accountable to the Pope, and then sometimes only nominally. Consequently, the Templars came to be noted for both for their power and arrogance.
Sheriff: Now, Frere Reynald, you were about to tell me what you were doing here.
De Villaret: Je ne crois pas (trans: I think not).
Sheriff: Oh? And why not?
De Villaret: Because I don't choose to.
However, the Templars were also an astonishingly successful business venture as well as a military Order. The Order's financial activities began because it needed to supply the Holy Land with soldiers and money. The Order used its extensive network of preceptories across Europe and the Holy Land and its powerful fleet in the Mediterranean to transfer funds. This network came to be used by nobles and monarchs. Money was deposited at one preceptory in exchange for encoded chits and which could be redeemed for money by presenting it at another preceptory. By charging a commission and also by lending funds, the Templars became richer still.
Nonetheless, the primary purpose of the Knights Templar was the protection of the Holy Land. In prosecuting this aim, the Templars executed their duty with a fanatical dedication and quickly acquired a reputation for ruthlessness and reckless courage. The Order remained headquartered at Jerusalem until its fall to the Muslims in 1187. It then relocated successively to Antioch, Acre, Caesarea and Cyprus. However, after the fall of Acre, the last major Crusader stronghold in Palestine, in 1291 and the effective end of the Crusades, the Templars were no longer needed to secure the Holy Land and so increasingly no longer had a major role to play. By this time, their power, wealth and arrogance had made the Templars many powerful enemies.
These enemies included King Philip IV of France, nicknamed with more than a touch of irony Philip le Bel or Philip the Fair. Philip was sorely in need of money and indebted to the Templars to an extent he had no hope of repaying. To extricate himself, Philip had his candidate, Clement V, appointed as Pope and the order charged with heresy and immorality in 1307.
The accusations against the Order fell into seven main categories:
-The denial of saints, the Virgin Mary, and Jesus Christ as Saviour. It was said that the Templars held Christ to be a false prophet and therefore no redemption would be forthcoming from Him. This charge also included spitting on the Crucifix, trampling on it or dragging it on the ground in mockery of the suffering of Christ.
-Idolatry, especially the adoration of a certain head called Caput (or Capud) LVIII, or Head 58 and a goat-headed, horned, cloven-hoofed being called Baphomet.
-The renouncement of holy sacraments and omission of words of consecration in mass.
-The Grand Master and other high officials of the Order heard confession and offered absolution, even though they were laymen.
-Charges of homosexuality and other sexual misbehaviour. Even the seal design of two knights sharing a horse was used as evidence of homosexual conduct!
-Seeking funds though unlawful methods and misusing donated funds by hoarding them instead of putting them to good use.
-Keeping secret, heavily guarded meetings with disclosure of Order secrets punishable by death.
The attack on the Order began on Friday 13th October 1307 when every Templar building in France was stormed in a carefully coordinated surprise attack. It should be noted that most of these accusations bore great similarity to those brought in prior trials of Philip's enemies. Furthermore, although many arrested Templars confessed to the offenses listed (eg 134 out of 138 Templars arrested in Paris), no confessions were made outside Philip the Fair's realm.
Templars burned at the stake, painting from 1480.
Similar attacks were mounted against the order across Europe, and Pope Clement V suppressed the Knights Templar by papal bull at the Council of Vienne in 1312. The trials themselves lasted seven years and during their course, the Templar Grand Master, Jacques de Molay, and other leaders of the Templars initially confessed then retracted their forced confessions and declared their innocence and the innocence of the order. Consequently, Philip had them burned at the stake at Paris on 18 March 1314.
With de Molay's execution, the official history of the Knights Templar comes to an end. However, the mystique of the Order did not. As mentioned earlier, a massive body of folklore and myth has grown up around the Templars and in the next part of the article, I will look at some of the myriad conspiracy theories surrounding the Templars and also at just what the story of the Templars, official or otherwise, means for Robin of Sherwood.