Knights+Templar

=**Knights Templar (Military Order of the)**= by James Woodfin

==

The Knights Templar were among the most famous military orders of Western Christianity. They were also known as the Order of the Temple, or simply Templars( Barber). This order had some of the most skilled fighting units during the Crusades(History Channel, //Decoding the Past:The Templar Code//). They were founded in 1119 in agreement with King Baldwin II of Jerusalem, to protect pilgrims traveling from Jaffa to the Holy Land (Burman, pp. 13, 19). However, the Templars began to decline as the Crusades began to end. In 1302 or 1303, the Templars lost the island of Arwad, giving up the last foothold in the Holy Land (Nicholson, p. 201). Only a few years later, the Templars were put on trial. What happened during the trials, and were the Templars really guilty? Based on the evidence, I will argue the Templars were never guilty. The Templars were a military order that shrunk as time went on even though their power was great, especially in France. So why were they accused of heresy? Part of it was rivalry. Another order, The Hospitallers, declined to merge with the Templars even upon request from the pope. In 1306, The Templar Grand Master arrived in France to meet with Pope Clement V to discuss merging, while the Hospitaller Grand Master arrived late to the talks, even though the meeting was requested by the Pope himself. A second part was fear. The initiation ceremonies were done in great secrecy. Brethren were forbidden to discuss the ceremony (//Novitiate and Instruction//, p.4). Thirdly, the military orders could not keep up. Because most Templars were far away from the main headquarters on military campaigns, the normal rule (routine) that a monastic order had to follow usually could not be followed (//Novitiate and Instruction//, p.6). In addition, the Templar groups were usually small and recruits required little training because they were primarily warriors. Recruits did not have to abandon their old occupation. This was unusual for a monastic order, and was probably dismaying to the clergy. The thought was that one had to separate from the world to give full devotion to the order (//Novitiate and Instruction//, p.7). Finally, the Templars gained great power. King Philip IV of France was in great debt to the Templars because they helped financed his war with England. The Templars financed many kings and as a result became vulnerable to political backstabbing. In 1305, the new Pope Clement V, based in France, sent letters to both the Templar Grand Master Jacques de Molay and the Hospitaller Grand Master Fulk de Villaret to discuss the possibility of merging the two Orders. In 1306, he invited both Grand Masters to France to discuss the matter. De Molay arrived first in early 1307, but de Villaret was delayed for several months. While waiting, De Molay and Clement discussed charges that had been made two years prior by an ousted Templar. Pope Clement V asked King Philip IV of France to investigate. Philip saw this as an opportunity to skip out on his debt to the Templars. He pressured the Church to investigate further (Barber, "Recent Historiography"). On October 13, 1307, de Molay and the other Templars were arrested and charged with apostasy, idolatry, heresy, obscene rituals and homosexuality, financial corruption and fraud, and secrecy (//Trial of The Templars//, p.178). The accused were then tortured until they confessed. This caused a scandal in Paris, even after the recantations of the confessions by many. Pope Clement V issued a papal bull on November 22, 1307, ordering that all Templars in Europe be arrested and that their assets be seized (Martin, p.118). Many Templars were burned at the stake.
 * Introduction to the Knights Templar**
 * Falling Behind on Orthodoxy**
 * Arrest in France and Political Opportunity**

Here is a video that talks about the arrest of the Templars:

media type="youtube" key="ciiivY20XGs" height="364" width="445"

The Knights Templar, as a whole, fared better in what is now the United Kingdom. Edward II of England only ordered the arrests after the pope issued a papal bull. The Templars were arrested between January 9-11, 1308, in England (Perkins, p.433). In Ireland, arrests were made in February. Imprisonment was lax. Many Templars were given stipends and released on bail, including the preceptor of England, William de la More. On November 28th, Clement V formalized the procedures, however, and all Templars were re-arrested. The inquisitors arrive in September of 1309, and the Templars are all moved to London, Lincoln, or York (Perkins, p.434). The Inquisitors had little success, and five Templars said they would rather die. 34 Templars denied heresy even into the second set of trials. In February of 1310, torture was authorized to be used, despite English law forbidding its use. Templars in York admitted that the grand preceptor or grand master had the power to absolve sins that was greater than the pope's (Perkins, p.435). However, 23 Templars say that de la More only absolves sin that is allowed by the pope to be absolved by clergy (Perkins, pp.435-436). The Inquistors then outline eight methods to be used (Perkins, pp.437-439). The Eight Methods are: 1. Use different jailers. 2. Stipends will be given to ordinaries, or average commoners. 3. Use confessions against individuals. 4.Give opportunity for purgation, or renouncing the heresy. 5.Feed Templars on bread without water then water without bread. 6. Templars must be sent to Ponthieu for torture. 7. Confessions and announcements will be published. 8. Ordinaries will be asked to provide testimony or furnish witnesses.
 * Trials in England, Scotland, and Ireland.**

With these methods, the Inquisitors got a confession from Stephen de Stapelbrigge on July 23, 1311. He says he was ordered to deny Christ and spit on the cross (Perkins, p.440). Eventually, 59 Templars abjure the heresy and are brought back into the church. However, most Templars do not (Perkins, p.442). Scotland releases 2 Templars, while Ireland does nothing except question the Templars (Perkins, p.443) My conclusion is that by using political pressure, King Philip IV of France convince the church to try the Templars for political and financial gain.The only thing the Templars were probably guilty of was not following orthodoxy completely. The confessions were extracted under torture, which makes them unreliable.
 * Conclusion Regarding the Templars**


 * Sources:**

Burman, Edward (1990). //The Templars: Knights of God//. Rochester: Destiny Books. Barber, Malcolm (1994). //The New Knighthood: A History of the Order of the Temple.//Cambridge University Press. Barber, Malcolm (2006). //The Trial of the Templars// (2nd ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Barber, Malcolm (2006). //The Trial of the Templars// (2nd ed.). "Recent Historiography on the Dissolution of the Temple." Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Forey, A. J. (1986). Novitiate and Instruction in the Military Orders during the Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries. //Speculum// //, 61// (1), 1-17. Forey, A. J. (1989). The Military Orders and Holy War against Christians in the Thirteenth Century. //The English Historical Review// //, 104// (410), 1-24. //Legend of the Knights Templar//. (2007, November 2). Retrieved June 30, 2010, from YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ciiivY20XGs Martin, Sean (2005). //The Knights Templar: The History & Myths of the Legendary Military Order//. New York: Thunder's Mouth Press Nicholson, Helen (2001). //The Knights Templar: A New History//. Stroud: Sutton. Perkins, C. (1909). The Trial of the Knights Templar in England. //The English Historical Review// //, 24// (95), 432-447. The History Channel,//Decoding the Past: The Templar Code//, 7 November 2005, video documentary written by Marcy Marzuni. //The Seal of the Knights Templar.// (2010, March 31). Retrieved June 27, 2010, from Templar History: http://blog.templarhistory.com/wp-content/uploads/ktseal.gif

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