Knights in Holy Armour - The French Churches Templars

Although they sprang from humble beginnings, with the help of some friends high up in holy places, the Knights Templars, the "soldiers" of the French Church,gradually advanced to the point at which they were not subject to everyday laws(courtesy of Pope Innocent)This gave them carte blanche to do almost anything they wanted.





So, "back in the day", being a Templar was the best gig in town. A combination of rock star, sports hero, and trusted network news anchor.





And it lasted for almost two centuries.





The Turning Tide





But, as you know all too well dear reader, the good things in life, eventually run into the law. Murphy’s law. And that’s what happened to the Knights Templar.





"History" ,as the man said, "is written by the winners." And the T-team was seriously dropping the ball. Not only had they lost Jerusalem, conclusively and finally to that Godless Saladin, but by 1187 they had no base anywhere in the Holy land. So, what next?





The usual. Squabbling. Dissention in the ranks. How to stage a comeback? Opposition from the competition, drooling to replace them. But all that was small potatoes compared to what history had in store for the "poor fellow soldiers of Christ."





A Froggie in the Works





History", in this case, being King Phillip the fourth . Heavily in debt to the Templars, his "debt relief plan" (obviously inspired by Pope Innocent’s Carcassone Cathares "solution.") was to round up as many T-teamers as possible. Imprison. Torture. Force confessions.(Think Gitmo). Needless to say, it worked like a charm. Major scandal in Paris.(And what better place to have one?)Even after the revelations that the "confessions"were phony.





My way…or the Highway





Ah, but sleazy King Phil was’nt finished yet. His rant to Pope Clement the 5th was that the only way to,"put this all behind us"…was to disband the Templars. (Thus handily wiping out his debt) Pope Clement, to his credit, was not down with this plan. However, when "never-play-fair-when-ya-can-play-dirty" Phil suggested that the alternative was to have his army pay a visit to the Pope-ville, Clement , in 1312, disbanded the Templars.








Quiet lives/Eternal Lives





The lucky ones, were pensioned off. Living quiet lives, one imagines, polishing their swords, reliving glorious campaigns, and growing Saucisson. In other countries, such as Portugal, the Templars simply changed their name to "The Order of Christ."





The unlucky ones, as you will have guessed by now, went the way of the Salem witches, Joan of Arc, and, yes, the Cathares.





As he was working up a sweat, his hands tied into a prayer position as he faced Nortre Dame, the Templars last Commander Jacques Demolay shouted out that King Phil and Pope Clement would soon be standing before God. Can’t confirm their destination. But a year later, both were no longer on this planet.





More on the Knights Templars HERE