THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR

                In 1199 (the 100^th anniversary of the First Crusaders capture of Jerusalem), French knight Hughes de Payen and eight others swore at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem that they would protect pilgrims to the Holy Land.  They took a vow of poverty, chastity, and obedience.  They were supported by King Baldwin I of Jerusalem.  He gave them part of his castle, the part near a mosque that supposedly stood on the site of the Temple of Solomon.  Officially they were the Order of Poor Knights of the Temple of Solomon, or Templars for short.  In 1127, Baldwin II sent some to Europe to arrange a marriage.  They became celebrities and soon nobles were showering the order with wealth and property.  They adopted new rules like:  never leave a battlefield or castle secretly, white habits with red crosses, tonsures and beards, and silence at meals except scripture readings.  They developed a reputation as great warriors in the fight for retaining the Holy Land.  In 1139, Pope Innocent II put the order under Church control, but this allowed it to collect tithes which made it extremely rich.  The order became a powerful banking institution.  But when you loan money, you make enemies.  In 1187, Jerusalem fell to Saladin and 230 Templars were martyred, but by then the order was no longer associated with protecting travelers.  It had become corrupted by money and power.  It had gotten too powerful for its own good.  Pope Clement V accused the order of heresy and immorality, which opened the doors for lay leaders to attack.  In 1307, King Philip IV of France decided to cancel his debts to the order by accusing it of devil worship, sodomy, and greed.  He based his charges on rumors associated with the order’s secret rites which allowed medieval minds to fantasize.  Torture led to confessions of sensational activities like spitting on the cross and being kissed nude by other members.  (This may have a been based on a ritual where the initiate spat on the cross to symbolize they were a sinner and then disrobed and were kissed to indicate they were forgiven.)  The flood gates were opened and Templar castles were looted and the order was dissolved.  Many members were executed.  In 1314, the last Grand Master was burned at the stake.

– Amazing 329-331  /  https://www.encyclopedia.com/history/modern-europe/heraldry-knighthood-and-chivalry/knights-templars