The Fall of the Templar Knights: What Really Happened?

The Knights Templar, a 12th-century militant monastic order, has been the center of several conspiracy theories. From devil-worshiping to the Holy Grail to “discovering” the Americas, the militant monastic movement has been at the forefront of some of the biggest questions in Christian history.

Throughout history, numerous secret societies, sects, and mysterious groups have arisen in distant lands. From those behind the ancient Greek Eleusinian Mysteries to the Freemasons, who still exist around the world today, these groups have fascinated scholars for centuries.

The Knights Templar was a powerful and enigmatic military order of the Catholic Church, founded in the wake of the First Crusade, according to the History Channel. 

The Knights Templar were founded by a French knight in either 1118 or 1119 CE, yet wouldn’t receive recognition until Pope Honorius II (r. 1124-1130) made their order official at the Council of Troyes in January 1129

The Order of the Templar Knights was the first military branch of its kind. In its early years in the Catholic religion, it was considered a branch of the Cistercians. 

The founder, Hugh de Payns (sometimes spelled Hugues de Payens), led the group of knights, which named themselves after the al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, which Christians mistakenly believed to be the ancient Temple of Solomon.

By the middle of the 12th century, the Templar’s influence had spread beyond the Holy Lands. They took up arms in Iberia on behalf of several rulers from Spain and Portugal. 

The Templar communities, sometimes referred to as covenants, were considered safe places, and so they soon became repositories for gold, coins, jewels, and important documents. From as early as the 12th century, the Templars had relatively extensive cash reserves of their own. 

The Templars’ banking system had become so efficient that French kings and nobles began storing their treasures with the military group. 

The Templars came from all over Europe, but the vast majority came from France. Most were motivated to defend Christians, especially those traveling to the Holy Lands and the sacred sites that accompany them. 

The Knights Templar began to lose their fortunes around the 13th century when the Crusades failed.

Following King Phillip’s announcement, many Templars were arrested on the morning of October 13, and the bloodiest and most brutal episodes in the church’s history began to unfold.

The motivation behind King Phillips’s sudden change of mind regarding the Templar Knights has long been a widely debated topic of conversation. 

In the years that followed, a vicious manhunt ensued, and many members of the brotherhood were tracked down and executed. A trial in Paris in 1310 saw over 50 brothers burned at the stake. 

One of the longest-running threads in every conspiracy about the Templars is that they survived their dissolution. Rather than make a grand return to power, the group of knights acted in shadows, guarding ancient wisdom and treasure collected throughout their reign.

The Holy Grail has been long talked about. During the 12th century, “you find people talking about it. The Genoese believed that they’d been able to buy the Holy Grail” and take it back to Italy,” historian Steve Tibble tells History Extra.

For those unfamiliar with this piece of Catholic iconography, the Holy Grail is a legendary treasure that appears in Arthurian literature as a mystical object with attributed powers. The first known mention of the Grail appears in an unfinished romance by Chrétien de Troyes, who described it as a processional platter.

The belief that the Templars knew where the Holy Grail emerged much later after the order’s existence thanks to authors who portrayed the Templars as enigmatic protectors of sacred objects.

Another popular conspiracy theory that has roots in Philip IV’s plans against the Knights Templar bucks against the idea that these knights were protectors of all things holy. The Crusades were a time when people were god-fearing and took religion seriously.

Numerous Templars admitted to being tortured during the initial arrests and admitted to the accusations brought against them. 

The purpose of torture “was not to obtain the actual truth,” writes French historian Alain Demurger in his 2019 book, “The Persecution of the Knights Templar.”

Centuries after the Templars were no longer around, the Victorian era sought to revive the intrigue and mystery around the knights through the novella. 

Organizations like the Freemasons, which boldly claimed that they inherited the Templars’ cache of ancient knowledge, added fuel to the fire.

The Knights Templar’s past, shrouded in mystery, romanticism, and conspiracy, beckons for further exploration. Though much remains shrouded, the very lack of information fuels the flames of conspiracy surrounding this complex organization.