The History of the Church through 100 Masterpieces

The End of the Templars

The History of the Church 126 The End of the Templars The Order of Knights Templar had imperceptibly amassed enormous wealth over time. Protected by the pope, it was exempt from taxes and received copious donations. The number of their commanderies, stationed along all the routes leading to the Holy Land, reached the thousands, with 2,000 in France alone. In addition, the Templars administered the properties of crusaders who left for Palestine, which soon placed at their disposal a finan cial network unique in the entire continent; even the rulers of Europe often had recourse to them. However, all their privileges and power lost any legitimacy once the Templars left the Holy Land in 1291. Moreover, it was rumored that the Battle of Hattin, which led to the fall of Jerusalem, had been lost because of their incompetence, perhaps even because of their treason . On October 12, 1307, the sergeants of the king of France proceeded to round up and imprison all the Templars in the kingdom. It was a master stroke: very few escaped, particularly as, soon afterwards, the pope ordered the arrest of all Templars throughout the Christian world. Sodomy, sorcery, idolatry, adoration of a mysterious Baphomet— these accusations, among others, were confirmed under torture. In 1312, the pope dissolved the order. Jacques the Molay, its grand master, suffered another two years of torments before being burned alive in Paris, with three companions. François Richard Fleury (1777–1852) The Grand Master Templar, Jacques de Molay Musée du Château, Rueil-Malmaison ...