Knights Templar

The **Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon** (Latin: _Pauperes commilitones Christi Templique Salomonici_), commonly known as the **Knights Templar** or the **Order of the Temple** (French: ***Ordre du Temple*** or ***Templiers***), were among the most famous military orders of Western Christianity. The organization lasted for two centuries in the Middle Ages. It was founded after the First Crusade of 1096, with its original purpose to ensure the safety of the many Christians who made the pilgrimage to Jerusalem after it was taken from the Muslims.

It was officially endorsed by the Roman Catholic Church around 1129, and became a favored charity by many Christians and grew fast in membership and power. Templar knights wore white mantles quartered by a red cross and were among the most skilled fighting units of the Crusades. Those members of the Order that did not fight managed a large economic infrastructure throughout Christendom, innovating financial techniques that were an early form of banking, and building many fortifications throughout the Mediterranean and the Holy Land.

The Templars' success was tied closely to the Crusades; when the Holy Land was lost, support for the Order faded. Rumors about the Templars' secret initiation ceremony created mistrust, and King Philip IV of France, deeply in debt to the Order, began pressuring Pope Clement V to take action against the Order. In 1307, many of the Order's members in France were arrested, tortured into giving false confessions, and then burned at the stake. In 1312, Pope Clement, under continuing pressure from King Philip, disbanded the Order.

## Related pages

- Teutonic Knights

## References

- Barber, Malcolm. _The New Knighthood: A History of the Order of the Temple_. Cambridge University Press, 1994. .
- Barber, Malcolm. _The Trial of the Templars_, 1st edition, Cambridge University Press, 1978.
- Barber, Malcolm. _The Trial of the Templars_, 2nd edition, Cambridge University Press, 2006.
- Burman, Edward. _The Templars: Knights of God_. Destiny Books, 1986. .
- Martin, Sean, _The Knights Templar: The History & Myths of the Legendary Military Order_, 2005. .
- Nicholson, Helen. _The Knights Templar: A New History_. Sutton, 2001.
- Gershon, Livia. (2019). 10 Reasons the Knights Templar Were History's Fiercest Fighters. https://www.history.com/news/knights-templar-facts-crusades-wealth

## Further reading

- Barber, Malcolm. "Who Were the Knights Templar?". _Slate Magazine_, 20 April 2006.
- Butler, Alan and Stephen Dafoe, _The Warriors and the Bankers: A History of the Knights Templar from 1307 to the present_, Templar Books, 1998. .
- Haag, Michael, _The Templars: History and Myth_, Profile Books, 2008.  .
- Partner, Peter. _The Knights Templar and their Myth_. Destiny Books; Reissue edition (1990). .
- Ralls, Karen. _The Templars and the Grail_, Quest Books, 2003. .
- Smart, George. _The Knights Templar: Chronology_, Authorhouse, 2005. .
- Upton-Ward, JM. _The Rule of the Templars: The French Text of the Rule of the Order of the Knights Templar_. The Boydell Press, 1992. .

## Other websites

- BBC Radio 4 'On the Trail of The Templars' Program audio, first broadcast 2007-06-18
- The medicine of Knights Templars
- The History of the Knights Templar, by Charles Addison, 1842

## Infobox (military unit)

- **unit name**: Knights Templar
 <small>Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon
_Pauperes commilitones Christi Templique Salomonici_</small>
- **caption**: A Knights Templar Seal, Seal of the Knights Templar, with their famous image of two knights on a single horse, a symbol of their early poverty. The text is in Greek and Latin characters, _Sigillum Militum Xpisti:_ followed by a cross, which means "the Seal of the Soldiers of Christ".
- **dates**: c. 1119–1314
- **allegiance**: Pope, Papacy
- **type**: Western Christianity, Western Christian military order
- **size**: 15,000–20,000 members at peak, 10% of whom were knights
- **garrison**: Temple Mount, Jerusalem
- **garrison label**: Headquarters
- **nickname**: Order of the Temple
- **patron**: St. Bernard of Clairvaux
- **colors**: White mantle with a red cross
- **colors label**: Attire
- **battles**: The Crusades, including:
 Battle of Montgisard, Battle of Montgisard (1177),
Battle of Hattin, Battle of Hattin (1187),
Battle of Arsuf, Battle of Arsuf (1191),
Siege of Acre, Siege of Acre (1190–1191),
 Siege of Acre (1291)
 Reconquista
- **commander1**: Hugues de Payens
- **commander1 label**: First Grand Masters of the Knights Templar, Grand Master
- **commander2**: Jacques de Molay
- **commander2 label**: Last Grand Master