1) From praying to fighting –
It is quite a well known fact that the Templars took a vow to defend their fellow Christians from ‘foreign’ intrusions, especially in the Outremer (the conglomeration of Crusader States in Levant). But interestingly enough, their proclivity towards martial pursuits was only developed as a reactionary measure, rather than a (starting) ideology that dictated religious warfare. To that end, historically, in the aftermath of the First Crusade, some of the Christians warriors actually decided to put away their swords in favor of a monastic lifestyle based around the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.
But with the establishment of the Christian entities in the so-called Holy Land, the scenario became a logistical nightmare for the nascent Outremer kingdoms – because a great number of pilgrims flocked to these newly conquered lands. And as more visitors turned up around the confines of Jerusalem, local bandits (that also included Muslims who lost their lands) took advantage of the chaos and attacked these common pilgrims. Afflicted by such unconventional forays, the monastic warriors decided to once again take up their swords. As a result, pertinent military brotherhoods were formed, and they finally coalesced together to form the Templar Order, officially approved by the Church in 1120 AD.
2) Temple of Solomon?
As we mentioned before, the full name of the Templars (‘Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon’) directly linked the order with the Temple of Solomon. Now from the historical perspective, the Temple of Solomon pertains to an enigmatic ancient structure whose existence is still debated among the historians (read this post for more details). But the ‘Temple of Solomon’ referred to in the case of the Templars might not be as sensational as one would be inclined to think. That is because after the Order was ratified by the Church (possibly at the council of Nablus, circa 1120 AD), the king of Jerusalem, Balwin II, gifted the Templars a wing of his makeshift ‘palace’ inside the Al Aqsa mosque situated on Temple Mount.
Now given Temple Mount’s mystical (and possible physical) association with the Temple of Solomon, western Europeans frequently (and misleadingly) referred to the Al Aqsa mosque as the ‘Temple’. As a result, the new occupants of this palace probably became known as the ‘Order of the Temple’, or the ‘Templars’. And in an interesting note, Al Aqsa is possibly the oldest Islamic structure in the world. But since it has been rebuilt many times during the course of history, the building cannot be considered as the oldest ‘extant’ specimen of Islamic architecture – an honor that belongs to the proximate Dome of The Rock.
3) Commercialism (and banking) beyond the Holy Land –
While the primary goal of the Templars was to defend the pilgrims against ‘foreign’ forays, it was not long before they were involved in political affairs in Outremer, sometimes at the beckoning of the newly established Christian kingdoms in the region. Such overtures translated to defending borders of these realms or mounting skirmishes against local enemy forces, thus allowing the Templars to flex their military muscle. In return, the Order was gifted lands, farms and even castles for management. Similar scenarios were also played out in the west in Iberia (Spain and Portugal), and Christian kingdoms based there valued the military prowess of the Templars – so much so that they were frequently furnished with swathes of lands on the frontiers that separated the Moors. This scope was further complemented by land and monetary endowments that were situated across Europe, far away from the conflict zones. Supported by such large tracts of real estate, the Templars not only managed farms and vineyards, but also engaged in manufacturing, imports and even ship-building – thus creating a ‘multinational’ commercial empire of sorts that connected Christendom.
Interestingly, in spite of their mercantile acumen, the individual Templars were sworn to poverty (at least in theory). This in turn led to the creation of a trustworthy ‘brand value’ that advertised Catholic Christian virtues with a military veneer. Inspired by these supportive measures, and also fearful of their own safety, European pilgrims (circa 1150 AD) frequently deposited their valuables with the local Templar preceptory before embarking on their overseas journey to the Holy Land. The Templars in turn prepared letters of credit that indicated the value of these deposits. So once the pilgrim reached the Holy Land, he/she was handed over an amount of treasure of equal value (as written in the document). Simply put, this system alluded to an early form of banking, and quite a successful one at that.
4) Alternate feudalism –
With all the talk about lands, it is interesting to know that the Templars managed their assets in a feudalistic manner. In fact, like most kingdoms of the time, the lands of the Order were divided into autonomous provinces that were governed by the ‘provincial’ Grand Master – who usually came from an aristocratic background. The individual provinces were further divided into smaller commanderies (or preceptories in Latin), with each property being administered by a commander, who also hailed from the higher social strata. Now in practical terms, many of these rural commanderies consisted of farmlands that were controlled from a hold. This local stronghold housed the regional brothers, while also comprising a chapel and accommodation for travelers. And mirroring the secular feudal system of Europe, a portion of the annual revenues generated from the lands under the commander – known as responsion, was to paid to the provincial Grand Master, who in turn transferred the income to the Templar headquarters.
The amounts and requirements of responsion were frequently discussed in the ‘chapter’ meetings that were organized intermittently at a gap of few years. These meetings also doubled as general assemblies that appointed officials and passed newer rules and amendments. Furthermore, the chapter conclaves practically maintained the (much needed) communications between the Templar brothers who were usually stationed in various parts of Europe and the Outremer.
5) Knights of the Templar Order –
Painting by artist Fredrik Alfredsson.
The other non-knightly warriors in the Templar Order mainly consisted of the so-called sergents (in French) or servientes in Latin, which can be either translated as ‘sergeants’ or ‘servants’. Most of these warriors played a supporting role in the battlefield, by forming solid infantry lines or at times doubling up as screening medium cavalry. However, there were also many sergents who played non-combative roles by taking up ‘commercial’ professions like builders and craftsmen.
6) Yes, there were female members in the Templar Order –
In the earlier entry we talked about the knights and the sergeants. Other than those ‘fighting’ members, the Templars also inducted priest-brothers for spiritual support of their communities. These ‘chaplains’ performed the various religious functions within the order, including the conducting of prayers, celebration of masses and even hearing confessions. And quite intriguingly, some Templar chapters present in Europe also included female members among the ranks. These ‘sisters’ were housed in facilities that were segregated from the main chapter house. And while they were obviously not expected to fight in battles, many of the nuns actively took part in the spiritual side of affairs – by helping the priest-brothers in their praying tasks and even offering psychological counselling to warriors. Furthermore, there were associate female members (along with males) who made donations and other contributions to the Order, in spite of not taking the full monastic vow required from regular members.
7) Varying motivations for joining the Templars –
It naturally begs the question – why did knights leave the apparent opulence of their ‘lordly’ lives to join an austere order that advocated simple living and sexual abstinence? Well the reasons were many, with some joining the Templars to escape their personal tragedies over at home, like the death of their loved ones. Others joined the Order as penance for their presumed sins, while some of the knights also seriously believed in the ‘core’ cause of the Templars – to protect Christian pilgrims in the Holy Land from the ‘non-believers’. Relating to an odd parcel of Templar history, there were also instances when criminal (or excommunicated) knights were enlisted into the order as punishment for their deeds; though in a practical scenario this method also served as an effective conscription technique for bolstering the Templar ranks with experienced warriors. In that regard, we can comprehend the inspiration behind the Night’s Watch featured in The Song of Ice and Fire (Game of Thrones) novel series by G.R.R. Martin.
The non-knightly members of the Templar Order had more varying reasons to join the reclusive ranks. Usually hailing from poorer sections of the society, many joined to simply provide themselves with timely meals on a daily basis, while others desperate (and illiterate) folks took the gamble to be ‘martyrs’ – pertaining to a glorious death on the battlefield against the ‘infidels’. According to their beliefs, aided by propaganda, this would release them from their uncertain lives (that in middle ages were usually cut short by diseases or starvation), and gain them ‘direct access’ to heaven. Intriguingly enough, in spite of such fanatical belief systems, the Templars were renowned in contemporary times for their apparent long lives when compared to the average medieval life expectancy (25 – 40 years). A recent research into this seemingly paradoxical scope provided a hypothesis that the Templars on an average lived longer due to their controlled diets and better hygiene. In any case, reverting to the motivations, one shouldn’t also overlook the significant percentage of people who simply joined the Order to justify their belief in the core principle of the Templars – defending the pilgrims and other Christians in the Holy Land (unfortunately, such values later morphed into bloodthirsty punitive actions). Many of the brothers were probably pilgrims themselves, and were later inspired by the fighting prowess (or at least the ‘advertised’ prowess) of the Templars in Outremer.
8) The tight-packed charge –
The ‘tour de force’ of the Templars arguably related to their capacity for fighting and organizational skills during the early medieval Crusades. But oddly enough, there were no specific instructions dedicated to martial training and pursuits in the Templars’ Rule (a codified statute approved by the Pope himself). This was probably because the warrior-brothers who joined the Templar ranks were already expected to have some experience in fighting and tactics – be it in horse-riding or wielding swords, couched lances and spears from horseback (or dismounted positions). Interestingly, some regulations also allude to usage of rather ‘exotic’ non-knightly weapons such as crossbows – that were fired from both horseback and on foot. Furthermore, the Templars also employed mercenaries like the famed Turcopoles (derived from the Greek: τουρκόπουλοι, meaning ‘sons of Turks’), who were mainly lightly armed cavalry and horse-archers usually comprising the local forces of Levant, like the Christianized Seljuqs and the Syrian Eastern Orthodox Christians.
Now beyond training and mercenaries, it was the devastating charge of the Templars that brought them renown throughout the Holy Land. Many then-contemporary literary sources write about how the Templars were masters of forming the tight-packed eschielle (squadron) and charging into their enemies in wedged formations. Now while this maneuver seems simple in theory, the scope must have required expert levels of discipline and organizational skill to actually make it work in a battlefield against a formidable foe. In fact, such degrees of discipline contrast with their secular Western European counterparts, who were more prone to individualistic glory in the battlefield as opposed to dedicated team-work. To that end, it can be hypothesized that the Templars were more organized simply because of their reactionary measure to counter the superior mobility (and tactics) of the Muslim armies. Moreover, it should also be noted that many of the knights who joined the Order were already experienced veterans when it came to military careers.
9) The ‘downside’ of fanaticism –
Unfortunately for the Templars, a ‘right’ charge was not always conducive to winning the battle, especially since this aggressive battle tactic required other Christian forces to exploit the gaps in the enemy ranks brought on by the heavy cavalry assault. So in many practical scenarios, these supporting forces (derived from the Frankish kingdoms of Outremer) were not sufficiently drilled to take the dynamic advantage in the battlefield, thus leaving the Templars stranded and surrounded by the agile Muslim foes. These baleful situations became even more exacerbated for the Templars in the earlier Crusades, because most of them were executed on being captured without mercy – as was the bloody scenario after the Battle of Hattin. Such extreme actions on the part of the Muslims were probably instigated by bouts of savagery displayed by the Templar Order itself in various battles. Sometimes the Muslims were even portrayed as soldiers of Antichrist, and as such many (illiterate) brothers believed in the ethnic cleansing of the adherents of Islamic faith – so as to prepare the Holy Land for the advent of Christ’s kingdom.
Beyond just delusions, their uncompromising principles, like not surrendering until the red cross of ‘martyrdom’ had fallen in battle, also added to unwarranted afflictions on the battlefield. In that regard, many contemporary works allude to the fanaticism displayed by the Templars, like in the case of a few knights who were imprisoned until their ransom demands were met. But instead of paying ransoms, the Order just sent knives and belts to the captors – thus symbolizing how fighting was their ransom, and on being captured the knights would rather die than be paid for. However as time went on, practicality of military requirement triumphed over blind zealotry, and thus by late 13th century, some high-ranking Knight Templars were indeed ransomed successfully.
10) The enigmatic symbol –
Mystery had always played a part in the cryptic aura of the Templars, so much so that one of the charges made against them in 1307 AD entailed ‘secrecy’. Now later analysis of the events have revealed that the Templars were probably innocent of most of the charges, and thus were just victims of monarchical politics in early 14th century. But on the ‘puzzling’ side of affairs, there was (and still is) some degree of mystery pertaining to the third Templar seal, which depicted two knights sitting on a single horse. Now the most common (though possibly incorrect) explanation relates how two knights on a single horse symbolized state of poverty advocated by individual Templars. Another explanation talks about the representation of ‘true’ brotherhood, wherein one knight rescues the other knight whose horse is probably injured. Intriguingly enough, there is a plausible commentary regarding two soldiers on a single horse, written by Saladin’s chronicler Bahaed-Din Ibn Shaddad –
On June 7, 1192, the Crusader army marched to attack the Holy City, (then occupied by Saladin). Richard’s spies reported a long-awaited supply train coming from Egypt to relieve Saladin’s army…when Richard received information that the caravan was close at hand…a thousand horseman set out, each of whom took a foot soldier (on his horse) in front of him…At daybreak, he took the caravan unawares. Islam had suffered a serious disaster…The spoils were three thousand camels, three thousand horses, five hundred prisoners and a mountain of military supplies. Never was Saladin more grieved, or more anxious.
Book References: Knight Templar 1120 – 1312 (By Helen Nicholson) / God’s Warriors: Crusaders, Saracens and the Battle for Jerusalem (By Helen Nicholson and David Nicolle) / Knights Templar Encyclopedia (By Karen Ralls)
Online Sources: Provincial Priory of Hampshire and Isle of Wight / BibliotecaPleyades / Knight-Templar / DominicSelwood / Britannica
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