JACQUES DE MOLAY & KNIGHTS TEMPLAR.   Term Paper ID:25042 Click to get this paper

Essay Subject: Examines leadership of 13th Cent. Catholic military order & its suppression by French King Philip IV for political & economic reasons.... More...

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Paper Abstract: Examines leadership of 13th Cent. Catholic military order & its suppression by French King Philip IV for political & economic reasons. Paper Introduction: Jacques De Molay, the last Grand Master of the Order of Knights Templar, was a martyr for his beliefs. De Molay endured the cruel suppression of his Order at the hands of royalty and the Church. Consequently, the monastic austerity, chivalry, and martial prowess of De Molay and the Knights Templar has become legendary. Little is known about De Molay's early life. He was born about 1240 in France. He entered the Order of Knights Templar as a young man and was elected its twenty-second Grand Master about 1295. De Molay inherited the leadership of an Order undergoing a period of change. The Knights Templar was a military organization that had participated in the Crusades and earned a name for valor and heroism. The Knights were sanctioned by the Text of the Paper: The entire text of the paper is shown below. However, the text is somewhat scrambled. We want to give you as much information as we possibly can about our papers and essays, but we cannot give them away for free. In the text below you will find that while disordered, many of the phrases are essentially intact. From this text you will be able to get a solid sense of the writing style, the concepts addressed, and the sources used in the research paper. London: GeorgeAllen & Unwin. He believed that they aimedto establish a kingdom for themselves in Christendom. Thatwould be dangerous since they would be armed" (Burman, 199 , p. The unprecedentedprivileges bestowed upon the Knights soon resulted in growing animosityfrom certain segments of the clergy and the monarchy. The Templars' castles were both monasteries and cavalry-barracks.The possible danger that such an efficient and highly organized societyposed to the status quo was not lost on Philip. Pope Clement V was a French pope of weakcharacter. The Knights Templar and the Hospitalers (another Order ofknights) were the only groups remaining to confront the Saracens. De Molay inherited the leadership of an Order undergoing a period ofchange. Partner, P. (1978). The leadership of the Knights,including De Molay, were reserved for judgment by a papal commission.Preliminary inquiries for most of the Knights were accompanied by thecruelest methods of torture in order to extort confessions. At thispoint the commission had no ychoice but to hand De Molay and de Charneyover to the royal authorities. The Templars: Knights of God. The secrecy ofthe Templars' rites was used as a tool against them, giving Philip's groupthe opportunity to infer from this mystery the most monstrous ofaccusations. Every Templarwithin the French borders was subsequently thrown into prison, with theexception of a few who were able to escape. Some madeconfessions based on the fear of torture. The non-Christian Saracens defeated the Crusaders and captured many vital citiesand posts. 13). The Knights Templar was a military organization that hadparticipated in the Crusades and earned a name for valor and heroism. Ostensibly, the purpose of theconference was to discuss measures for effecting a union between the rivalTemplars and Hospitalers, and for a consultation regarding a furtherCrusade. He was born about 124 in France. Although De Molay was nottortured, he was subjected to a radically corrupt trial and investigation,during which he confessed, to save his life: "the Grand Master firstconfessed his guilt, then pleaded that his confession had been extorted byforce, and then admitted that his original confession was true" (Martin,1978, p. References Baigent, M., Leigh, R., and Lincoln, H. One of the legends was that with hisdying breath, De Molay warned Philip and Clement that they would soon joinhim before God's throne of judgment. De Molay endured the cruelsuppression of his Order at the hands of royalty and the Church.Consequently, the monastic austerity, chivalry, and martial prowess of DeMolay and the Knights Templar has become legendary. Philip was motivatedby several factors. Philip also feared the Templars' power. Although countries outside France did not join in widespreadpersecution of the Templars, the Order was largely discredited. TheKnights were sanctioned by the Catholic Church and revered by the laypopulation. Rochester,VT: Destiny.----------------------- 8 To settle the question of the guilt or innocence of the Templars, thefour main officials of the Order, including De Molay, were brought beforean ecclesiastical commission for final judgment. Both men were burned at the stake "withcalm and courage which impressed onlookers and fuelled new legends aboutthe Templars" (Burman, 199 , p. Holy blood, holygrail. The ordinaryKnights were judged by provincial councils. 78). The Templars were accused of spitting upon the Cross, ofdenying Christ, of permitting sodomy, of worshipping an idol, all in themost impenetrable secrecy: "the fantasies which were produced by somesuspects in order to satisfy the inquisitors who had placed them undertorture or mental pressure were then taken up by the prosecution andelaborated into new charges against other suspects, who then produced newfantasies, and so on" (Partner, 199 , p. The lives ofthousands of Knights had been lost in battle in the Holy Land. The Templars cherished liberty, religion, and honor,coupled with an active sense of justice and a determination of courage toits best end. (1982). It was under these circumstances that De Molay was summoned to aconference with Pope Clement in 13 5. In1294 and 1295 he visited Italy, France and England in a desperate attemptto gather new supplies and men for the east" (Barber, 1978, p. Rochester, VT:Destiny. Their wealth and property were confiscated and given to Philip'ssupporters. (Philip himself had been compelled totake refuge behind the strong walls of the Temple in Paris for three dayswhen fleeing a rebellious mob.) The Templars' famous Castle Pilgrimcommanded a strategic position along the sea coast. In a surprise move,however, De Molay denied his previous confession and defended the Order.He was joined by Geoffroi de Charney, another Templar leader. By the time De Molay assumed the position of Grand Master, it wasclear that the Crusades were not achieving their goals. Burman, E. Cambridge:Cambridge University Press. New York: Delacorte. Martin, E. 72). 37). Theideology of the Templars was a combination of austerity and secularknightly ideals. The prevailingthinking of the day was to either consolidate the Orders of Knights Templarand the Hospitalers or to create a third Order to supplant them. The commission believedthat the Templars would confess as they had previously and be condemned tolife imprisonment, which would end the matter. He entered the Order of Knights Templar as a young man and waselected its twenty-second Grand Master about 1295. Besides,Philip was not content to secure control of the possessions of the KnightsTemplar in his own country; he attempted to engineer the prosecution ofTemplars in other Christian countries as well: "Philip the Fair's aimscould not be satisfied by the condemnation for heresy of most of theindividual French Templars: his policy required the condemnation andsuppression of the Order as a whole" (Partner, 199 , p. As the most powerful monarch of his time, Philipbelieved that it was his privilege, not the Knights Templar, to determinethe direction of the next Crusade. Within a year, both Clement andPhilip were dead. (199 ). Little is known about De Molay's early life. (199 ). Many of the Templars declared themselves guilty of the secret crimesof which they were accused after being subjected to torture. By 13 7, Philip had decided to acton his own, at which time he engineered a mass arrest. Barber, M. Jacques De Molay and the Knights Templars' contribution to Westernsociety comes mainly from their role in the development of chivalry. For example, the Knights'immense property was exempt from all taxation and even from church tithes.The Knights were accountable only to the Church, and popes in Romesteadfastly upheld the Order's power and prestige. (1978). Jacques De Molay, the last Grand Master of the Order of KnightsTemplar, was a martyr for his beliefs. After the papal visit, De Molayreturned to France. De Molay remained in prison for seven years while the FrenchTemplars suffered torture and inhuman conditions. The trial of the Templars. Philip realized that his campaign against the Knights Templar had nochance of success without the full support of the papacy, but this wasrelatively easy to achieve. The trial of the Templars. Philipwanted to be the leader of that third Order, particularly since he had onceapplied to the Templars as a postulate and been rejected (Baijent, Leigh,and Lincoln, 1982, p. The trial of the Templars occurred in two phases. The architecturaloperations and property of the Templars were on a grand scale: "theTemplars administered their property well, they were themselves persons ofcapacity, and they were probably far more formidable as an organizedsociety than either their numbers or wealth might imply" (Martin, 1978, p.25). Controversy among historianssurrounds the secrecy of the arrests; Philip's intentions were probablyknown to at least a few Templars. The Knights Templar and their myth. 154). 49). TheTemplars decided to reorganize and regain their strength: "De Molay triedsincerely to re-establish the Christians on the Palestinian mainland. Philip had been instrumental in securing the papal election ofClement, and the pope's indebtedness to the monarch played a role in hiscooperation. The Templars ownednumerous strongholds and castles. 175). Even as a monarch Philip could not rightly usurp thiswealth because of the steadfast ecclesiastical protection the Templars'enjoyed. There is some evidence that the Templarswere successful in hiding a considerable amount of their possessions,particularly the Order's immense wealth: "It was never found, and whatbecame of the fabulous 'treasure of the Templars' has remained a mystery"(Baigent, Leigh, and Lincoln, 1982, p. Concomitantly, King Philip IV of France (Philip the Fair) was layingthe foundations of his plan to suppress the Templars. Thus to obtain the sanction of the Church for his schemes, Philipused the pretext of the sacred purpose of a future Crusade. Any delay in arresting De Molay was doubtless due to Clement'sreluctance to attack a religious Order. De Molay, accompanied by sixty knights, made the trip to Rome,where he vehemently opposed the suggestion of consolidating the rivalOrders: "he argues that it would be unwise to unite them because membersof the original Orders would be instigated by the devil to quarrel. But Philip lacked the necessary men,and especially the necessary funding for such a venture. 48). Both ecclesiastical and secular authorities lavished theKnights with material and legal privileges. Although there was a greatlack of evidence, the Templars' aloofness and steadfastness for maintainingsecrecy worked against them. Civilization continues to be fascinated by men of such highmoral standing. By 1314, Philip had succeeded in forcing Pope Clement to condemn theTemplars. Thus Philip opted to accuse theTemplars of heresy, and chose his moves carefully to make the chargesstick. Thereal purpose of the papal conference was probably to get De Molay and otherhigh-ranking Knights back to Europe. Nevertheless, Clement was unwilling to risk the challenge topapal power that would occur if the prosecution of the Templars was notbased on legal and theological principles. Afterfailing to establish a permanent base in the Holy Land from which to launchattacks against the Saracens, the Templars traveled to the island ofCyprus, waiting for the general public to rise up in support of anotherCrusade. The issue of the Crusades was secondary to Philip's true motive inwanting to suppress the Knights Templar. Philip desired the Templars'immense wealth. If this paper is not what you are looking for, you can search again: Search for: or Click here to request an essay written just for you.