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Knights Templar > 
The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon, commonly known as the Knights Templar or the Order of the Temple, were among the most famous of the Western Christian military orders. The organization existed for approximately two centuries in the Middle Ages. It was founded in the aftermath of the First Crusade of 1096, to ensure the safety of the many Europeans who made the pilgrimage to Jerusalem after its conquest.
Officially endorsed by the Roman Catholic Church in 1129, the Order became a favored charity across Europe and grew rapidly in membership and power. Templar knights in their distinctive white mantles with red cross were among the best fighting units of the Crusades. Non-combatant members of the Order managed a large economic infrastructure throughout Christendom, inventing or adapting many financial techniques that were an early form of banking, and building many fortifications across Europe and the Holy Land.
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More on this Website >
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knights_Templar
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Hugues de Payens, 1st Grand Master
Hugues de Payens, also de Payns, a French knight from the Champagne region, was the co-founder and first Grand Master of the Knights Templar. With Saint Bernard of Clairv... |
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The Crusades
The First Crusade is the most documented of all the Crusades. Each Royal Court had its own historian, who told his Lord's story of conquest and adventure, emphasizing his... |
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Jacques DeMolay, The Last Templar
In the two centuries of their known existence the Knights Templar served under twenty-three Grand Masters. It is Jacques DeMolay the twenty-third and last Grand Master ho... |
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