The Templars, Knights of Christ

Historians and novelists have portrayed the Knights Templar as avaricious and power-hungry villains for centuries. Who were these mediaeval monastic warriors whose deeds were legendary even in their own time? Were these elite crusaders corrupted by their victories, which gave them such power and wealth that kings envied them?

Indignant by the disparities between the illusions in which "authors on history of every kind and colour have indulged themselves without restriction," RTgine Pernoud paints a new portrayal of these Christian warriors. From their origins as defenders of pilgrims to the Holy Land to their dramatic finish as heretics burned at the stake, Pernoud offers a concise but thorough account of the Templars' contribution to Christendom.