The dramatic, ultimately tragic history of the Knights Templar, the largest and most powerful military order of the Crusades.
‘A pleasure to read’ SPECTATOR
‘Evocative, measured and engaging’ EVENING STANDARD
Sifting myth from history, Piers Paul Read reveals the Templars – the multinational force of warrior monks, in their white tunics with red crosses over chainmail. They were not only unique among Christian institutions but constituted the first uniformed standing army in the western world and became pioneers of international banking. Expropriated by Philip IV of France in 1307, and confessing under torture to blasphemy, heresy and sodomy, the Order was finally suppressed by Pope Clement V in 1312. In a narrative that incorporates the story of the crusades and the many colourful characters who had links with the Templars, Piers Paul Read examines the question of their guilt and identifies their relevance to our own times.
‘A pleasure to read’ SPECTATOR
‘Evocative, measured and engaging’ EVENING STANDARD
Sifting myth from history, Piers Paul Read reveals the Templars – the multinational force of warrior monks, in their white tunics with red crosses over chainmail. They were not only unique among Christian institutions but constituted the first uniformed standing army in the western world and became pioneers of international banking. Expropriated by Philip IV of France in 1307, and confessing under torture to blasphemy, heresy and sodomy, the Order was finally suppressed by Pope Clement V in 1312. In a narrative that incorporates the story of the crusades and the many colourful characters who had links with the Templars, Piers Paul Read examines the question of their guilt and identifies their relevance to our own times.
Reviews
Evocative, measured and engaging
He writes with great clarity, delineates character well and succinctly, and can tell a good story
He is judicious. He consistently rejects fantasy, and ignores the unprovable...And his book is a pleasure to read
Magnificent in every way