The Rise and Spectacular Fall of the Templars: An Interview with Dan Jones
Dan Jones gives us the scoop on his new Templar book, Knightfall, and what’s next up his sleeve.
Medievalists at the Movies: Assassin’s Creed
In between the exciting chases, hand-to-hand combat, and surprisingly well-acted dialogue, the overall film drags with too many flat moments of the lead actors staring into the camera or watching something happening from afar.
Embracing Death, Celebrating Life: Reflections on the Concept of Martyrdom in the Order of the Knights Templar
This article aims at shedding light on this neglected aspect of Templar spirituality and discusses the implications of this concept’s manifestation throughout the order’s history.
Soldiers of Christ: The Knights Hospitaller and the Knights Templar in medieval Ireland
In an Irish context, the Knights Hospitaller and the Knights Templar were the most significant expressions of this unusual vocation that sought to combine military service with monastic observance.
Friendship, Betrayal, War: “Soldier of God” Movie Review
A Templar and a Muslim; their strange friendship is the premise of this week’s movie based in the 12th century immediately after the disastrous Battle of Hattin.
BOOK REVIEW: The Lady Agnes Mystery – Volume I
A review of the Lady Agnes Mystery by Parisienne author, Andrea Japp.
Medieval Books: 5 Great New Releases!
Black Friday is around the corner – here are a few books that have just been released!
Five Reasons We’re Still Fascinated by the Templars
What is it about the Templars that makes them so fascinating?
Embracing Death, Celebrating Life: Reflections on the Concept of Martyrdom in the Order of the Knights Templar
Although research on the concept of martyrdom during the era of the Crusades has gained considerable prominence, it has rarely been applied to the Knights Templar. This is surprising, as the Templars were the first military order and paved the way for a new monastic development; they were devoted to warfare only; and they, together with the other military orders, but unlike most Crusaders, established a permanent presence in the hostile environment of the Holy Land, consequently facing the threat of death both regularly and frequently.
Templars, Hospitallers, and 12th-Century Popes: The Maltese Evidence
To date, scholars have cataloged approximately 1,000 pre-1198 papal documents for Templars and Hospitallers, including deperdita (lost documents, inferred from other, still existing documents), as well as forgeries and falsifications.
BOOKS: Medieval Ireland
In celebration of St. Patrick’s Day, here are some great books on medieval Ireland!
How secret was the Templar admission ceremony? Evidence from the proceedings in the British Isles
I have argued in my introduction to the proceedings against the Templars in the British Isles that we cannot believe any of the evidence given by the Templars during the proceedings against them.
Steamy Syrian Scandals: Matthew Paris on the Templars and Hospitallers
Matthew Paris is a major source of information on the Templars and Hospitallers. But we ask: ‘How far can this Mad Monk be trusted? Was he in the pay of the Evil Emperor?’
Templar attitudes towards women
The rule of the order of the Temple took a traditional monastic attitude towards women, being strongly anti-feminine in tone, and seeing women as contaminating the brothers.
Strange Bedfellows : The Rise of the Military Religious Orders in the Twelfth Century
Although they were devout members of a pacifist religion, they were also its dominant military force. By the most basic tenants of Christianity, the Military Orders should never have existed.
Ghost Commandery: Shaping Local Templar Identity in the Cartulary of Provins
What makes the case of this cartulary particularly interesting is that the Templar house in Provins was not established until 1193, sixty years after André’s gift. In 1133, there were no Templars living in Champagne at all.
BOOK REVIEW: “Defending the City of God” : A Medieval Queen, the First Crusades, and the Quest for Peace in Jerusalem, by Sharan Newman
This is my review of Sharan Newman’s latest book, Defending the City of God: A Medieval Queen, the First Crusades, and the Quest for Peace in Jerusalem.
Bernard of Clairvaux’s Writings on Violence and the Sacred
Monk, exegete, political actor and reformer, Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153) was not just a man of his times; he was a man who shaped his times.
A Heresy of State: Philip the Fair, the Trial of the ‘Perfidious Templars,’ and the Pontificalization of the French Monarchy
This article provides an outline for a new interpretation of the trial of the Templars, with special attention to the texts written by the instigators of the case, namely, Philip the Fair and his ministers.
Star Wars and the Middle Ages
When George Lucas wrote up the screen play that would become Episode IV: A New Hope, he would make use of medieval history to help create his galaxy far, far away.
The impact of the crusading movement in Scotland, 1095-c.1560
The involvement of Scots in the Crusades has never been studied in detail either by historians of Scotland or of the Crusades, but it is hoped that the present thesis will show such a detailed study to be worthwhile.
Sodomy and the Knights Templar
In this article, I will analyze testimony relevant to the charges of the Inquisition that members of the order of Knights Templar throughout Christendom practiced homosexual acts of various sorts from illicit kisses to sodomy.
The Cult of the Cross in the Order of the Temple
The military orders were unique religious institutions in very obvious ways, but one characteristic feature that has so far attracted little attention is the fact that of all the regular religious orders and communities that existed during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries only they wore the cross, which was the sign of the crusader, permanently on their habit.
Templar (Graphic Novel)
Graphic novels that focus on the medieval period are getting more and more popular – and works like Templar are a good reason why. Set during the downfall of the Templar Order in 1307, it is a historical adventure story that combines action, humour and romance with some royal politics and a mysterious treasure.