Hugh de Payens returns to Palestine--His death--Robert de Craon made
Master--Success of the Infidels--The second Crusade--The Templars
assume the Red Cross--Their gallant actions and high
discipline--Lands, manors, and churches granted them in
England--Bernard de Tremelay made Master--He is slain by the
Infidels--Bertrand de Blanquefort made Master--He is taken prisoner,
and sent in chains to Aleppo--The Pope writes letters in praise of the
Templars--Their religious and military enthusiasm--Their war banner
called _Beauseant_--The rise of the rival religio-military order of
the Hospital of St. John.
"We heard the _tecbir_, so the Arabs call
Their shouts of onset, when with loud appeal
They challenge _heaven_, as if demanding conquest."
[Sidenote: HUGH DE PAYENS. A. D. 1129.]
Hugh de Payens, having now laid in Europe the foundations of the great
monastic and military institution of the Temple, which was destined
shortly to spread its ramifications to the remotest quarters of
Christendom, returned to Palestine at the head of a valiant band of
newly-elected Templars, drawn principally from England and France.
On their arrival at Jerusalem they were received with great distinction by
the king, the clergy, and the barons of the Latin kingdom, a grand council
was called together, at which Hugh de Payens assisted, and various warlike
measures were undertaken for the extension and protection of the christian
territories.
[Sidenote: ROBERT DE CRAON. A. D. 1136.]
Hugh de Payens died, however, shortly after his return, and was succeeded
(A. D. 1136) by the Lord Robert, surnamed the Burgundian, (son-in-law of
Anselm, Archbishop of Canterbury,) who, after the death of his wife, had
taken the vows and the habit of the Templars.[28] He was a valiant and
skilful general,[29] but the utmost exertions of himself and his military
monks were found insufficient to sustain the tottering empire of the Latin
Christians.
The fierce religious and military enthusiasm of the Mussulmen had been
again aroused by the warlike Zinghis and his son Noureddin, two of the
most famous chieftains of the age, who were regarded by the disciples of
Mahomet as champions that could avenge the cause of the prophet, and
recover to the civil and religious authority of the caliph the lost city
of Jerusalem, and all the holy places so deeply venerated by the Moslems.
The one was named _Emod-ed-deen_, "Pillar of religion;" and the other
_Nour-ed-deen_, "Light of religion," vulgarly, Noureddin. The Templars
were worsted by overpowering numbers in several battles; and in one of
these the valiant Templar, Brother Odo de Montfaucon, was slain.[30]
Emodeddeen took Taenza, Estarel, Hizam, Hesn-arruk, Hesn-Collis, &c. &c.,
and closed his victorious career by the capture of the important city of
Edessa. Noureddin followed in the footsteps of the father: he obtained
possession of the fortresses of Arlene, Mamoula, Basarfont, Kafarlatha;
and overthrew with terrific slaughter the young Jocelyn de Courtenay, in a
rash attempt to recover possession of his principality of Edessa.[31] The
Latin kingdom of Jerusalem was shaken to its foundations, and the oriental
clergy in trepidation and alarm sent urgent letters to the Pope for
assistance. The holy pontiff accordingly commissioned St. Bernard to
preach the second crusade.
[Sidenote: EVERARD DES BARRES. A. D. 1146.]
The Lord Robert, Master of the Temple, was at this period (A. D. 1146)
succeeded by Everard des Barres, Prior of France, who convened a general
chapter of the order at Paris, which was attended by Pope Eugenius the
Third, Louis the Seventh, king of France, and many prelates, princes, and
nobles, from all parts of Christendom. The second crusade was there
arranged, and the Templars, with the sanction of the Pope, assumed the
blood-red cross, the symbol of martyrdom, as the distinguishing badge of
the order, which was appointed to be worn on their habits and mantles on
the left side of the breast over the heart, whence they came afterwards to
be known by the name of the _Red Friars_ and the _Red Cross Knights_.[32]
At this famous assembly various donations were made to the Templars, to
enable them to provide more effectually for the defence of the Holy Land.
Bernard Baliol, through love of God and for the good of his soul, granted
them his estate of Wedelee, in Hertfordshire, which afterwards formed part
of the preceptory of Temple Dynnesley. This grant is expressed to be made
at the chapter held at Easter, in Paris, in the presence of the Pope, the
king of France, several archbishops, and one hundred and thirty Knights
Templars clad in white mantles.[33] Shortly before this, the Dukes of
Brittany and Lorraine, and the Counts of Brabant and Fourcalquier, had
given to the order various lands and estates; and the possessions and
power of the fraternity continued rapidly to increase in every part of
Europe.[34]
[Sidenote: A. D. 1147.]
Brother Everard des Barres, the newly-elected Master of the Temple, having
collected together all the brethren from the western provinces, joined the
standard of Louis, the French king, and accompanied the crusaders to
Palestine.
During the march through Asia Minor, the rear of the christian army was
protected by the Templars, who greatly signalized themselves on every
occasion. Odo of Deuil or Diagolum, the chaplain of King Louis, and his
constant attendant upon this expedition, informs us that the king loved to
see the frugality and simplicity of the Templars, and to imitate it; he
praised their union and disinterestedness, admired above all things the
attention they paid to their accoutrements, and their care in husbanding
and preserving their equipage and munitions of war: he proposed them as a
model to the rest of the army, and in a council of war it was solemnly
ordered that all the soldiers and officers should bind themselves in
confraternity with the Templars, and should march under their orders.[35]
Conrad, emperor of Germany, had preceded King Louis at the head of a
powerful army, which was cut to pieces by the infidels in the north of
Asia; he fled to Constantinople, embarked on board some merchant vessels,
and arrived with only a few attendants at Jerusalem, where he was received
and entertained by the Templars, and was lodged in the Temple in the Holy
City.[36] Shortly afterwards King Louis arrived, accompanied by the new
Master of the Temple, Everard des Barres; and the Templars now unfolded
for the first time the red-cross banner in the field of battle. This was a
white standard made of woollen stuff, having in the centre of it the
blood-red cross granted by Pope Eugenius. The two monarchs, Louis and
Conrad, took the field, supported by the Templars, and laid siege to the
magnificent city of Damascus, "the Queen of Syria," which was defended by
the great Noureddin, "Light of religion," and his brother _Saif-eddin_,
"Sword of the faith."
[Sidenote: A. D. 1148.]
The services rendered by the Templars are thus gratefully recorded in the
following letter sent by Louis, the French king, to his minister and
vicegerent, the famous Suger, abbot of St. Denis.
"Louis, by the grace of God king of France and Aquitaine, to his beloved
and most faithful friend Suger, the very reverend Abbot of St. Denis,
health and good wishes.
"... I cannot imagine how we could have subsisted for even the smallest
space of time in these parts, had it not been for their (the Templars')
support and assistance, which have never failed me from the first day I
set foot in these lands up to the time of my despatching this letter--a
succour ably afforded and generously persevered in. I therefore earnestly
beseech you, that as these brothers of the Temple have hitherto been
blessed with the love of God, so now they may be gladdened and sustained
by our love and favour.
"I have to inform you that they have lent me a considerable sum of money,
which must be repaid to them quickly, that their house may not suffer, and
that I may keep my word...."[37]
Among the English nobility who enlisted in the second crusade were the two
renowned warriors, Roger de Mowbray and William de Warrenne.[38] Roger de
Mowbray was one of the most powerful and warlike of the barons of England,
and was one of the victorious leaders at the famous battle of the
standard: he marched with King Louis to Palestine; fought under the
banners of the Temple against the infidels, and, smitten with admiration
of the piety and valour of the holy warriors of the order, he gave them,
on his return to England, many valuable estates and possessions. Among
these were the manors of Kileby and Witheley, divers lands in the isle of
Axholme, the town of Balshall in the county of Warwick, and various places
in Yorkshire; and so munificent were his donations, that the Templars
conceded to him and to his heirs this special privilege, that as often as
the said Roger or his heirs should find any brother of the order of the
Temple exposed to public penance, according to the rule and custom of the
religion of the Templars, it should be lawful for the said Roger and his
heirs to release such brother from the punishment of his public penance,
without the interference or contradiction of any brother of the order.[39]
[Sidenote: A. D. 1149.]
About the same period, Stephen, king of England, for the health of his own
soul and that of Queen Matilda his wife, and for the good of the souls of
King Henry, his grandfather, and Eustace, his son, and all his other
children, granted and confirmed to God and the blessed Virgin Mary, and to
the brethren of the knighthood of the Temple of Solomon at Jerusalem, all
the manor of Cressynge, with the advowson of the church of the same manor,
and also the manors of Egle and Witham.[40] Queen Matilda, likewise, for
the good of the souls of Earl Eustace, her father, the Lord Stephen, king
of England, her husband, and of all her other children, granted "to the
brethren of the Temple at Jerusalem" the manor of Covele or Cowley in
Oxfordshire, two mills in the same county, common of pasture in Shotover
forest, and the church of Stretton in Rutland.[41] Ralph de Hastings and
William de Hastings also gave to the Templars, in the same reign, (A. D.
1152,) lands at Hurst and Wyxham in Yorkshire, afterwards formed into the
preceptory of Temple Hurst. William Asheby granted them the estate whereon
the house and church of Temple Bruere were afterwards erected;[42] and the
order continued rapidly to increase in power and wealth in England and in
all parts of Europe, through the charitable donations of pious Christians.
After the miserable failure of the second crusade,[43] brother Everard des
Barres, the Master of the Temple, returned to Paris, with his friend and
patron Louis, the French king; and the Templars, deprived of their chief,
were now left alone and unaided to withstand the victorious career of the
fanatical Mussulmen. Their miserable situation is thus portrayed in a
melancholy letter from the treasurer of the order, written to the Master,
Everard des Barres, during his sojourn at the court of the king of France.
"Since we have been deprived of your beloved presence, we have had the
misfortune to lose in battle the prince of Antioch[44] and all his
nobility. To this catastrophe has succeeded another. The infidels invaded
the territory of Antioch; they drove all before them, and threw garrisons
into several strong places. On the first intelligence of this disaster,
our brethren assembled in arms, and in concert with the king of Jerusalem
went to the succour of the desolated province. We could only get together
for this expedition one hundred and twenty knights and one thousand
serving brothers and hired soldiers, for whose equipment we expended seven
thousand crowns at Acre, and one thousand at Jerusalem. Your paternity
knows on what condition we assented to your departure, and our extreme
want of money, of cavalry, and of infantry. We earnestly implore you to
rejoin us as soon as possible, with all the necessary succours for the
Eastern Church, our common mother.
"... Scarce had we arrived in the neighbourhood of Antioch, ere we were
hemmed in by the Turcomans on the one side, and the sultan of Aleppo
(Noureddin) on the other, who blockade us in the environs of the town,
whilst our vineyards are destroyed, and our harvests laid waste.
Overwhelmed with grief at the pitiable condition to which we are reduced,
we conjure you to abandon everything, and embark without delay. Never was
your presence more necessary to your brethren;--at no conjuncture could
your return be more agreeable to God.... The greater part of those whom
we led to the succour of Antioch are dead....
"We conjure you to bring with you from beyond sea all our knights and
serving brothers capable of bearing arms. Perchance, alas! with all your
diligence, you may not find one of us alive. Use, therefore, all
imaginable celerity; pray forget not the necessities of our house: they
are such that no tongue can express them. It is also of the last
importance to announce to the Pope, to the King of France, and to all the
princes and prelates of Europe, the approaching desolation of the Holy
Land, to the intent that they succour us in person, or send us subsidies.
Whatever obstacles may be opposed to your departure, we trust to your zeal
to surmount them, for now hath arrived the time for perfectly
accomplishing our vows in sacrificing ourselves for our brethren, for the
defence of the eastern church, and the holy sepulchre....
"For you, our dear brothers in Europe, whom the same engagements and the
same vows ought to make keenly alive to our misfortunes, join yourselves
to our chief, enter into his views, second his designs, fail not to sell
everything; come to the rescue; it is from you we await liberty and
life!"[45]
On the receipt of this letter, the Master of the Temple, instead of
proceeding to Palestine, abdicated his authority, and entered into the
monastery of Clairvaux, where he devoted the remainder of his days to the
most rigorous penance and mortification.
[Sidenote: BERNARD DE TREMELAY. A. D. 1151. A. D. 1152.]
He was succeeded (A. D. 1151) by Bernard de Tremelay, a nobleman of an
illustrious family in Burgundy, in France, and a valiant and experienced
soldier.[46]
The infidels made continual incursions into the christian territories,
and shortly after his accession to power they crossed the Jordan, and
advanced within sight of Jerusalem. Their yellow and green banners waved
on the summit of the Mount of Olives, and the warlike sound of their
kettle-drums and trumpets was heard within the sacred precincts of the
holy city. They encamped on the mount over against the Temple; and had the
satisfaction of regarding from a distance the _Beit Allah_, or Temple of
the Lord, their holy house of prayer. In a night attack, however, they
were defeated with terrible slaughter, and were pursued all the way to the
Jordan, five thousand of their number being left dead on the plain.[47]
Shortly after this affair the Templars lost their great patron, Saint
Bernard, who died on the 20th of April, A. D. 1153, in the sixty-third
year of his age. On his deathbed he wrote three letters in behalf of the
order. The first was addressed to the patriarch of Antioch, exhorting him
to protect and encourage the Templars, a thing which the holy abbot
assures him will prove most acceptable to God and man. The second was
written to Melesinda, queen of Jerusalem, praising her majesty for the
favour shown by her to the brethren of the order; and the third, addressed
to Brother Andre de Montbard, a Knight Templar, conveys the affectionate
salutations of St. Bernard to the Master and brethren, to whose prayers he
recommends himself.[48]
The same year, at the siege of Ascalon, the Master of the Temple and his
knights attempted alone and unaided to take that important city by storm.
At the dawn of day they rushed through a breach made in the walls, and
penetrated to the centre of the town. There they were surrounded by the
infidels and overpowered, and, according to the testimony of an
eye-witness, who was in the campaign from its commencement to its close,
not a single Templar escaped: they were slain to a man, and the dead
bodies of the Master and his ill-fated knights were exposed in triumph
from the walls.[49]
[Sidenote: BERTRAND DE BLANQUEFORT. A. D. 1154.]
De Tremelay was succeeded (A. D. 1154) by Brother Bertrand de Blanquefort,
a knight of a noble family of Guienne, called by William of Tyre a pious
and God-fearing man.
[Sidenote: A. D. 1156.]
The Templars continued to be the foremost in every encounter with the
Mussulmen, and the Monkish writers exult in the number of infidels they
sent to _hell_. A proportionate number of the fraternity must at the same
time have ascended to _heaven_, for the slaughter amongst them was
terrific. On Tuesday, June 19, A. D. 1156, they were drawn into an
ambuscade whilst marching with Baldwin, king of Jerusalem, near Tiberias,
three hundred of the brethren were slain on the field of battle, and
eighty-seven fell into the hands of the enemy, among whom was Bertrand de
Blanquefort himself, and Brother Odo, marshal of the kingdom.[50] Shortly
afterwards, thirty Knights Templars put to flight, slaughtered, and
captured, two hundred infidels;[51] and in a night attack on the camp of
Noureddin, they compelled that famous chieftain to fly, without arms and
half-naked, from the field of battle. In this last affair the names of
Robert Mansel, an Englishman, and Gilbert de Lacy, preceptor of the Temple
of Tripoli, are honourably mentioned.[52] The services of the Templars
were gratefully acknowledged in Europe, and the Pope, in a letter written
in their behalf to the Archbishop of Rheims, his legate in France,
characterizes them as "New Maccabees, far famed and most valiant
champions of the Lord." "The assistance," says the Pope, "rendered by
those holy warriors to all Christendom, their zeal and valour, and
untiring exertions in defending from the persecution and subtilty of the
filthy Pagans, those sacred places which have been enlightened by the
corporal presence of our Saviour, we doubt not have been spread abroad
throughout the world, and are known, not only to the neighbouring nations,
but to all those who dwell at the remotest corners of the earth." The holy
pontiff exhorts the archbishop to procure for them all the succour
possible, both in men and horses, and to exert himself in their favour
among all his suffragan bishops.[53]
The fiery zeal and warlike enthusiasm of the Templars were equalled, if
not surpassed, by the stern fanaticism and religious ardour of the
followers of Mahomet. "Noureddin fought," says his oriental biographer,
"like the meanest of his soldiers, saying, 'Alas! it is now a long time
that I have been seeking martyrdom without being able to obtain it.' The
Imaum Koteb-ed-din, hearing him on one occasion utter these words,
exclaimed, 'In the name of God do not put your life in danger, do not thus
expose Islam and the Moslems. Thou art their stay and support, and if (but
God preserve us therefrom) thou shouldest be slain, it will be all up with
us.' 'Ah! Koteb-ed-deen,' said he, 'what hast thou said, who can save
_Islam_[54] and our country, but that great God who has no equal?' 'What,'
said he, on another occasion, 'do we not look to the security of our
houses against robbers and plunderers, and shall we not defend
religion?'"[55]
Like the Templars, Noureddin fought constantly with spiritual and with
carnal weapons. He resisted the world and its temptations by fasting and
prayer, and by the daily exercise of the moral and religious duties and
virtues inculcated by the Koran. He fought with the sword against the foes
of Islam, and employed his whole energies, to the last hour of his life,
in the enthusiastic and fanatic struggle for the recovery of
Jerusalem.[56]
The close points of resemblance, indeed, between the religious fanaticism
of the Templars and that of the Moslems are strikingly remarkable. In the
Moslem camp, we are told by the Arabian writers, all profane and frivolous
conversation was severely prohibited; the exercises of religion were
assiduously practised, and the intervals of action were employed in
prayer, meditation, and the study of the Koran.
The Templars style themselves "The Avengers of Jesus Christ," and the
"instruments and ministers of God for the punishment of infidels," and the
Pope and the holy fathers of the church proclaim that it is specially
entrusted to them "to blot out from the earth all unbelievers," and they
hold out the joys of paradise as the glorious reward for the dangers and
difficulties of the task.[57] "In fighting for Christ," declares St.
Bernard, in his address to the Templars, "the kingdom of Christ is
acquired.... Go forth, therefore, O soldiers, in nowise mistrusting, and
with a fearless spirit cast down the enemies of the cross of Christ, in
the certain assurance that neither in life nor in death can ye be
separated from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus, repeating to
yourselves in every danger, whether we live or whether we die we are the
Lord's. How gloriously do the victors return from the fight, how happy do
the martyrs die in battle! Rejoice, valiant champion, if thou livest and
conquerest in the Lord, but rejoice rather and glory if thou shouldest die
and be joined unto the Lord.... If those are happy who die _in_ the Lord,
how much more so are those who die _for_ the Lord!... Precious in the
sight of God will be the death of his holy soldiers."
"The _sword_," says the prophet Mahomet, on the other hand, "is the key of
heaven and of hell; a drop of blood shed in the cause of God, a night
spent in arms, is of more avail than two months of fasting and of prayer.
Whosoever falls in battle, his sins are forgiven him at the day of
judgment. His wounds will be resplendent as vermilion, and odoriferous as
musk, and the loss of limbs shall be supplied by the wings of angels and
of cherubims."
Thus writes the famous Caliph Abubeker, the successor of Mahomet, to the
Arabian tribes:
"In the name of the most merciful GOD, _Abdollah Athich Ib'n Abi Kohapha_,
to the rest of the true believers."... "This is to acquaint you, that I
intend to send the true believers into Syria, to take it out of the hands
of the infidels, and I would have you to know, that _the fighting for
religion is an act of obedience to_ GOD."
"Remember," said the same successor of the prophet and commander of the
faithful, to the holy warriors who had assembled in obedience to his
mandate, "that you are always in the presence of God, on the verge of
death, in the assurance of judgment, and the hope of paradise.... When you
fight _the battles of the Lord_, acquit yourselves like men, and turn not
your backs."
The prowess and warlike daring of the Templars in the field are thus
described by St. Bernard.
"When the conflict has begun, then at length they throw aside their former
meekness and gentleness, exclaiming, _Do not I hate them, O Lord, that
hate thee, and am I not grieved with those who rise up against thee?_ They
rush in upon their adversaries, they scatter them like sheep, in nowise
fearing, though few in number, the fierce barbarism or the immense
multitude of the enemy. They have learned indeed to rely, not on their own
strength, but to count on victory through the aid of the Lord God Sabaoth,
to whom they believe it easy enough, according to the words of Maccabees,
to make an end of many by the hands of a few, for victory in battle
dependeth not on the multitude of the army, but on the strength given from
on high, which, indeed, they have very frequently experienced, since one
of them will pursue a thousand, and two will put to flight ten thousand.
Yea, and lastly, in a wonderful and remarkable manner, they are observed
to be both more gentle than _lambs_, and more fierce than _lions_, so that
I almost doubt which I had better determine to call them, monks forsooth,
or soldiers, unless perhaps, as more fitting, I should name them both the
one and the other."
At a later period, Cardinal de Vitry, Bishop of Acre, the frequent
companion of the Knights Templars on their military expeditions, thus
describes the religious and military enthusiasm of the Templars: "When
summoned to arms they never demand the number of the enemy, but where are
they? Lions they are in war, gentle lambs in the convent; fierce soldiers
in the field, hermits and monks in religion; to the enemies of Christ
ferocious and inexorable, but to Christians kind and gracious. They carry
before them," says he, "to battle, a banner, half black and white, which
they call _Beau-seant_, that is to say, in the Gallic tongue,
_Bien-seant_, because they are fair and favourable to the friends of
Christ, but black and terrible to his enemies."[58]
[Sidenote: A. D. 1158.]
Among the many instances of the fanatical ardour of the Moslem warriors,
are the following, extracted from the history of _Abu Abdollah Alwakidi_,
Cadi of Bagdad. "Methinks," said a valiant Saracen youth, in the heat of
battle against the Christians under the walls of Emesa--"methinks I see
the black-eyed girls looking upon me, one of whom, should she appear in
this world, all mankind would die for love of her; and I see in the hand
of one of them a handkerchief of green silk, and a cap made of precious
stones, and she beckons me, and calls out, Come hither quickly, for I love
thee." With these words, charging the infidels, he made havoc wherever he
went, until he was at last struck down by a javelin. "It is not," said a
dying Arabian warrior, when he embraced for the last time his sister and
mother--"it is not the fading pleasure of this world that has prompted me
to devote my life in the cause of religion, I seek the favour of God and
his apostle, and I have heard from one of the companions of the prophet,
that the spirits of the martyrs will be lodged in the crops of green birds
who taste the fruits and drink of the waters of paradise. Farewell; we
shall meet again among the groves and the fountains which God has prepared
for his elect."[59]
[Sidenote: A. D. 1159.]
The Master of the Temple, Brother Bertrand de Blanquefort, was liberated
from captivity at the instance of Manuel Comnenus, Emperor of
Constantinople.[60] After his release he wrote several letters to Louis
VII., king of France, describing the condition and prospects of the Holy
Land; the increasing power and boldness of the infidels; and the ruin and
desolation caused by a dreadful earthquake, which had overthrown numerous
castles, prostrated the walls and defences of several towns, and swallowed
up the dwellings of the inhabitants. "The persecutors of the church," says
he, "hasten to avail themselves of our misfortunes; they gather themselves
together from the ends of the earth, and come forth as one man against the
sanctuary of God."[61]
It was during his mastership, that Geoffrey, the Knight Templar, and Hugh
of Caesarea, were sent on an embassy into Egypt, and had an interview with
the Caliph. They were introduced into the palace of the Fatimites through
a series of gloomy passages and glittering porticos, amid the warbling of
birds and the murmur of fountains; the scene was enriched by a display of
costly furniture and rare animals; and the long order of unfolding doors
was guarded by black soldiers and domestic eunuchs. The sanctuary of the
presence chamber was veiled with a curtain, and the vizier who conducted
the ambassadors laid aside his scimetar, and prostrated himself three
times on the ground; the veil was then removed, and they saw the Commander
of the Faithful.[62]
Brother Bertrand de Blanquefort, in his letters to the king of France,
gives an account of the military operations undertaken by the Order of
Temple in Egypt, and of the capture of the populous and important city of
Belbeis, the ancient Pelusium.[63] During the absence of the Master with
the greater part of the fraternity on that expedition, the sultan
Noureddin invaded Palestine; he defeated with terrible slaughter the
serving brethren and Turcopoles, or light horse of the order, who
remained to defend the country, and sixty of the knights who commanded
them were left dead on the plain.[64]
[Sidenote: A. D. 1164.]
The zeal and devotion of the Templars in the service of Christ continued
to be the theme of praise and of admiration both in the east and in the
west. Pope Alexander III., in his letters, characterizes them as the stout
champions of Jesus Christ, who warred a divine warfare, and daily laid
down their lives for their brethren. "We implore and we admonish your
fraternity," says he, addressing the archbishops and bishops, "that out of
love to God, and of reverence to the blessed Peter and ourselves, and also
out of regard for the salvation of your own souls, ye do favour, and
support, and honour them, and preserve all their rights entire and intact,
and afford them the benefit of your patronage and protection."[65]
Amalric, king of Jerusalem, the successor of Baldwin the Third, in a
letter "to his dear friend and father," Louis the Seventh, king of France,
beseeches the good offices of that monarch in behalf of all the devout
Christians of the Holy Land; "but above all," says he, "we earnestly
entreat your Majesty constantly to extend to the utmost your favour and
regard to the Brothers of the Temple, who continually render up their
lives for God and the faith, and through whom we do the little that we are
able to effect, for in them indeed, after God, is placed the entire
reliance of all those in the eastern regions who tread in the right
path."...[66]
[Sidenote: PHILIP OF NAPLOUS. A. D. 1167.]
The Master, Brother Bertrand de Blanquefort, was succeeded (A. D. 1167,)
by Philip of Naplous, the first Master of the Temple who had been born in
Palestine. He had been Lord of the fortresses of Krak and Montreal in
Arabia Petraea, and took the vows and the habit of the order of the Temple
after the death of his wife.[67]
We must now pause to take a glance at the rise of another great
religio-military institution which, from henceforth, takes a leading part
in the defence of the Latin kingdom.
In the eleventh century, when pilgrimages to Jerusalem had greatly
increased, some Italian merchants of Amalfi, who carried on a lucrative
trade with Palestine, purchased of the Caliph _Monstasser-billah_, a piece
of ground in the christian quarter of the Holy City, near the Church of
the Resurrection, whereon two hospitals were constructed, the one being
appropriated for the reception of male pilgrims, and the other for
females. Several pious and charitable Christians, chiefly from Europe,
devoted themselves in these hospitals to constant attendance upon the sick
and destitute. Two chapels were erected, the one annexed to the female
establishment being dedicated to St. Mary Magdalene, and the other to St.
John the Eleemosynary, a canonized patriarch of Alexandria, remarkable for
his exceeding charity. The pious and kind-hearted people who here attended
upon the sick pilgrims, clothed the naked and fed the hungry, were called
"The Hospitallers of Saint John."
On the conquest of Jerusalem by the Crusaders, these charitable persons
were naturally regarded with the greatest esteem and reverence by their
fellow-christians from the west; many of the soldiers of the Cross,
smitten with their piety and zeal, desired to participate in their good
offices, and the Hospitallers, animated by the religious enthusiasm of the
day, determined to renounce the world, and devote the remainder of their
lives to pious duties and constant attendance upon the sick. They took the
customary monastic vows of obedience, chastity, and poverty, and assumed
as their distinguishing habit a _black_ mantle with a _white_ cross on the
breast. Various lands and possessions were granted them by the lords and
princes of the Crusade, both in Palestine and in Europe, and the order of
the hospital of St. John speedily became a great and powerful
institution.[68]
Gerard, a native of Provence, was at this period at the head of the
society, with the title of "Guardian of the Poor." He was succeeded (A. D.
1118) by Raymond Dupuy, a knight of Dauphine, who drew up a series of
rules for the direction and government of his brethren. In these rules no
traces are discoverable of the military spirit which afterwards animated
the order of the Hospital of St. John. The Abbe de Vertot, from a desire
perhaps to pay court to the Order of Malta, carries back the assumption of
arms by the Hospitallers to the year 1119, and describes them as fiercely
engaged under the command of Raymond Dupuy, in the battle fought between
the Christians and Dol de Kuvin, Sultan of Damascus; but none of the
historians of the period make any mention whatever of the Hospitallers in
that action. De Vertot quotes no authority in support of his statement,
and it appears to be a mere fiction.
The first authentic notice of an intention on the part of the Hospitallers
to occupy themselves with military matters, occurs in the bull of Pope
Innocent the Second, dated A. D. 1130. This bull is addressed to the
archbishops, bishops, and clergy of the church universal, and informs
them that the Hospitallers then retained, at their own expense, a body of
horsemen and foot soldiers, to defend the pilgrims in going to and in
returning from the holy places; the pope observes that the funds of the
hospital were insufficient to enable them effectually to fulfil the pious
and holy task, and he exhorts the archbishops, bishops, and clergy, to
minister to the necessities of the order out of their abundant
property.[69] The Hospitallers consequently at this period had resolved to
add the task of _protecting_ to that of tending and relieving pilgrims.
After the accession (A. D. 1168) of Gilbert d'Assalit to the guardianship
of the Hospital--a man described by De Vertot as "bold and enterprising,
and of an extravagant genius"--a military spirit was infused into the
Hospitallers, which speedily predominated over their pious and charitable
zeal in attending upon the poor and the sick. Gilbert d'Assalit was the
friend and confidant of Amalric, king of Jerusalem, and planned with that
monarch a wicked invasion of Egypt in defiance of treaties. The Master of
the Temple being consulted concerning the expedition, flatly refused to
have anything to do with it, or to allow a single brother of the order of
the Temple to accompany the king in arms; "For it appeared a hard matter
to the Templars," says William of Tyre, "to wage war without cause, in
defiance of treaties, and against all honour and conscience, upon a
friendly nation, preserving faith with us, and relying on our own
faith."[70] Gilbert d'Assalit consequently determined to obtain for the
king from his own brethren that aid which the Templars denied; and to
tempt the Hospitallers to arm themselves generally as a great military
society, in imitation of the Templars,[71] and join the expedition to
Egypt, Gilbert d'Assalit was authorised to promise them, in the name of
the king, the possession of the wealthy and important city of Belbeis, the
ancient Pelusium, in perpetual sovereignty.[72]
According to De Vertot, the senior Hospitallers were greatly averse to the
military projects of their chief: "They urged," says he, "that they were a
religious order, and that the church had not put arms into their hands to
make conquests;"[73] but the younger and more ardent of the brethren,
burning to exchange the monotonous life of the cloister for the enterprize
and activity of the camp, received the proposals of their superior with
enthusiasm, and a majority of the chapter decided in favour of the plans
and projects of their Guardian. They authorized him to borrow money of the
Florentine and Genoese merchants, to take hired soldiers into the pay of
the order, and to organize the Hospitallers as a great military society.
Gilbert d'Assalit bestirred himself with great energy in the execution of
these schemes; he wrote letters to the king of France for aid and
assistance,[74] and borrowed money of the emperor of Constantinople.
"Assalit," says De Vertot, "with this money levied a great body of
troops, which he took into the pay of the order; and as his fancy was
entirely taken up with flattering hopes of conquest, he drew by his
indiscreet liberalities a great number of volunteers into his service, who
like him shared already in imagination all the riches of Egypt."
[Sidenote: A.D. 1168.]
It was in the first year of the government of Philip of Naplous (A. D.
1168) that the king of Jerusalem and the Hospitallers marched forth upon
their memorable and unfortunate expedition. The Egyptians were taken
completely by surprise; the city of Belbeis was carried by assault, and
the defenceless inhabitants were barbarously massacred; "they spared,"
says De Vertot, "neither old men nor women, nor children at the breast,"
after which the desolated city was delivered up to the brethren of the
Hospital of St. John. They held it, however, for a very brief period; the
immorality, the cruelty, and the injustice of the Christians, speedily met
with condign punishment. The king of Jerusalem was driven back into
Palestine; Belbeis was abandoned with precipitation; and the Hospitallers
fled before the infidels in sorrow and disappointment to Jerusalem. There
they vented their indignation and chagrin upon the unfortunate Gilbert
d'Assalit, their superior, who had got the order into debt to the extent
of 100,000 pieces of gold; they compelled him to resign his authority, and
the unfortunate guardian of the hospital fled from Palestine to England,
and was drowned in the Channel.[75]
From this period, however, the character of the order of the Hospital of
St. John was entirely changed; the Hospitallers appear henceforth as a
great military body; their superior styles himself Master, and leads in
person the brethren into the field of battle. Attendance upon the poor and
the sick still continued, indeed, one of the duties of the fraternity, but
it must have been feebly exercised amid the clash of arms and the
excitement of war.