10.09
The secrecy around the powerful medieval Order of the Knights Templar, and the speed with which they suddenly disappeared over the space of a few years, has led to many different Knights Templar legends. These range from rumors about their association with the Holy Grail and the Ark of the Covenant, to questions about their association with the Freemasons. Recent speculation about the Templars has further increased because of references to them in bestselling books such as The Da Vinci Code and films such as Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Many legends surround the location of the Templars’ first headquarters on the Temple Mount, which had been assigned to them by King Baldwin II of Jerusalem. They were in operation there for 75 years.
The Temple Mount is sacred ground to Jews, Christians, and Muslims, and is believed to be the location of the ruins of Solomon’s Temple, and the ancient resting place of the Ark of the Covenant. Pseudo-historical books such as The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail claim that the Templars discovered documents hidden in the ruins of the Temple, “proving” that Jesus survived the Crucifixion or possibly “proving” Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene and had children by her. Indeed, the supposition that the Templars must have found something under the Temple Mount lies at the heart of most Templar legends and pseudo-historical theories. There is no physical or documentary evidence, however, to support such a supposition. It is true that they are documented as having carried a piece of the True Cross into some battles, but this was likely a portion of a timber that was discovered during the 4th century by Saint Helena, the mother of Emperor Constantine.
The recent discovery of the Chinon Parchment in the Vatican Archives appears to absolve the Templars from charges of heresy that were levied on them at the time of their suppression on Friday, October 13, 1307, and by which they have been labeled in the centuries since. Copies of this document were published in 2004, and made available online.