Go to Jerusalem to recapture Christ's tomb! The call issued by Pope

Urban II was enthusiastically received by the western knights who

were to reconquer the Holy City on 15 July 1099. But the crusaders

were short of both money and manpower. And the county of

Champagne was about to supply them with both.

Leaving behind his wife and children, Hugues de Payns went to

Jerusalem and stayed there. To ensure the safety of pilgrims to the

Holy Land, he founded the Poor Knights of Christ and the Temple of

Solomon. It was not long before he was joined by Hugues I, Count of

Troyes, formerly his feudal lord and now a fellow Templar. In 1129,

riding on the powerful support of Bernard, famous Abbot of Clairvaux,

the Knights Templar became the first military religious order in

Christendom. This brotherhood of monks and soldiers not only took

vows of poverty, chastity and obedience; they also vowed to devote

their lives - and if necessary to sacrifice them - to the defence of the

Holy Land.

In this book, the most authoritative experts in this field bring to life

the age of the Templars, in both the East and the West. Using

previously unpublished archive documents, the authors trace the

history of the commanderies of the Champagne region, which were

some of the earliest in France. They describe the daily lives of the

Templars, with their simultaneous activities as soldiers, merchants,

artisans and farmers. Finally, they explore the many facets of the

myths that still surround them. What were the reasons for their arrest

and trial? Was there really a treasure? Did some Templars manage to

flee and to found a new order? And how have these mysteries

provided inspiration for both literature and the cinema?