The one i think is the greatest is definitely the Order of the Knights Templar. Founded in Jerusalem 1119 by Christian Knight who had sworn to protect pilgrims in the Holy Land after Jerusalem was restored by the victorious European powers after the first crusade.
One of the most favored charity groups of the medieval era, the Templars were both warriors and guardians of Jerusalem and the surrounding ares because although the Muslims had been conquered, there were still mass bands of rogues roaming the wilderness who often took advantage of christian pilgrims slaughtering them by the hundreds on the road from Jaffa to Jerusalem. This created a large problem seeing as the Knights weren't very fond of the Muslims. to resolve this, a french knight by the name of Hugues de Payens approached king Baldwin II of Jerusalem and petitioned for a holy order of monks to protect these Pilgrims. The King and patriarch agreed and sanctioned the headquarters for the knights in the left wing of the AL-Asqua Mosque in the center of Jerusalem. This became known as Solomon's Temple. Notably, in the early years of their order, the knights were funded solely on donations and their emblem shows two knights riding on a single horse emphasizing their poverty. later on, their representative from Saint Bernard of Clairvaux wrote persuasively on their behalf to several major churches and donations, land, and rich noble-born sons began taking on the vows of the Holy Order. Later on Pope Innocent II passed the papal Bull Stating that all Templars were not subject tot he laws of any land, allowing them to pass freely through and country, not pay taxes and be required to answer only to the pope.
The Skills and Knowledge that Templars were equipped with made them the elite fighting force of Europe at this time period. Much of their records were destroyed by the invading Turks in later centuries but we know enough to understand that their training was vigorous, as you would expect. the climate of Israel is very Arid, and miserably hot. Riding and fighting in heavy chain mail and plate armor would take severe endurance and physical strength. Generally, the Templars used Spears, Swords, daggers and shields. Many were already knights when they joined so they had been brought up mastering these weapons as well, making them even more efficient. Their abilities were noted in the second crusade where their fighting surpassed all the other European knights during that war. Templars were the equivalent of the modern day tank with heavy armor, a powerful horse, and charged into battle flanked by a sergeant and a squire, in turn flanked by two mercenary bowmen. Knights Broke the formations with their heavy lances while his men protected his flanks. this squadron formation was crucial in battles and gave the Templars an edge far above most other soldiers, which was probably the reason for which they were forbidden to compete in any tournaments or melees, they were just too good.
In Later centuries, the Muslims reunited under Warlords such as Saladin, who led successful campaigns against the Christians, Who were already suffering from internal conflicts such as their bitter rivalry with a branch-off the the Templars, the Hospitaler Order. Sadly, they were ousted, and though they regained control of Jerusalem for a short period of time, they were forced out again by the Turks. Now with their military mission compromised, the order began to slowly dwindle.
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| The Final Crusades |
However the freedoms the Pope had granted them made them successful businessmen and gave them freedom to establish other abbeys elsewhere in Europe. when the Templars and Hospitalers were faced with the option of merging together, king Phillip, who was deeply in debt to the Templars used this situation to his own ways accusing the Templars. On Friday the 13th of October 1307, King Phillip ordered mass arrests of all Templars under numerous false charges such as corruption, heresy, idolatry, murder, secrecy, etc. Using Rigged trials many Templars were forced under torture to admit to committing heretical acts and even thought they recanted the confessions later, king Phillip had hundreds burned at the stake. One notable trial of the grand master Jacques De Mollay, Recanted His confessions remained defiant to the end asking to be tied in such a way that he could face the notre dame cathedral and hold his hands together in prayer. While burning, He called out from the flames that Phillip and Pope Clement would soon meet them before God. His actual words were recorded as: "God Knows who is wrong and who has sinned. Soon a calamity will occur to those who have condemned us to death. Ironically Pope Clement died a month later, and king Phillip perished in a hunting accident before the year was over. Though officially disbanded, the Templars still exist tothis day in private or secret order throughout the earth pursuing different goals now, but history will always remember the Knights of The Templar who were skilled in the sword and in the Word of God.
