The mystery surrounding the Templars is a labyrinth of myths, secrets, uncomfortable and hidden truths, where any answer gives rise to further questions. As the enigma unravels, we find ourselves taken back through the story of human civilisation, to the dawn of philosophical and religious thought. Every year on the 23rd of May, the small town of Les Saintes Maries-de-la-Mer, in southern France, celebrates the anniversary of the arrival of Mary of Magdala and her daughter Sarah, accompanied by a number of priests, among which Simon Lazarus the Zealot(1). According to Jewish tradition, Mary (or Miriam) and Sarah are titles rather than names. Mary is a priestly title, while Sarah stands for queen or princess (2) (3).
The plural in the name of the town of Les Saintes Maries-de-la-Mer derives from the fact that two Marys, Mary Magdalene and Sarah, arrived there from the sea.
Still today, gypsies in the South of France call Sarah “the Egyptian” or “Notre Dame Noir” (Our Black Lady). The epithet “black” does not refer to any particular complexion or to skin burnt by the sun of Egypt, where Mary sought refuge after fleeing Jerusalem (4); black is the colour reserved to priestesses who have achieved the rank of Sophia: initiated into the holy wisdom of Isis, the Egyptian goddess of gnosis, the knowledge of the nature of all things.
In the Gnostic creed of the initiated, the colour black means that self-consciousness, knowledge and understanding existed even before the duality or polarisation that gave origin light and to the material world.
In St Mark’s Gospel we read that when the descendent of the royal house of David, (5) the Nazar-Essene (an Essene of Nazar) Yeshua ben Joseph, Jesus, was in the house of Simon Lazarus in Bethany, he was approached by a woman holding an alabaster vase.
The woman, Mary Magdalene, anointed his head with precious oil (6). This ritual was known as hieros gamos, or holy matrimony, by the Greeks. In Jewish tradition, and later in the Sumerian, Babylonian and Canaanitic traditions, the ritual anointing of the king is performed only by the royal priestess or by the royal spouse in her role as Isis. It was only after this ritual union with the priestess that kings assumed their role of messiah, the anointed (7).
In the Middle Ages, the notion that Mary Magdalene was a priestess of the royal blood and spouse of Jesus was widespread. In “The Life of Mary Magdalene”, Raban Maar (776-856), archbishop of Mayence, wrote that Mary’s mother, Eucharia, was of Asmonean royal blood, and that would make Mary a princess (8). Contemporary stories narrate that Sarah’s descendants married into Visigoth families, thereby originating the Merovingian dynasty.

The Visigoths themselves claimed to descend from the kings David and Solomon, and that they fled to the Greek region of Arcadia before making their journey to the North of France. Although very little had been discovered about them until a few years ago, it is now known that Merovingian kings did not have their hair cut and that they underwent initiation rituals similar to those followed by the Nazarene devotees and by other Gnostic sects. Their people considered them “holy kings” because they ruled according to the ancient tradition of the Fisher Kings, who followed Jesus’ instructions to serve instead of to dominate (9).
The title of Fisher King is very old. It was present in Sumerian tablets, where is indicated the rank of the scientist-priests (introduced to the holy knowledge), Ea/Enki, the nefilim bearing the title “Lord of the Earth”, since he had been the first to come “from the heavens to the earth”.

According to Templar beliefs, the title of Fisher King was combined in a single person by the Nazarene Yeshua ben Joseph as well, the never-crowned king of the Jews (10). As a descendent of David and Solomon and in his role of high priest according to the tradition of Michael-Zadok, he revived the covenant between God and Abraham, based on love instead of law, on fear of God and on His judgement (11). Under Herod, the divisions among the Jewish people placed on one side the followers of the messiah Yeshua ben Joseph, the poorer classes and a few religious and nationalist groups such as the Essenes, the Nazarenes and the Zealots, and on the other the guardians of the covenant between God and Moses, the Perushim, the Tsadiqim, the Sadducees and the Pharisees, or the political-religious élite and administrators of the Religion/State (12). The latter groups collaborated with the Romans in exchange for maintaining their status, and accepted the authority of Herod, although he did not belong to Israel’s royal family. This contrast finally resulted in a split between the Jews and the Diaspora (13). There has always been a lack of understanding between those who follow the pre-Egyptian and Egyptian Gnostic tradition of Ninhursag and Ea and Thoth (son of Ea/Ptah) and Isis, who proclaimed the divinity of the Self, intrinsically present in All and Everyone, with no law nor will besides that of evolving in consciousness through the creation of itself, and those who follow the idea of a “heavenly” god, “creator” of human beings subjected to the will and laws of that god and judged in their thoughts and deeds.
The representatives of the one god had little understanding for those who refused their authority on the grounds of being the sole creators of their own destiny. From a historical point of view, the notion of god as mankind’s judge and custodian, invoked at the Wailing Wall, during the Mass and from the minarets, evolved from Sumerian (and later Babylonian and Jewish) descriptions of interference in human destiny made by Ea’s violent and irascible half-brother, Enlil (14), later known as Jehovah, Yahweh (YHWH), Eloh, Adonai and Allah.
The Templar religion is therefore the Gnostic Christianity that was spread by Mary Magdalene and her disciples in southern France. Under the clergy’s undiscerning eyes, the Templars practised the esoteric cult of the feminine principle of divine wisdom, disguised as idolatry for Mary and veneration for the black Madonna (15). According to this belief, as for the Christian Cathars, each man and each woman is the son or daughter of God, and can achieve his or her spiritual illumination and rise to heaven with no need for intermediaries.
Thus, all power and responsibility lies with man, who has the means to transcend his dualistic nature and to realise the infinite potentials of his divine nature, whereas, according to the Templars, the doctrines of the Catholic Church subjugated its followers to oppression and to servitude under a vindictive god (16). Never in history has there been a persecution as determined and wrathful as that brought against gnosticism, the illuminated knowledge of the divinity in its Self, by the Catholic Church, for which it was vital to extirpate any trace of hereditary claimants to the papal throne, as well as any teachings that challenged the doctrines on which that power was founded.
The notion that the union between Mary Magdalene and Jesus might have given birth to progenitors of royal blood, sangreal, was a serious threat to the title of “sole representative of God on earth” (17). The Templar cult quickly propagated from Chartres throughout Spain and to other parts of Europe. In the churches that were frequented by the Templars, iconographic representations of Jesus are rare. Those few that exist depict him as a teacher, never as a victim or redeemer.
The Templars attributed more importance to John the Baptist, known as the prophet Yehochanan to Jews and Yahia ben Younes to Muslims, the teacher who introduced Jesus to the holy knowledge (18). According to Islamic beliefs, John-Yahia was not beheaded and his burial place is at Oujda, in Morocco (19). The rebirth of Jesus through the “sanctification of the spirit” is symbolized by his baptism and by the dove, an important Templar symbol. The Templars also venerated John the Evangelist, the disciple loved by Jesus and the prolific author of spiritual works most of which went lost or were destroyed by Holy Mother Church, such as the apocryphal “Acts of John” and “The Gospel of Love” (20). Many scholars of the Knights of the Temple of Solomon agree that this Order represented the military arm of the descendants of the sangreal.
The Templars appear to have remained under the same leadership for one hundred years together with the Order of Zion, an even more secretive and elusive brotherhood. Since there are no documents directly describing the Order’s founding, the source that scholars refer to are the writings left by Guillaume de Tyre from 1175 to 1185. Guillaume indicates 1118 as the founding year (21). The dynastic families of sangreal origin, together with other descendants of noble families and Judeo-Christian priests, were fundamental in planning and carrying out the first Crusade. The primary objective was to liberate Israel and restore the throne of David and Solomon in Jerusalem. After the conquest of the Holy City, the heir designate, Godfroi de Bouillon, direct descendant along the Davidic and Asmonean line, refused the title of king because of the massacres that had been perpetrated by the Crusaders, assuming instead the administration of the town as “Protector of Jerusalem and of the Holy Sepulchre” (22)(23). During that period the Templars made important excavations on the hill where the Temple of Solomon had stood (24). Accounts of those excavations are obscure and have sparked off many legends and theories about what actually went on.
Given the secrecy surrounding the undertaking, little is known today about what exactly was sought and what was found (25). Guillaume de Tyre wrote that Hughes de Payen, Grand Master of the Order of the Templars, subsequently accosted Baudoin I, King of Jerusalem and Godfroi’s successor, offering to defend the roads, ways and routes travelled by the pilgrims, a complex communication network connecting centres of worship: Compostela, Chartres, Mont St. Michel, Rocamadur, Canterbury, St. Maximum-la-Baume and Jerusalem (26).
In those times, pilgrimages represented a thriving business, comparable to modern mass tourism. Long-distance voyages were dangerous and costly due to bands of highwaymen and passing fees levied by feudal landowners. Things changed radically with the introduction by the Templars of “all-inclusive tour packages” and the first traveller’s cheques and credit cards in history. Pilgrims who preferred not to carry cash could deposit their money in a Templar branch office in exchange for a credit document with which to pay for products and services: inns, shops, guides, etc. Every expense was noted down and at the end of the journey the pilgrims or the merchants could collect the remaining cash or pay any outstanding amount at the nearest Templar office (27).
Far from being simply a religious order or a military association, the Templars wisely invested their great riches in property, staple industries and the construction of important buildings. They even managed to evade the prohibition for Christians to charge interest on money loans, an activity that was considered usury and reserved for the Jews. The financial services offered by the Templars – credit, letters of exchange, money transfer, insurance and the transport of valuables – were requested by merchants, kings, emperors, bishops and popes.

Their crypts guarded the riches and jewels of a number of crowned heads, who often found themselves indebted to this order of warrior-monks who carried on like present-day bankers (28 - Baignet, Leigh, Lincoln - The Holy Blood and The Holy Grail), (29).

Soon enough, the wealth and power and arrogance of the Knights of the Temple of Solomon aroused growing resentment.
Even Philip the Fair, who had ascended the throne of France in 1285, nursed strong grievances. He was heavily indebted to the Templars, who moreover had rejected his request to join the Order (30). To improve his financial situation, Philip, more greedy than fair, drove the Jews out of France and took possession of their property. The Church, looking to eliminate a compromising “heresy”, saw him as a decisive ally in launching an attack against the Templar knights (31). Under the pretext of discussing the unification of the Order of the Temple with the Order of the Knights Hospitallers, Pope Clement V called to Paris Jacques de Molay, Grand Master of the Templars, who was safely living in Cyprus (32).
On Friday the 13th of October, 1307, Philip had him arrested together with his entire retinue, which was composed of the inner circle of the Order. At the same, with carefully prepared surprise actions, he captured most of the Templars then living in France.
The accusation, “... too terrible to conceive or to express, odious crimes, despicable evils, loathsome deeds, almost inhuman...” (33), was “having caused to Christ injuries more severe than those suffered on the cross” (34). A charge of heresy was put forth by the head of the Inquisition in France, Guillaume de Paris, by order of Clement V, who had been raised to the papacy with the decisive support of Philip (35). From then on, every member of the sangreal and all organisations having anything to do with the dynasty retreated under a shroud of strict and impenetrable secrecy, that lasts to this day.

FONTI LETTERARIE / LITERARY SOURCES
(1) Fr.Philippe Devcouroux du Buysson- Le Sainte Baume
(2) Laurence Gardner – Bloodline of the Holy Grail
(3) Fida Hassnain – A Search of the Historical Jesus
(4) M.Starbird – The Woman with the alabaster Jar)
(5) Ev.Luca c.1-v.27, c.2 -v.4
(6) Ev. Marco c.14 -v.3, e Matteo c.26 -v.7
(7) M. Starbird – The Woman with the Alabaster Jar
(8) Raban Maar – La Vie de St. Marie Madeleine
(9) L.Gardner - Bloodline of the Holy Grail
(10) L. Gardner - Le misteriose origini dei re del Santo Graal (11) A.N.Wilson – Jesus
(12) Flavius Josephus – La Guerra degli Ebrei
(13) Paul Johnson – A History o Christianity
(14) Zacharias Sitchin – Il Pianeta degli Dei
(15) Ean Begg – The Cult of the Black Madonna
(16) M. Hopkins, T. Wallace-Murphy, G. Simmons - Il Codice del Santo Graal
(17) L.Gardner – Bloodline of the Holy Grail
(18) Ravencroft, Wallace-Murphy – The Mark of the Beast
(19) C.Knight, R.Lomas – The Second Messiah
(20) M. Hopkins, T. Wallace-Murphy, G. Simmons - Il Codice del Santo Graal
(21) M. Hopkins, T. Wallace-Murphy, G. Simmons - Il Codice del Santo Graal
(22) Baigent, Leight, Lincoln- The Holy Blood and The Holy Grail
(23) Stephen Runciman – A History of the Crusades
(24) Prince Michael d’Albania – The Forgotten Monarchy of Scotland
(25) Fred Gettings – The Secret Zodiac
(26) C.Knight, R.Lomas – The Second Messiah
(27) Baigent, Leigh, Lincoln - The Holy Blood and The Holy Grail
(28) Baignet, Leigh, Lincoln - The Holy Blood and The Holy Graill
(29) T.Wallace- Murphy – The Templar Legacy and the Masonic Inheritance Within Rosslyn Chapel
(30) Baigent, Leigh, Lincoln - The Holy Blood and The Holy Grail
(31) C.Knight, R.Lomas – The Second Messiah
(32) M. Hopkins, T. Wallace-Murphy, G. Simmons - Il Codice del Santo Graal
(33) Lizerand – Le Dossier de l’Affaire des Templiers
(34) M. Barber – The Trial of the Templars
(35) R.I Moore – The Formation of a Persecuting Society

BIBLIOGRAFIA / REFERENCES
M. Hopkins, T. Wallace-Murphy, G. Simmons - Il Codice del Santo Graal (distribuito in Italia da MACROEDIZIONI)
M. Hopkins, T. Wallace-Murphy - Rosslyn, Il misterioso tempio dei segreti del Santo Graal (distribuito in Italia da MACROEDIZIONI)
Laurence Gardner - Bloodline od the Holy Grail (ELEMENT BOOKS)
Andrew Welburn – The beginnings of Christianity (FLORIS 1991)
Louis Charpentier – Les Mysteres Templiers (LAFONT 1967)
Charles Addison – The History of the Knights Templar (BLACK BOOKS 1995)
Hugh Schoenfield – The Essene Odyssey (ELEMENT BOOKS)
R.I. Moore - The Formation of a Persecuting Society (BASIL BLACKWELL 1990)
Margaret Starbird – The Woman with the Alabaster Jar (BAER & CO. 1993)
Zecharias Sitchin – Il Pianeta degli Dei (distr. in Italia da MACROEDIZIONI)
C. Knight, R.Lomas – The Second Messiah (CENTURY 1997)
Macholm Barber – The Trial of the Templars (CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS 1994)
Ean Begg – The cult of the Black Madonna Robert Eisenmann – James the Brother of Jesus (FABER & FABER)
M. Baigent, R. Leight – The Temple and the Lodge (CORGI 1992)
Barbara Thiering – Jesus the man (CORGI 1992)
Fida Hassnain - A Search for the Historical Jesus (GATEWAY BOOKS 1994)
J.Doresse - The secret Books of the Egyptian Gnostics (LIBRAIRIE PLON 1958)
M Robinson James – The Nag Hammeadi Library (HARPER COLLINS 1990)

FONTI ANTICHE / ANCIENT SOURCES
Flavius Josephus – L’antiquità e La Guerra degli Ebrei
FONTI BIBLICHE / BIBLICAL SOURCES
L’evangelio di Luca, Matteo e Marco
ALTRE FONTI / OTHER
Centre des Etudes et de Recherches Templiers (George Kiess) The European Templar Heritage Research Network (ETHRN)
LETTURE SUPPLEMENTARI / FURTHER READING
I Vangeli Gnostici a cura di Luigi Moraldi (ADELPHI)
L.Picknett, C. Prince - La rivelazione dei Templari (Distr. in Italia da MACROEDIZIONI) Laurence Gardner – Le misteriose origini dei re del Santo Graal (Distr. in Italia MACROEDIZIONI)
David Donnini – Nuove ipotesi su Gesù (Distr. da MACROEDIZIONI)