On the Extinction of the Order of the Templars

...the betrayal committed The Latin text begins mid-sentence; "commissa" likely refers to the "treachery" or "deed" mentioned on the lost portion of the preceding page. is most detestable. He Likely referring to a Christian monarch, such as King Conrad III or Louis VII during the Second Crusade. had besieged Damascus, a city of Palestine, and had nearly forced its inhabitants to surrender, when the Templars The Knights Templar. first sought the right to lead the assault. The king granted The Latin here is "indulsit," matching the catchword from the previous page. this to them easily enough, but not without irreparable loss. For, pitching their tents between the city and the Christian army, they entered into a secret pact with the pagans inhabiting Damascus. They promised to liberate them from the siege if the inhabitants would pledge three casks full of gold bezants original: "pisantiis." These were gold coins, named after Byzantium, widely used in the Crusader states.. Once the agreement was made by both sides, the deceived Christians were forced to depart from the city without having achieved their goal. The Templars did indeed receive the promised casks shortly thereafter, but they were found to be filled not with gold, but with copper coins. English Monasticism, vol. 2, p. 518.

§. 12.

Furthermore, historical monuments testify abundantly that the Templars undertook other crimes, departing entirely from the virtue, gravity, and faith of their ancestors. The mind shudders to relate all the things that are handed down about them, not without the amazement of the readers. Nevertheless, I shall set forth a summary of the crimes charged against them original Greek: ὡς ἐν τύπῳ ("hōs en typō"), meaning "as in a sketch" or "in outline". If the truth of these charges were entirely beyond doubt, the sun would have scarcely ever seen a more detestable race of men.

Some write that it was their custom that a candidate for the Order, before he was received into the rank, was required not only to deny Christ and to spit upon a displayed cross in contempt of the One crucified, but also to kiss the "posterior parts" (pardon the expression) of the one receiving him. Thomas Walsingham in the Life of Edward II, p. 99, Camden edition; Johannes Serarius in the History of the Kings of France, p. 148; The Great Belgian Chronicle, p. 269, Pistor edition; Fasciculus Temporum, p. 83, Pistor edition; Nauclerus for the year 1310; Robert Gaguin, Book 7, on Philip the Fair for the year 1307; Bzovius in the Continuation of Baronius for the year 1307. They also reportedly possessed an image cast with wondrous skill, over which a human skin [was stretched...] The text breaks off here; historical accounts of this charge often refer to an idol called Baphomet, sometimes described as a mummified head or a skin-covered statue.