Pros And Cons Of The Knights Templars

Europe in the fourteenth century was a society defined by its devotion to Christianity, and as a religious order, the Knights Templar are proof that no one was impervious to being found guilty of heresy. This essay will first discuss the reasons that the Templars made their confessions and whether or not they were guilty of committing heresy. It will then explore the reasons behind their guilty verdict, such as their wealth and resentment toward them, and possible motivations for the Church and the government to see the Templars eradicated. Next it will look into heresy itself, arguing that along with the Knights Templar it is one that is founded on mysterious methods, and its failings are in its confusing nature, before finally examining …show more content…
Overall, methods used by the inquisition were coercive in nature, relying on imprisonment and torture to extract confessions from whom they believed to be guilty. Separate from the Templars, we know that the inquisitors could be relentless in their ambition, using imprisonment as an interrogation technique. Due to the circumstances within the prison that included physiological manipulation, isolation, starvation and pain, the time served in prison could easily be interpreted as torturous. Under torture, it is likely that the majority of people would confess simply to relieve themselves of pain. Knowing this, the inquisition’s confessions obtained from the Templars questionable at best. However, this does not necessarily mean that some of the confessions were not true or rooted in truth, as they are unable to prove or in turn disprove. One possibility worth examining is that the Knights Templars were guilty of heresy in some respect, and were unaware of this …show more content…
The fact that it still remains unknown indicates how in the fourteenth century, without all the research and understanding we have today, their practices would have truly been an enigma. Often modern interpretations have neglected the fundamentally spiritual nature of the order, evidenced by chapels and art, relics and liturgical objects. The Knights Templar were intended to act as the warriors of Christ, defending the holy land and thus defending Christianity. They were a group fundamentally entrenched in their religion, which makes it even more difficult to comprehend how they could be guilty of committing acts such as spitting on the cross and worshipping false idols. What may have contributed to these accusations is the aforementioned lack of clarity surrounding the Knights. Another accusation made against the Templars was homosexuality, stating that it was not a sin to “have carnal relations together”. Anne Gilmour-Bryson examined the exact nature of sodomy in the fourteenth century, concluding that it was generally not understood and confused as a term. She questions the inquisitor’s and witnesses’ credibility in the case of supposed sodomy, claiming that it was possible they did not understand what exactly sodomy entailed. Again the