![]() ![]() Many considered Raymond III of Tripoli to be the rightful king. When the king and his successor both died, Guy became king of Jerusalem-but not without political drama. A French knight, Guy traveled to Jerusalem, where he married Sibylla, sister of King Baldwin IV. 1150 –1194) made history not through success in battle but by suffering a disastrous loss. More than a century later, King Philip IV of France dealt the Knights its death blow, having many of its members tortured and killed and finally executing its last Grand Master, Jacques de Molay, in 1307. But, when Muslims retook Jerusalem in the late 12th century, the order lost its place there. The Knights Templar grew into a major economic force, with a network of banks, a fleet of ships, and chapters all over Europe. The Knights Templar earned support from Christian authorities, including Pope Innocent II, who in 1139 granted them exemption from taxes and from any authority except his own. And so, around 1118, de Payens and eight fellow knights sought permission from Jerusalem’s king, Baldwin II, to form a protective service for the pilgrims. Historical details of his early life are sketchy, but the French nobleman may have fought in the First Crusade, in which European Christian armies captured Jerusalem.Īs Christians increasingly took part in pilgrimages to the holy city, they often found themselves under attack on the road. 1070 – 1136) was a key figure in this history of the Crusades. Hugues de PayensĪs the co-founder and first Grand Master of the Knights Templar, Hugues de Payens (c. ![]() Later that year, and again in 1097, he repelled Almoravid armies that attempted to retake the city.įor centuries after his death in 1099, biographers, poets and-eventually- filmmakers, celebrated him as an honorable Spanish patriot and Christian warrior against the forces of Islam. His forces captured the city of Valencia from the Muslim, Morocco-based Almoravid dynasty in 1094. Historian Simon Barton writes that it was only near the end of his life that El Cid fought the battles that established his place in history and legend. As a commander fighting for the taifa of Zaragoza, an Arab Muslim state in what’s now Eastern Spain, he defeated both Muslim and Christian armies. Later, though, he spent more than a decade fighting mostly as a mercenary, putting himself at the service of a number of Muslim leaders and earning great wealth and fame. But his real story is a bit more complicated.īorn into an aristocratic Castilian family, Díaz became a prominent military leader serving two kings of Castile. 1043-1099) Rodrigo Díaz, more popularly known by his title, El Cid, is best-remembered as a hero of the Spanish Reconquista, leading Christian forces to victory over Muslim rulers in Spain. ![]() For example, his account of the Battle of Hastings-a triumph of mounted knights against an Anglo-Saxon army made up mostly of infantry-is based largely on eyewitness accounts from soldiers who fought there, providing one of the most important sources for modern historians. The priest didn’t hesitate to flatter his king in his writing, describing his charge into battle with gleaming shield and lance as “a sight both delightful and terrible to see.” But, despite his biases, William of Poitiers worked hard to get his facts right. Later, he provided a well-known account of the king’s life and the conquest. When William the Conqueror invaded England in 1066, William of Poitiers was his chaplain. Trained as a knight in his youth, William went on to become a priest and scholar. One of the earliest and most significant victories for knights in the Middle Ages was the Norman conquest of England, and a lot of what we know about that fight comes from William of Poitiers (c. Some were writers of history and poetry, helping to craft the image of the knight that we still know today. Many held important religious positions as well as military ones. But they also made history in other ways. Naturally, as leaders of armies, knights were responsible for winning-and losing-some of the most important battles of the Middle Ages. READ MORE: Medieval Weapons That Maimed and Killed Most knights came from noble families, and success in battle might lead to a royal grant of additional land and titles. The resources needed for horses, armor and weaponry meant that knighthood was generally a job for the rich. Accounts from the Middle Ages describe the well-trained, heavily-armed warriors trampling through enemy forces while chopping off limbs and heads. But knights were far more than romantic figures-they were a triumph of military technology. There’s no more iconic symbol of medieval Europe than the knight: clad in shining armor, jousting with his rivals, wearing a token of his lady love. ![]()
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