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Article THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR. ← Page 6 of 7 →
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The Knights Templar.
" the Templars who are in slavery amongst the infidels are exposed to the most cruel treatment for being Christians , whilsfthe Christian princes are burning them because they do not confess they are infidels . That if any of the Templars had acknowledged the commissions of enormous crimes , whether they did so through a sense of
guilt , or only to deliver themselves from the tortures of the rack , they deserved punishment either as criminals , or as men who were base enough to betray their conscience , the honour of the Order , and the sanctity of truth . But a noble Order which for two centuries had rendered such services to the Church , ought not to suffer for the crimes
of some particular members , nor for the weakness and prevarication of others . " They add that their great possessions were the true cause of their persecutions , and beseech his Holiness , that in imitation of his predecessors , he would vouchsafe to honour them with his protection , or else that he would permit them to defend their innocence with the
points of their swords , according to the prevalent custom and the duties of knighthood , against those profligate wretches who dared to defame them . It is not known what answer the Pope made to their petition . History reports that James II ., who was then on the throne of Arragon ,
besieged them in their castles , and having taken them , took possession of their property , and sent the Templars to different prisons , where the Bishop of Valencia , conformable to the Orders of Clement , carried on the prosecution against them .
Whilst their affairs were thus carried on in other countries , preparations were made at Paris for carrying on the like proceedings against them . Many of the Templars were conducted thither ; but their recantation of their former confession , which they attributed to the violence of their tortures , put the judges to a nonplus . A great
consultation was held on this subject , and it was long debated whether any notice should be taken of their protestations . Finally , by a very singular decision , it was resolved to treat all who had retracted their first confessions as heretics relapsed , and who had renounced Jesus Christ . Pursuant to this determination , the Grand Master , Jacques de
Molay was again brought before the commissioners . They asked him if he had any thing to say in defence of his chevaliers ? He replied , " that he would readily undertake their defence ; and that nothing in this life could afford him such satisfaction as to be permitted to maintain their innocence in the face of the whole world . " But he begged
the liberty of having counsel ; " although , " says he , "they have not left me four deniers to defray the expences of the prosecution . " The commissioners replied that , in a prosecution for heresy , the accused were never allowed the benefit of counsel ; and that before he
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The Knights Templar.
" the Templars who are in slavery amongst the infidels are exposed to the most cruel treatment for being Christians , whilsfthe Christian princes are burning them because they do not confess they are infidels . That if any of the Templars had acknowledged the commissions of enormous crimes , whether they did so through a sense of
guilt , or only to deliver themselves from the tortures of the rack , they deserved punishment either as criminals , or as men who were base enough to betray their conscience , the honour of the Order , and the sanctity of truth . But a noble Order which for two centuries had rendered such services to the Church , ought not to suffer for the crimes
of some particular members , nor for the weakness and prevarication of others . " They add that their great possessions were the true cause of their persecutions , and beseech his Holiness , that in imitation of his predecessors , he would vouchsafe to honour them with his protection , or else that he would permit them to defend their innocence with the
points of their swords , according to the prevalent custom and the duties of knighthood , against those profligate wretches who dared to defame them . It is not known what answer the Pope made to their petition . History reports that James II ., who was then on the throne of Arragon ,
besieged them in their castles , and having taken them , took possession of their property , and sent the Templars to different prisons , where the Bishop of Valencia , conformable to the Orders of Clement , carried on the prosecution against them .
Whilst their affairs were thus carried on in other countries , preparations were made at Paris for carrying on the like proceedings against them . Many of the Templars were conducted thither ; but their recantation of their former confession , which they attributed to the violence of their tortures , put the judges to a nonplus . A great
consultation was held on this subject , and it was long debated whether any notice should be taken of their protestations . Finally , by a very singular decision , it was resolved to treat all who had retracted their first confessions as heretics relapsed , and who had renounced Jesus Christ . Pursuant to this determination , the Grand Master , Jacques de
Molay was again brought before the commissioners . They asked him if he had any thing to say in defence of his chevaliers ? He replied , " that he would readily undertake their defence ; and that nothing in this life could afford him such satisfaction as to be permitted to maintain their innocence in the face of the whole world . " But he begged
the liberty of having counsel ; " although , " says he , "they have not left me four deniers to defray the expences of the prosecution . " The commissioners replied that , in a prosecution for heresy , the accused were never allowed the benefit of counsel ; and that before he