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The Templars: The Rise and Spectacular Fall of God's Holy Warriors

Dan Jones (Goodreads Author)

3.87 · Rating details · 5,445 ratings · 622 reviews

A faltering war in the middle east. A band of elite warriors determined to fight to the death to protect Christianity’s holiest sites. A global financial network unaccountable to any government. A sinister plot founded on a web of lies.

Jerusalem 1119. A small group of knights seeking a purpose in the violent aftermath of the First Crusade decides to set up a new order. The A faltering war in the middle east. A band of elite warriors determined to fight to the death to protect Christianity’s holiest sites. A global financial network unaccountable to any government. A sinister plot founded on a web of lies.

Jerusalem 1119. A small group of knights seeking a purpose in the violent aftermath of the First Crusade decides to set up a new order. These are the first Knights Templar, a band of elite warriors prepared to give their lives to protect Christian pilgrims to the Holy Land. Over the next two hundred years, the Templars would become the most powerful religious order of the medieval world. Their legend has inspired fervent speculation ever since.

In this groundbreaking narrative history, Dan Jones tells the true story of the Templars for the first time in a generation, drawing on extensive original sources to build a gripping account of these Christian holy warriors whose heroism and alleged depravity have been shrouded in myth. The Templars were protected by the pope and sworn to strict vows of celibacy. They fought the forces of Islam in hand-to-hand combat on the sun-baked hills where Jesus lived and died, finding their nemesis in Saladin, who vowed to drive all Christians from the lands of Islam. Experts at channeling money across borders, they established the medieval world’s largest and most innovative banking network and waged private wars against anyone who threatened their interests.

Then, as they faced setbacks at the hands of the ruthless Mamluk sultan Baybars and were forced to retreat to their stronghold in Cyprus, a vindictive and cash-strapped King of France set his sights on their fortune. His administrators quietly mounted a damning case against the Templars, built on deliberate lies and false testimony. Then on Friday October 13, 1307, hundreds of brothers were arrested, imprisoned and tortured, and the order was disbanded amid lurid accusations of sexual misconduct and heresy. They were tried by the Pope in secret proceedings and their last master was brutally tortured and burned at the stake. But were they heretics or victims of a ruthlessly repressive state? Dan Jones goes back to the sources tobring their dramatic tale, so relevant to our own times, in a book that is at once authoritative and compulsively readable. ...more

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Hardcover, 448 pages

Published September 19th 2017 by Viking

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Sep 05, 2017 Sean Gibson rated it really liked it

When you read non-fiction, you (hopefully) learn something about the world around you (if you don’t, you might want to consider finding better non-fiction to read, unless you’re Stephen Hawking reading a Physics for Dummies book).

Sometimes, though, you also learn something about yourself. That something might be the fact that you scream like a wolf whose leg just got severed by a steel trap when you get a paper cut trying to flip through those damn picture pages they stick in the middle of the b When you read non-fiction, you (hopefully) learn something about the world around you (if you don’t, you might want to consider finding better non-fiction to read, unless you’re Stephen Hawking reading a Physics for Dummies book).

Sometimes, though, you also learn something about yourself. That something might be the fact that you scream like a wolf whose leg just got severed by a steel trap when you get a paper cut trying to flip through those damn picture pages they stick in the middle of the book, or it might be the fact that you cry like a paid Victorian mourner when you read something tragic (like the fact that Michael J. Fox’s middle name is, in fact, Andrew, and he just made up the J).

Or, it just might be the fact that, as you’ve gotten older, and as the world around you grows increasingly dark and intolerant, you’ve lost some of your appetite for reading about a time when the world was, well, very dark and intolerant.

There was a time—a time that peaked around 15 years ago—when I was obsessed with medieval history. Knights, castles, Dark Ages, Crusades, Templars…all were grist for my mind mill (incidentally, I do not recommend the bread that gets made from that mill; it tastes a little bit like salty lamentation mixed with bitter regret…not too bad with butter, though, especially if it’s honey butter…mmmm…honey butter).

In recent years, however, though my thirst for a good historical tome remains undiminished, I’ve taken less and less pleasure in visiting medieval times (though I still adore theme restaurant Medieval Times, if only because I find drinking out of tankards while consuming an entire turkey leg and lustily rooting for a dirty-goateed “knight” whose accent strongly suggests an origin in ye olde southern tip of Maryland highly satisfying). In a world where religion (inexplicably) continues to tear us apart and we try to destroy or harm that which we define as “other,” it depresses me to read about us doing exactly that some 700 years ago—the only difference is that now we have access to weapons that can kill a LOT more people with considerably greater efficiency.

Despite that, I decided to pick up The Templars: The Rise and Spectacular Fall of God's Holy Warriors, if only because that lovably saucy lot of grail-guarding, cross-trampling, belly button-kissing miscreants has always stoked the fires of my imagination (check that: legends, tall tales, and conspiracy theories about the Templars have mostly fired my imagination; outside of the Templars downfall, their true history is less fascinating). I’ve read a few books about the Templars, and I’d put Jones’s book in the upper echelon—it’s cogent, comprehensive, and well-crafted, even if it drags on occasion. It’s well worth the time to read—and it will take some time, as it’s a dense book—if you’re a medieval history buff or Templar aficionado.

As I watched the world burn around me (literally, in the case of California) as I read, however, I just couldn’t muster up the same enthusiasm I could once conjure for scenes of brave knights riding boldly into battle on mighty steeds, intent on vanquishing the infidel. For one, I now realize that there was absolutely no rational reason for vanquishing said infidels, and “infidel” is all a matter of perspective. Not a single death that resulted from the Crusades on any side of a battle was warranted, and I read accounts of those conflicts now not as stirring epics but rather as sad and horribly displays of small-mindedness.

And then I just get frustrated and want to start kicking knights in the knuts, only to think better of it on account of my sensitive toes.

Suffice it to say, this is an objectively well written and conceived book. But, I’m not sure I want to dive back into the world of the Templars—or any of their contemporaries—anytime soon.

Maybe I’ll turn my attention to the Founding Fathers. They always…wait, they did what? To whom??

Sigh.

Back to fiction I go… ...more

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Oct 27, 2017 Jeffrey Keeten rated it it was amazing

Shelves: middle-ages, religion, templers

”It was exactly a century since Hugh of Payns had established the Order of the Poor Knights of the Temple of Solomon in Jerusalem. Those one hundred years had seen the Templars transformed from indigent shepherds of the pilgrim roads, dependent on the charity of fellow pilgrims for their food and clothes, into a borderless, self-sustaining paramilitary group funded by large-scale estate management.”

Hugh of Payns

HUGH OF PAYNS, doesn’t the name itself evoke some chainmail wrapped Conan ...more

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Aug 26, 2019 Diane S ☔ rated it really liked it

Shelves: 5000-2019, lor-2019

"Often the end fails to equal the beginning."
Medieval proverb

A proverb that perfectly chronicles the rise and fall of The Templars, a monastic order combined with the profession of the soldier. Divided into four parts, the reader follows the Templars from the beginning when they were just small group, seeking approval and rules, from the Pope, to the end when they were rich and powerful. Powerful and rich enough to become the object of a take down engineered by the French monarch, Phillip the ...more

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Aug 14, 2019 Chrissie rated it liked it

Shelves: audible, france, italy, great-britain, greece, spain, egypt, politics, history, religion

I knew very little about the Templars when I went into this book. One’s perception of a non-fiction book is influenced by what you know beforehand and one’s personal preferences.

I have found The Templars: The Rise and Spectacular Fall of God's Holy Warriors to be informative, clear and well structured. It moves forward chronologically, starting with the origin of the Order of the Knights Templar--in 1119 the French knight Hugues de Payens spoke with King Baldwin II in Jerusalem about establishi I knew very little about the Templars when I went into this book. One’s perception of a non-fiction book is influenced by what you know beforehand and one’s personal preferences.

I have found The Templars: The Rise and Spectacular Fall of God's Holy Warriors to be informative, clear and well structured. It moves forward chronologically, starting with the origin of the Order of the Knights Templar--in 1119 the French knight Hugues de Payens spoke with King Baldwin II in Jerusalem about establishing an order of men to assist and protect the pilgrims flowing into the Holy Lands. Crusade by crusade, each siege and battle are depicted in detail. The book concludes with King Philip IV’s and Pope Clement V’s crushing of the order during the years 1307 to 1314. By the third decade of the 14th century the order ceased to exist, except in myths and literature. In the epilog, even this is discussed. The Arthurian tales and poems begun by Chrétien de Troyes and Wolfram von Eschenbach live on today in contemporary works. Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code is but one example. Consider what has been written about Richard the Lionhearted and the Third Crusade!

The book is split into four parts—Pilgrims, Soldiers, Bankers and Heretics. This follows the development the order as it altered with time. The first three parts are all tied directly to the crusades and military engagements. The fourth and last part is concerned with the order’s ultimate destruction and end. Heretics was the section I liked best. In this part, the focus shifts from the military to international political, financial and religious causes behind the order’s demise.

I found the copious details depicting sieges, battles and gruesome beheadings, i.e. the military engagements, tiring. Names and places became a blur. The battles are grisly. Listening, I could not quickly flip to a map. These are available in the printed book.

Am I glad I read the book? Definitely! With the knowledge I have now I probably would enjoy it even more with a second reading. It is difficult to learn about so many people and events all at once. It helps to recognize who is who. Each reading gives you more.

When discussing contentious topics and when different views are voiced, the author examines the veracity of opposing views. I appreciate this. He explains pedagogically, and he is clear.

The author, Dan Jones, narrates the audiobook, and he does this very well. Few authors can both write a good book and then read it well too. His narration has the perfect speed and is consistently easy to follow. I have given the narration four stars.

I feel this book is a good choice not only for those new to the field but also those readers who wish to build on their previous knowledge concerning the crusades, the involvement of the Roman Catholic Church, the Templar and Hospitaller Knights and the leaders reigning during the 1100s to 1300s, the two centuries when the Templars held sway. ...more

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May 16, 2018 Sumit RK rated it really liked it

Non nobis, Domine, non nobis, sed nomini tuo da gloriam!
Not unto us, o Lord, not unto us, but unto your name grant glory!

The Knights Templars is perhaps the most well-known military order of the medieval era. The Templars traces their origins in the aftermath of the First Crusade to their rise to spectacular rise as a feared & respected elite military force in the Holy Lands & the royal courts across Europe and to their eventual disbanding & persecution almost 200 years later.

The Knights Non nobis, Domine, non nobis, sed nomini tuo da gloriam!
Not unto us, o Lord, not unto us, but unto your name grant glory!

The Knights Templars is perhaps the most well-known military order of the medieval era. The Templars traces their origins in the aftermath of the First Crusade to their rise to spectacular rise as a feared & respected elite military force in the Holy Lands & the royal courts across Europe and to their eventual disbanding & persecution almost 200 years later.

The Knights Templars, formed in 1119 by the French knight Hugues de Payens, as a small group of knights seeking a purpose in the violent aftermath of the First Crusade. Their main purpose was to protect the Christian pilgrims visiting Holy Land from bandits who preyed upon pilgrims. Soon they had the sanction of the Pope and patronage of the major Kings of Europe. What began as a charity,dependent protective detail for European pilgrims and Christian holy sites, rapidly became the central figure across two centuries of Christian Europe’s holy war against the Islamic world. From the Second Crusade to The Seventh, the book covers all key events and battles forming part of the Crusades. The entire story from Templar's humble beginnings (1119–1144); their rise as military power (1144–1187); the consolidation of their economic, military, political, and social power (1189–1260); and finally their fall from grace (1260–1311). Though it revolves around role of the crusaders, other key figures of the Crusades like Richard the Lionhearted, Saladin to Frederick II and King Philip IV of France, all play an important role in the narrative. A short epilogue touches on the lasting cultural influence of the Templars.

The most striking part about this book is the extensive & in-depth research. The book contains several photos, maps and first-hand accounts from the times that help it make for a wonderful read. Jones explores centuries within a few hundred pages in an insightful way. If you know nothing of the Templars except what you have seen in movies or read in popular fiction, Jones offers up a delightful dose of reality that is no less fascinating than the myths surrounding this famed group.

Having said that, the narration often jumps from one crusade to another, skipping few years in between and hence feels a bit disjointed. The book starts in the aftermath of the First Crusade. So if you have little or no knowledge of The Crusades, you may feel a bit lost, especially in the earlier chapters. Jones categorically refuses to talk about: the dubious, the sensationalist and the paranormal. So if you looking to know more about the modern day myths surrounding the Templars, you will be disappointed and perhaps this book is not what you are looking for. Also, you may need some basic knowledge about the crusades to appreciate this book fully.

Overall The Templars can serve as a good introduction to the history of the Knights Templar. It can also provide a fresh look at familiar events for those who are well versed in the history of the Order. This is an engrossing examination of a period whose conflicts are still reverberating today.
...more

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Nov 29, 2017 Bradley rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2018-shelf, history

A great treatment of a truly spectacular legend/horrorshow.

The story of the Templar Knights is gloriously varied, complex, courageous, insane, praiseworthy, mysterious, and tragic. It's primarily a history about the five Crusades and chivalry, but it becomes a harrowing monstrosity by the time King Phillipe enacts his vendetta against the Order.

I simplify. There's two hundred years worth of fascinating and edge-of-the-seat crusader action going on here as well as a farce of a trial that cut the ...more

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Oct 20, 2017 happy rated it really liked it

Shelves: history-general

Dan Jones is fast becoming one of my go-to authors on all things medieval. His previous books that I’ve read all cover British medieval history, from Henry I through the end of the Wars of the Roses. With “The Templars” he takes his pen and gives the reader a reasonably complete overview of the “Warrior Monks – The Poor Fellow Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon, AKA the Templars. The narrative mainly unfolds chronologically with a few sidetracks. The author traces their history from Dan Jones is fast becoming one of my go-to authors on all things medieval. His previous books that I’ve read all cover British medieval history, from Henry I through the end of the Wars of the Roses. With “The Templars” he takes his pen and gives the reader a reasonably complete overview of the “Warrior Monks – The Poor Fellow Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon, AKA the Templars. The narrative mainly unfolds chronologically with a few sidetracks. The author traces their history from the beginnings in 1119 as protectors of pilgrims to the Holy Land after the First Crusade to the Pope dissolving the order in 1312 after Phillip, the King of France, engineers their downfall in order to gain control of their wealth, roughly 200 yrs.

Any history of the Templars has to cover their military campaigns, Mr. Jones does not stint in this regard. He looks at how they became the Shock Troops of the Medieval Christian Armies in the Holy Land. Their discipline was something that most European armies of the era did not have. They followed the orders of their leaders to a fault, sometimes leading to disaster and sometimes to glory. The author looks at how a relatively few Templars, at their height there were appox 2000 knights, were able to hold the many castles guarding the invasion routes to the Holy Land and become the backbone of the Crusader Armies.

In addition to telling the story of their operations in the Holy Land, Mr. Jones also looks at what they were doing in other parts of Europe, esp the Iberian Peninsula. In telling this story, he looks at the beginnings of the Reconquista.

While not as in depth as the military side of the order, the author does look at how the Templars became the prototype for international banking. As the order gained power and more importantly prestige and wealth, travelers were able deposit their wealth at one Templar Facility, be issued a note and have that note redeemed at another, making the transporting of wealth both safer and easier.

As the crusades wound down and Christian defeats led to the end of the Christian kingdoms, the author looks at end of the order. With the fall of Acre in 1291 and the end of the formal Christian Kingdoms in the Outremer, the Templars were basically left without a purpose. Mr. Jones tells the story of the attempts to end the order. However, by this time they were much too powerful and rich to go quietly into the night. There were numerous attempts by church authorities to merge the two warrior orders – the Templars and the Hospitallers, but neither would agree to it. Finally a cash strapped King of France with a puppet for a pope was able to successfully press his charges of heresy, sexual impropriety among other things. Beginning of Friday, 13 Oct 1307, King Phillip arrested all the Templars n France he could get his hands on. In keeping with medieval “justice” they were tortured until confessing to the charges. After several years in captivity, many of the French Templars were finally burned at the stake and many recanted their confessions as they burned alive. Probably most famously the Grand Master after recanting his confession, and while tied to stake prophesied that he would shortly meet both the King and the Pope before God. The Pope dies about 1 month later and the King in less than a year. I found the story of the end of the order fascinating. The Pope did not want to accede to the Kings demands and actually absolved the Templars of all heresies. He was unable to temper the Kings wrath however. One other thing, the King did not get the Templars riches. When his troops attempted to seize the supposed wealth, it was nowhere to be found.

In addition to the important events in the history of the Templars, the author does a good job of explaining how they were organized, what oaths they took - including chastity and poverty, their manor of dress, and general the life they lived. In looking at how the order was organized, the author also looks at how the responsibilities were distributed between the major ranks of the order – Knight, Sergeants and Chaplains. The first two bearing arms and the last being ordained priests, responsible of the member’s spiritual welfare.

All in all this is a very well researched narrative. It is also very readable. Mr. Jones has a gift for making long ago history come alive. I highly recommend this and would rate it 4+ stars. ...more

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Nov 09, 2017 Louise rated it liked it

Shelves: middle-east, church-history-clergy, europe

The book covers the founding of the Templars from its spectacular fundraising to its tawdry end. In between you see how the Templar’s mission changed from protecting pilgrims in the Holy Land to warfare and then to banking and financial services. Assembly of all this material is to be saluted if only for the logistics of finding and reading its primary sources in so many languages.

Most of the book is about the Templar’s role in the Crusades and the many colorful participants on all sides. If you The book covers the founding of the Templars from its spectacular fundraising to its tawdry end. In between you see how the Templar’s mission changed from protecting pilgrims in the Holy Land to warfare and then to banking and financial services. Assembly of all this material is to be saluted if only for the logistics of finding and reading its primary sources in so many languages.

Most of the book is about the Templar’s role in the Crusades and the many colorful participants on all sides. If you are a fan of medieval battles, there is a lot here for you. Sieges, skirmishes, fool-hardy bravery and military maneuvers are covered in detail. There is a bit (not often told in these histories) as to what is done with prisoners: some become slaves of the capturing army, some are sent away to be sold as slaves, some are tortured and high value POWs are both feted and tormented until they are ransomed.

The focus on the Crusades leaves a lot unexplored. On p. 63 there is an impressive map of Templar properties. These are hardly mentioned until the end where there is an outline of their confiscation. How were these properties managed? How centralized or decentralized was their administration? I presume some were recruiting centers, how did that work? How did one move up the Templar ranks? How did their proceeds get stored and transported, particularly to the Holy Land. How did the Templars at these locations interface with their respective communities and monarchies? There is very little on the role of women.

While there Is a lot here I felt I was losing the forest for the trees. The book is chronological but the episodes are only loosely tied together. There is very little to prepare you for the abrupt end which had to be a generation or so in the making. Were Philip IV’s criticisms, particularly of the sexual acts founded? I presume Philip IV was not acting alone: did descendants of those noble families who had donated their estates to the Templars want their land returned?

Reading this was sometimes a chore but I stayed with it because I wanted to know about the Templars and Dan Jones has assembled a lot of information.

There are 4 appendices: Brief citations on the participants; the Popes, and the Kings and Queens of Jerusalem and Masters of the Order of the Templars. The maps are very good. There are color plates, the most impressive being the tunnels under the docks of Acre. Between the Index and the list of participants I was able to find information when I needed a refresher (often). The best analyses are in the Introduction and the Epilogue. ...more

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Jul 08, 2019 K.J. Charles added it

Shelves: non-fiction, historical, medieval

Well, that was depressing. A tour of the atrocities of the 12th to 14th centuries, with religious fanaticism, wholesale murder, torture, 'holy war', greed, self-righteous lunacy and just a lot of bloody awful people.

It's a very solid history, well written, and I feel better informed, but the grind of colonisation, murder, treachery, war isn't really relieved by any grace in the tale. There's no great poetry or art or stories of things achieved or forward strides for humanity in any of it, it's ...more

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May 09, 2018 Kevin rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-non-fiction

From their idealistic, religious, humble beginnings in Jerusalem after its capture during the First Crusade in 1119, for the initial task of protecting pilgrims on their journey to the Holy Land, to end up being dissolved by the jealousy of King Phillip IV of France (who needed money from his campaigns against the Jews), then this book contains probably the best, quasi-neutral account I have read of the Templars, or Knights of the Temple of Solomon as they were originally known as (due to holdin From their idealistic, religious, humble beginnings in Jerusalem after its capture during the First Crusade in 1119, for the initial task of protecting pilgrims on their journey to the Holy Land, to end up being dissolved by the jealousy of King Phillip IV of France (who needed money from his campaigns against the Jews), then this book contains probably the best, quasi-neutral account I have read of the Templars, or Knights of the Temple of Solomon as they were originally known as (due to holding the Temple Mount in Jerusalem). A military order - the first of its kind - it held 'rules' to be allowed into the organisation: chastity; no finery in clothes; regular prayers; subservience to Christ and a whole host of other, almost monastic precepts. Warrior 'monks' - a religious military order which later would include The Hospitallers and Teutonic Knights - would be a general term to describe them, whose legacy in the Levant (or Outremer) over the next near two-hundred years created a lasting legacy on their almost mythological status which lasts to this day. They also operated independently of Rome and European Monarchies and were granted this privilege and independence from the Pope. By at least middle of the thirteenth century, because of their slowly growing wealth gained from the Levant and the Crusades, then their property in France, England and so on made them almost an International Banking Institution who would lend money to various Monarchies (such as the French Kings) and help raise and organise various new Crusades. In many ways they were the first 'International Bank', and the Templars wealth towards the beginning of the fourteenth century, gained through honest means it seems, drew attention from the the French King, Phillip IV, who needed to raise money for his campaign against the Jews in France.

Dan Jones' narrative history covers the years from the First Crusade and the formation of The Templars right up until 1314, when the last master of the order, a certain James De Molay was burnt at the stake for heresy, thus ending near two-hundred years of the monastic military order. An incredibly readable, page-turning, informative and gripping account, it also deals with the orders failures and losses too, such as the Battle of Hattin (1187) during the Third Crusade, whereby Saladin completely routed the Crusader forces and re-took Jerusalem (beheading most of both the Hospitallers and Templars who were captured), as well as some frighteningly poor Crusades (in fact most of the Crusades called after the Third - Richard the Lionheart and Saladins era) that failed rather abysmally. See my review of Thomas Asbridges 'The Crusades' for a more in-depth history of what happened to subsequent Crusades. The Templars were not just specifically a military order however; they owned substantial property in Spain, France, England, Cyprus etc, and helped finance, as I mentioned, other Crusades and bankrolled various European Monarchs. Which leads us to the unkindness and blatant jealousy of the French King Phillip IV. This monarch needed to raise funds for various conflicts he was embroiled in, as well as his campaign to expel Jews from France. He fabricated heretical accusations directed at the order, and appealed to the Pope of that time, Clemence V - who was almost under control by Phillip - to castigate them and seize the Templars substantial property (with the pretext of not wanting to take their land away, instead he claims he put them on trial for heresy - lies it appears). Also, possibly, due to the loss of the Levant and Outremer after the fall of Acre, the last Crusader fortress, in 1291, there possibly could have been some misgivings towards the orders, seen in the move to try and amalgamate all three military orders, Hospitallers, Teutonic Knights and the Templars, which was opposed by the Templars. Whatever the reasons, King Phillip had the Templars rounded up, tortured, tried and some were burnt at the stake, such as the last Master, James de Molay in 1314 after seven years in captivity. I used to believe that it was the Popes doing that dissolved the order, but the main architect was Phillip IV who then, by the sounds of things, browbeated the Pope into supporting the heretical claims.

A good, interesting read. The Templars legacy of course lies in popular culture right through to modern times; in literature, such as Dan Browns 'Da Vinci Code', through to computer games such as 'Assassins Creed', the Templars still hold a sort of mythology, some of which is quite sinister (some secret order that survived their dissolution) and so on, which in reading Dan Jones book knocks down most of the 'secret society' allegations. I do recommend. 5 stars. ...more

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Nov 21, 2018 Trish rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

I think everyone has heard the name Templars at some point in their lives. Some people know more about them, some less, and some even know actual facts. Personally, I have been fascinated with this topic for a long time. One reason is the historical context of the Crusades, the struggle between two major religions (technically three). I love ancient history more but knights in general have a certain allure because it's interesting where the truth lies between them being portrayed as chivalrous s ...more

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Jul 21, 2019 Giang Le rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, history, audible

The Templar is the most famous chivalric order among those created around or in the wake of the Crusades, yet their fame has been due to more fiction than facts. With this book, historian Dan Jones provides perhaps the fullest account to separate facts from fiction and tell the stories of the Templar in a complete, straightforward, and engaging manner, from their creation at the Temple of Solomon, their days of glory and ordeal at the Holy Land, and their spectacular downfall at the hand of a gr ...more

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Feb 25, 2019 Sam rated it really liked it

Shelves: nonfiction, read-2019

Really loved this book, maybe not quite as much as other Dan Jones books I've read, but I definitely recommend him when it comes to history. He's very good at finding the storyline in order to make it an entertaining read for nonfiction. ...more

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Feb 07, 2018 Carlos rated it really liked it

Shelves: history-btr

Well it was nice to read a nonfiction book after all the YA I have been reading lately, Also the Templars have always been an interesting topic to me. I associate them with the crusades and all the militaristic life that was such a big part of the 13th century both in Europe and the Middle East. This book also gave me some new insights into the order and its demise , For one I thought that after the ordeal they went through in France the order was done for , but no . The Order of the Temple cont ...more

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Aug 22, 2019 Irene rated it really liked it

This is a thorough history of the Medieval Order of the Knights Templar which lasted for nearly two centuries. Although this ecclesiastical order, for a time, wielded great economic, political and military power, it was its military campaigns in the Crusades for which it was best known. This book focused most of its attention on the bloody details of these battles. I am glad to have learned so much about this chivalric order which has taken on legendary status in popular culture.

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Nov 10, 2017 Beata rated it it was amazing

A very thorough insight into the Templars, really good, you need to know some background story, though. Highly recommended to those who are into medieval history.

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Aug 02, 2017 Geoffrey rated it it was amazing

Shelves: history

(Note - I received an advanced copy of this book through NetGalley).

Dan Jones (author of recent greats such as "The War of the Roses" and "The Plantagenets") delivers yet again with another absolutely spectacular work, and possibly his best to date. From their humble origins to their great fall, from Jerusalem to burning pyres in France, Jones takes readers through a grand history of the Knights Templar. His is a chronicle that offers focuses not merely on the military exploits of these legenda ...more

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Jun 09, 2018 Scott Hitchcock rated it liked it

Shelves: history, nonfiction

It's just too big of a topic for 400 pages. While Jones does a good job of giving a high level view there's really very little in the day to day of the Templar body especially in regards to the crusades in the east. It did give me a lot of ideas for follow up topics I want to read about and refreshed my memory on a lot of this history.

I do confess that every time the name Antioch was uttered in the back of my head.........the counting of the number shall be three, not four, not two unless then ...more

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Aug 25, 2019 Silvana rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: kindle-google, reading-with-friends, mine-mine-mine, z-nonfic-2019-challenge, nonfiction, the-olden-days

Should be titled The Templars, the Failed Crusades, and the Useless European Monarchs. A very readable history book and intro to these almost mythical knights yet it has very few of their point of views amongst all the political and military squabbles, and very little on how they lived their lives, how they trained, how they did their banking stuff exactly, and so on.

The last part was the best. It is frustrating to read about the Inquisition. Indeed, Erasmus was right when he said Christians hur ...more

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Oct 08, 2017 Marjolein rated it really liked it

Shelves: arc, biography, review-pending, non-fiction, read-in-english

I wanted to read The Templars: The Rise and Spectacular Fall of God's Holy Warriors for multiple reasons. In general I am interested in history but this is not limited to a certain period. I had heard from many of my bookish friends that Dan Jones is the man to go to for your shot of history. And secretly I have always been intrigued a little bit with the order that was destroyed in such a manner and still has some sort of cult status in popular culture (yes, they are the bad guys in Assassin's ...more

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Oct 17, 2017 Jeanette rated it it was amazing

This is an excellent non-fiction research and historic study of the Templars. That class of oath / vow declared warrior men who were originally formed to ensure the safety of pilgrim participants (Christian) who traveled to see the physical locations in which Jesus was born, lived, and died.

This is a nearly perfect example of something I have noted within nearly all historic non-fiction. That the more focused the attention to one issue, one class, one battle, one document etc. that the better t ...more

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Feb 02, 2019 Caidyn (he/him/his) rated it liked it

Shelves: historical-nonfiction, nonfiction

This review can also be found on my blog!

Admittedly, the only reason I read this was because I love Dan Jones. Religious orders, along with the Crusades, aren’t really my area of interest. I love learning about medieval theology/Christianity, but this isn’t my huge area.

But, I liked it. I think it was a solid book and I was able to identify areas that really interested me.

I think the part that tried me was the way it never quite focused on the Templars themselves. They were there, always in the ...more

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Sep 17, 2017 Colin Mitchell rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: history-ancient

An interesting book as an introduction to the Templar history however I did find that parts were dominated with lists of dates and names. Written in a chronological manner but lacked, for me any depth of analyses until the final chapter. Just Ok probably 2.5.

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Mar 08, 2018 Margaret rated it really liked it

Shelves: general-history

Excellent book by historian Dan Jones on the Templars.

Written in an almost linnear progression, it was much easier to keep track of what happened than some other Templar books I have read.

I had only one small niggle: I disliked the Anglization of names. I'm sorry, James of Molay just annoyed me. History knows him as Jacques de Molay and that is what he should have remained. Same went for the unilateral usage of "of" instead of "de". Hugh of Payens didn't ring true the way Hugh de Payens does.

Sma ...more

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Nov 25, 2018 Colleen Browne rated it it was amazing

Recommends it for: anyone with an interest in the history of that era.

Shelves: history

A factual account of the Templars is a rarity in the world of Dan Brown books. Anyway, this is a well-written, fascinating account of the rise and fall of this group. The book provides a birds-eye-view into the politics of the age and the ultimate failure of the Christians to hold on to the Holy Land.

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Oct 22, 2017 Kathleen rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

As more and more pilgrims traveled to the Holy Land in the Middle Ages, they found themselves easy prey for bandits and warlords residing along the routes from Europe. So, in 1120 the Knights of the Templar were founded. These knights would take a vow of poverty and chastity similar to other Christian orders; however, these knights would be able to murder pagans on behalf of the Christian cross. In addition to protecting the pilgrim routes, they were soon helping Christian kings on Crusades to r ...more

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Dec 25, 2018 Barry rated it really liked it

Shelves: history

If one could summarize the history of human warfare, one could do it using three words : arrogant, stupid and selfish. Most likely when a side lost a battle or war, one of the major factors was one or more of its leaders was either selfishly arrogant, arrogantly stupid, or stupidly selfish.

In The Templars, Dan Jones set out to provide a rather concise narrative of who were the Templars and what factual activities were they involved in with respect to the Crusades. I’m not going to go into who’s ...more

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Nov 30, 2017 Ctgt rated it really liked it

Concise narrative history of the Templars without all the extraneaous myths surrounding the organization. For a group that only existed for a couple hundred years The Templars certainly have captured a corner of the public's imagination.

8/10 ...more

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May 05, 2019 Brad Steele rated it liked it · review of another edition

It was meticulously researched and well written, but for something i've been fascinated about for so long I found out the Templars just aren't all that interesting. ...more

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May 15, 2019 Cathal Kenneally rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Good read. Enjoyed the history of the Knights Templar. It reads like a novel but unfortunately this novel has a bad ending. Hard enough was their task fighting in the Holy Land but fighting a relentless enemy. Their first significant victory didn't come till 1191. Up against the likes of Saladin who inspired his men to crushing defeats over God's warriors. The Holy Land has been a controversial issued since.
Their downfall came at the hands of their benefactors the Pope. ...more

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About Dan Jones

Dan Jones

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Dan Jones is a historian, broadcaster and award-winning journalist. His books, including The Plantagenets, Magna Carta, The Templars and The Colour of Time, have sold more than one million copies worldwide. He has written and hosted dozens of TV shows including the acclaimed Netflix/Channel 5 series 'Secrets of Great British Castles'. For ten years Dan wrote a weekly column for the London Evening ...more

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“The wrecked town of Gaza lay silent and empty. It had once been among the finest cities of the Near East: a stopping point on the coastal road from Syria through Palestine to Egypt, made rich by a thriving market and renowned for its mosques, churches and massive airy houses built in marble.1 But in 1149 only its natural wells and reservoirs remained to indicate that this was once a place where people of many religions had thrived. War had swept through the elegant streets and emptied Gaza, seemingly for good. ‘It was now in ruins’, wrote William of Tyre, ‘and entirely uninhabited.” — 0 likes

“Even given the advantage of a surprise attack, it was vain to believe that a few hundred men fighting against thousands would lead to anything but annihilation.” — 0 likes

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