The Templars by Geordie Torr

Author:Geordie Torr [Torr, Geordie]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: History
ISBN: 9781839404764
Publisher: Arcturus Digital Limited
Published: 2020-01-10T17:22:43+00:00

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At this time, the major cities in Outremer, and in particular the ports, were home to colonies of European merchants engaged in maritime and overland trade with the Crusader kingdoms. In 1193, King Henry of Jerusalem discovered that one of those groups, Italian merchants from Pisa living in Tyre, was plotting to take control of the city and hand it to Guy de Lusignan, who had bought Cyprus using funds loaned by the Pisans and had given them generous trading concessions in return. Henry, on the other hand, favoured the Pisans’ rivals, the Genoese.

When he learnt of the plot, Henry expelled the Pisan merchants from Tyre and placed their leaders in prison. In retaliation, the Pisans conducted a series of raids on coastal towns and villages between Tyre and Acre, so Henry also expelled Acre’s Pisans. Guy’s brother, Aimery de Lusignan, spoke in support of the Pisans, enraging Henry to the point that he threw Aimery in prison as well. The Templars, who had a long, close relationship with the Lusignan family, asked Henry to release Aimery and the King eventually gave in.

Trouble was also brewing to the north, with the Armenians in the Principality of Antioch. After snatching the castle of Baghras from the Templars in 1189, Saladin had ordered that it be dismantled, but not long afterwards, Prince Leo of Armenia had moved in and rebuilt it. In addition to taking the castle, he annexed a significant chunk of territory along the frontier of Antioch. Prince Bohemond, unhappy at the thought of the Armenians controlling such an important border fortification, demanded that Leo hand Baghras back to the Templars, who were so keen to reacquire it that they discussed using force. However, on 28 September 1193, the order was thrown into turmoil by the sudden illness and death of the Grand Master, Roger de Sable.

A month later, Prince Leo invited Bohemond to Baghras to settle the castle’s ownership. The invitation was a ruse, however, and when Bohemond entered the castle with his wife, Sibylla, he and his party were taken captive.

The dispute brought Henry north. He convinced Leo to release Bohemond and to abandon his claim on Antioch, in exchange allowing him to keep Baghras and the land around it. Although the deal brought peace to the north, the Templars were far from happy with the outcome, having had their claim to their castle sacrificed for the greater good. However, they were strengthening their bonds with Guy de Lusignan, resulting in the gain of more territory on Cyprus. In May 1194, Guy died and was replaced as King of Cyprus by Aimery, another Templar ally.

Robert de Sable’s successor as Templar Grand Master was Gilbert Erail, a Spanish Templar believed to have been born in the Kingdom of Aragon. Gilbert was a career Templar who spent his entire adult life in service to the order. He served as grand commander of Jerusalem in 1183 before returning to Europe and becoming Master of the Templars of Spain and Provence between 1185 and 1190, and fighting in the Reconquista.

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