Орден тамплиеров. История братства рыцарей Храма и лондонского Темпла

by Charles G. Addison, О. Сидорова (Translator)

Книга Чарльза Г.Эддисона -- ученого­-правоведа, знатока истории ордена -- посвящена легендарному братству Бедных рыцарей Иерусалимского храма. Автор рассказывает о зарождении самого могущественного военно­религиозного ордена того времени, особенностях устава, иерархии и владениях тамплиеров на Востоке и Западе.

Эддисон сообщает о подвигах тамплиеров во имя защиты Святой земли, об участии рыцарей Храма в военных кампаниях Ричарда Львиное Сердце и других христианских королей, повествует о противостоянии с Саладином, осаде Иерусалима и трагической утрате Акры, последнего оплота храмовников в Святой земле, а также освещает процесс над тамплиерами в Англии.

В последних главах своей книги Чарльз Эддисон, эсквайр Иннер­Темпла, описывает главную резиденцию тамплиеров в Англии и великолепный храм обители, а также излагает историю лондонского Темпла после роспуска ордена и перехода его владений в собственность правоведов, которые восстановили ряд обычаев рыцарей Храма и возродили традиции былого гостеприимства.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Historical, Religion, Medieval, European History, Medieval History

352 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1842

About the author

Charles Greenstreet Addison

Reviews

[Lawrence · Rating 3 out of 5]

While the utterly insane Forward/Introduction to this edition made me wary of what was to come in the text, I was pleasantly surprised that this was a serious look at the history, including the downfall, of the Templars. The book itself was written in 1842 by an English lawyer. It includes a look at the subsequent history of the Temple in London and its evolution as part of the Inns of Court and its restoration to its earlier architectural glory. The book derives its text from historical documents to, from, and about the Templars. But, beware, as a result, it includes many (somewhat lengthy) passages of Latin and Norman French, for example, that remain untranslated in the text. Skip the Introduction by Mr. Conspiracy Theorists/Revisionist Historian unless you want a mistaken impression of what's to follow in the book or want to enjoy a big laugh. Not only the certifiable insanity of the substance (e.g., Templars coming to Nova Scotia, the connection to Atlantis) but the atrocious grammar and poor punctuation make the Introduction a gut busting comedy.

[Dale Malec · Rating 4 out of 5]

While this book is not the greatest for writing style, it does give a in-depth history of the Templar’s Order. This book takes you through their start, their growth into the premier fighting force for Christians in the Holy Land, their defeat there and to the ultimate betrayal by their own religion. The last part was difficult to read as to the injustice done to the order by the church.

[James Crawford · Rating 3 out of 5]

I often find that older books on at least certain subjects seem to be more complete than present-day ones and this is a prime example of that.

This one covers the history of the Templars, who was the Grand Master at any particular time, the various battles that they fought on the Crusades along with details of those battles and the hateful attack that the Church led against the Templars for the main purpose of getting all their riches and lands.

This also included torture and executions of a sizable number of people, all done in the name of greed.

It's a very, very detailed history. There are a couple problems with the book, though, and that is some segments are in untranslated French and some segments are in untranslated Latin.

[Jack · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found good and bad aspects of this book. Quite a bit of new material that I was unfamiliar with was presented. I welcomed the discussion of how Templars behaved, interacted with the Assassins, and conducted diplomacy amongst the Crusader and Muslim principalities. I also found the discussion of the Templar imprisonment in England very welcome since most Templar books focus mainly on happenings in France. A significant portion of the book was focused exclusively on the Temple Church, London. The author discusses how the Temple church went to the Hospitallers and later how the Inner and Outer Temple of Law came about. I found this an enlightening approach but would have favored more history on the Templars themselves. Many snippets are borrowed and completely quoted from historical documents. Obviously a significant amount of research is involved with this work, but I found the lengthy passages distracting. Be prepared for Old English if you read this one.

[Michael Braithwaite · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book before the DaVinci Code came out and it completely ruined any desire I may have had to read that shitty phenomenon. This is just a straight up history of the Knights, from their formation to their disbandment. It's really really interesting and you get a good idea of what the Catholic Church was like at the time of the Crusades.

[Krzysztof Adamczyk · Rating 2 out of 5]

A well documented history of the actual Knights Templar. The book is a little hard to read but overall good.

[Anthony · Rating 2 out of 5]

After reading The Templars, Two Kings and a Pope by Grigor Fedan, I down loaded to my Kindle The History of the Knights Templar, The Temple Church and the Temple 1119-1312 by Charles G. Addison. It was originally published in 1842 and I thought it would be a more unvarnished history of the Knights Templar. It was but the language was difficult and at times totally non understandable as the author transioned from English of his time (which was very understandable) to Old English (circa the time of Chaucer), Latin and Old French. The book gave a fairly comprehensive view of Religious Order of the Knights of Templar, once the reader was able to struggle through this very difficult writing style. I can not criticize the author inasmuch as he is long dead and wrote this book as a scholarly review of the Order, at that time, and attempted to outline what happened to the disbanded religious order after they were subjected to strict and forceful interrogations by church Inquisitors, looking for heresy in their teachings and beliefs. The Templars were subjected to great tortures and punishments including confiscations of their massive property ownerships. It is clear that the King of France and the French Pope were the culprits and were jealous of the property ownerships and successes of the Templars. Both the French and the English and consequently because of the Pope's Bull all the monarch's of Europe persecuted the Templars.

I was not clear on the transitions of the Templars to members of the English Bench but it seems that there was a group of men that did continue the the mystique of the Templars but now as a legal fraternity.

I would recommend reading a different history of the Templars as this one was too difficult for the average person and there are plenty of more contemporarty books about this famous or infamous group.u

[Noreen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Didn't realize there was more than one Crusade, each initiated by a different pope over a period of about 300 years. The rise and fall of the Templar movement is a history of the Crusades and pilgrimages to the holy land. The Templars exemplified the best of Medieval Christianity, not the Popes or the Catholic Church. It seems the Pope(s) used the Templars when and while they were politically useful to control kings and nobles, and turned on them and others when politically expedient.

Interesting note, the Mongols switched alliances between Crusaders or the Musselmen at various stages. Muslim tribes constantly switched alliances, similar to today's middle east.

This book was written in 1852, when to be literate included reading knowledge of both French and Latin.

[Ed Barton · Rating 4 out of 5]

A English Focused History

A history of the Templar’s and the Templar architecture and values - with an emphasis on how the Templar order operated in Britain. While this is a good history, it is quick moving, top level and somewhat dated in style. Good for overview.

[Ryan D. D. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow!

There is so much mystery behind the Templars. They have always fascinated me and there is much to be learned within these pages with historical accounts. Took me longer than expected to get through as I wanted to soak this information in, must read!

[Mags Shaw]

This was a detailed and chronological history of the knights templar. I have been following a program concerning the treasure on Oak Island in Nova Scotia. As it has progressed the archological finds are tending to point to the possibility of either or both the Knights Templar and the Knights of Malta having visited Oak Island in the post. I was hoping this book would address that in some way, but there was nothing in the writings concerning these organizations.
I found the book very detailed, and specific on many events and member of the Knights, but did not find specifics on possible visits to Nova Scotia.
I will retain it as a good source for future reading of many parts. VR, Mags

[Chuck Marunde · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not very readable.

This book is not readable, and by that I mean that it doesn’t read like a regular book and is so awkward to try and read that it is not readable. I noticed that it is called in parentheses an illustrated version. I wish that they would’ve explained that illustrated means it’s not to be read like a book. If the author intends it to be read like a book, then the author is a horrible writer.

[Baloon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Вельмі цікавый погляд на гэты манаска-рыцарскій інстытут, які супрацьпастаўляе сябе бытуючыму погляду на ордэн, хоць мне і не вельмі была карысна інфармація пра ангельскія царквы і манастыры ордэна, разгледжанне якіх займае 1\3 кнігі, праца на маю думку вельмі цікавая і натхняючая.

[Wm Denny Baldwin · Rating 1 out of 5]

Hard to follow, even bad as an encyclopedia. Don't bother, has to be better explaination

[Andy Febrico Bintoro · Rating 4 out of 5]

Knights Templar

This is the pure history if the Knights templar, no myth inside like what popularized by assasin creed or some other novels.

[wally walter · Rating 2 out of 5]

The history was quite good, but too much was in latin and french

[Stephen Imbeau · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have long admired the Templars .....given their eventual vast real estate and cash holdings, not surprised the local governments turned against them..........glad to have a "real" history to read

[Caitlin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a very detailed interesting history of the almost mythic Knights Templars. There is a lot of mystery surrounding this group of monk warriors partly because the 700 years that have passed since their destruction has obfuscated what happened to the Templars and what their intent and effectiveness has been. The other reason is that what led to their destruction were rumors that were created and spread with the purpose of dismantling them and redistributing the wealth.

The Templars served the nations of Europe mightily in the Crusades. They were formed in the early 12th century to protect pilgrims to Jerusalem from the Muslims. This over time turned into three different wars that carried on for nearly two hundred years that we romantically call the "Crusades." This book dispels the romanticism by describing battle after battle and the extreme numbers of the slaughter. I haven't spent a lot of time thinking about the Crusades because of the more recent wars in history, but these wars were as pointless and violent as ever. I am not going to debate if the Crusades were supposed to happen or not, but I think this history did a good job of showing both the human and economic cost of the wars. And the Templars paid the highest price of all.

In the 14th century the fashion for supporting these mysterious warriors who mostly spent their time in the middle East and had vast wealth all over Europe, especially in England, France and Spain, began to dwindle. People did not care as much that the Muslims kept winning back whatever gains the Crusaders made. The book goes into minute detail describing the immoral scheme that the French King and the Pope came up with to have all of the Knights they could get their hands on arrested and tried for heresy. All sorts of ludicrous and disgusting accusations were lobbied against the Templars, such as having some secret relic that only insiders could see, worshiping a head, and roasting babies. The evidence was all hearsay and confessions extorted out of extreme torture. I think we all know of the horrors of medieval torture devices.

France and England killed most of their Templars and the property was divided up and given to another less influential warrior monk group and of course to the Kings and nobles. This book convinced me that what happened to the Templars is one of the largest injustices that was ever perpetuated in Europe.

The latter part of the book discusses the architecture in England of the Temple church and how it has been covered up in the centuries following the destruction but in the 19th century (when this history was written) it was being refurbished to how they believe it was under the Templars.

I normally love 19th century style of writing but I think for a history it wasn't the best. There is not a regular narrative and smooth chronology like most history books we read today. So while it was very interesting it was hard to keep track of names and the order of events because the scenes were scattered and he didn't always stay on topic. Still, I was able to learn a lot about a subject that has always been vague in my mind and it was free on Kindle!

[Fredrick Danysh · Rating 2 out of 5]

Started after the First Crusade to protect pilgrims, nine knights started the Knights Templar. Much has been conjectured about the Knights Templar and some say that the Masonic sect are their descendants. The fall of the order occurred on Friday 13 which is considered why that day is one of bad luck. Addison traces a history of this military religious order. His work was first published in 1854 so is a little difficult to read due to the writing style of the period and the author's liberal use of Latin phrases. There are numerous quotes from old documents. A nice early history of the Templars but read with a grain of salt.

[Rw · Rating 2 out of 5]

Among other things, Charles Addison is known for the saying "The pen is mightier than the sword". In this book he sort of reminded me that sometimes the swords ca be mightier than the pen. The history is good, but the footnotes are a killer, probably half of the book consists of explanations of the footnotes, usually in Latin and French. The book was written in 1842 and does a fairly objective presentation of the history. I applaud Addison for not bringing in or blaming the Freemasons and other modern popular conspiracy theories.

[Chuck Springer · Rating 3 out of 5]

First be forewarned that this book was written in 1842 by an English lawyer, who approaches the subject matter uniquely, given the author's perspective. Much has been cleared up in other scholarly works. I will note that I really enjoy the sections devoted to what occurred after the Knights Templar were "disbanded".

So, if you are interested in the Knights Templar, don't bypass this book. Include it with other sources of Templar academia. Keep seeking more Light.

[Caroline Mathews · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maybe I didn't need to know this much in order to simply chart a smattering of names onto my ancestral record. I have to go back now and research the knights individually. It's astounding how much direct lineage royalty is found in a family tree. At least two dozen for every relative that immigrated. But then, that's what it was all about really. There would be no peerage in America!!!

[John Mccormick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent if at times hard work

This is a very interesting history of the Knight's Templar, though at times the somewhat ancient English makes it hard work. There are also times when the author treats us to a shopping list of all the Templars land and properties. However these are a couple of minor faults in an otherwise excellent read.

[G Liguori · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very challenging read..

Written in the 1800's. Latin abounds, so beware! It is a well-researched book and interesting given the views of the author pre-date, by some margin, modern thinking and understanding of the Templars. It is challenging to read, and I did learn about matters that are not well covered in other Templar books.

[Stephen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although Adventures Unlimited Press tends toward the more esotoric and conspiracy laden publications, this book is pretty much pure history. I have enjoyed it greatly. It takes the Templar Order from its' founding through its' downfall in 1307.

[Richard Lucas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great read

Great read

This book does an excellent job of providing details of the Knights Templars.
However, if your only interest is the Templars, and not what occurs after they are disbanded, this book may disappoint you.

[Steven Wadzinski]

very interesting.. and DETAILED account of the Templar's struggle with the Saracens
Near the end it gets more into a ledger like accounting of the various notable residences/fortresses of the Templar in western Europe.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice history of the Knights Templars

A very informative account of the noble organization of the Knights Templars. It is condensed account of the formation, history, and finish of the noble Knights.

[Bob Willis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent reading

I've read several historical fiction books that have references to the Knights Templar, but this was the first factual history I've read. I didn't know about th Hospitelers of St. John

[Clive Hindle · Rating 3 out of 5]

A typically excellent Victorian history full of scholarship and erudition but significantly out of date and difficult to read except for research.