The Knights of the Holy Grail: The Secret History of The Knights Templar

by Tim Wallace-Murphy

Discover the truth about the Knights Templar and find out how this enigmatic order of warrior monks can help to uncover the secret story of the Holy Grail. This compelling historical work charts the Knight’s achievements in a remarkable range of endeavors, from building castles and cathedrals to laying the foundations of the modern marketplace. It uncovers the link between the Rex Deus families and the creation and propagation of the Grail sagas, as well as the later foundation of the Secret Society of Freemasonry. Building a historical framework for the development of Christianity during the last years of the Roman Empire, and the Dark Ages that followed, has never been so captivating.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Religion, Conspiracy Theories, Historical, Occult

244 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

The Irish born internationally known author and lecturer, Tim Wallace-Murphy, is the author of thirteen published books, has appeared in some eight or nine TV documentaries and has given lectures from Seattle and Long Beach on the West Coast of the USA, in Canada, Great Britain, France, Italy and in Prague.

Eleven of his works cover historical aspects of spirituality, including the Knights Templar, the Cathars, Rosslyn Chapel and the Western Esoteric Tradition as well as the Grail genre. The other two, including the most recent are more mainstream, namely 'What Islam did for Us' a study of how Islamic scholarship laid the foundations of so many fundamental and valued aspects of European culture and his latest work 'The Genesis of a Tragedy - A Brief History of the Palestinian People.' Tim was provoked to write this work as the Palestinian side of this conflict is rarely heard in either Western Europe or the United States and if this ongoing running sore in East West relations is ever to be solved, the pain on both sides needs to be understood.

He also acts as a tour guide in some of the most beautiful and inspiring sacred sites in Europe.

Reviews

[Ryan Romaine · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really interesting read that offers insight into a forgotten historical group!

[Ming Terk · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well written and researched. A comprehensive history starting from the clashes of early christianity, the influence of the church, the impact of Islam and the latter day intrigues. Engrossing and informative.

[Mimi · Rating 5 out of 5]

"It is one of the best books that i read about the knights templar."

[Ltopo McFly · Rating 3 out of 5]

This sensational book tries to prove Jesus not only existed but his heirs migrated to Europe and secretly controlled the Knights Templar and their off-shoot fraternal orders like the Freemasons. There really isn't any evidence presented for the case but we get a deep history of these Masonic orders and the Templar influence on them. The book does prove the Templars had a more Gnostic idea of Christianity but, trying to prove the Holy Blood claim, it neglects more fertile explanations like the Templars exposure to Islam and the Cathars. I'm sure this book is the pseudo-history of some modern Neo-Templar group or even European families who believe they descend from Jesus and that is also elucidating for the wrong reasons. This book reveals more about the Templars' influence on the Freemasonry and its agenda, but the "Da Vinci Code" angle seems like the hopes of Christian Freemason apologists.

[Sean Loone · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very well researched and written book which assumes the reader has a lot of background knowledge. However, for me the book is fundamentally flawed! The reason for this is that the author - now sadly dead - is a Freemason, something which he never states by the way, and this colours the whole text. In other words he has an agenda.
So let’s take a look at what he does. Firstly he totally misrepresents orthodox Christianity and has almost a hatred for the Catholic Church. He never mentions Christian love at all as it’s primary motivation for existence reducing Christ to a good man and teacher! He delights in the inquisition which cannot of course be defended but is an example of how evil the church is.
He makes the mistake of exhorting - gnosis (knowledge) and secret knowledge at that as a path to spiritual enlightenment. Orthodox Christianity rejected this simply because knowledge especially that which is secretive is not the way to God - faith is!
He exhorts Freemasonry, admits its secretive nature but reveals nothing about it except that which he wants us to know by highlighting its virtues. As a result the good actions of the church are never highlighted. Instead the Catholic Church is a controlling and manipulative institution which seeks to destroy its opponents whereas Freemasonry seeks to liberate humanity by creating the constitution of America amongst other things. Have you seen the state of the USA lately oh and by the way Freemasonry created democracy too! Hence the Knights Templar were never really Catholic Monks but the first Masons.
Then there’s the ridiculous Rex Deus theory - Jesus has children and created a dynasty - remember Dan Brown?
So you can see that I am far from happy with the book and it’s agenda. My advice would be do not be taken in. Read it with your eyes ‘open’ but make sure you do your own thorough research. Do not accept his theories as fact because they are far from it!

[Kim · Rating 2 out of 5]

While I learned some interesting new things about the Knights Templar, I felt the author assumed the reader knew much more than he should have. I had a hard time following him in some places and felt his writing was a bit on the choppy side. If you are looking for something in which to learn from, this is a great book. If you are looking to be entertained, I would maybe consider something else.

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Specious research, but interesting take on the early church if you're looking for a creative perspective.

[Roy Peters · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is speculative in nature, and jumps around some. It does provide a plausible theory of the beginnings of the Knight of the Temple, as well as their continuing legacy.