INTRODUCTION

The Knights Templar (or simply, the Templars), is a secret organization with its roots in the Middle Ages and whose actions and supporters have changed over time. It first emerged after the first Crusades, soon exerted a wide political influence and became one of the greatest financial powers of the Middle Ages.
In the beginning, the Templars conducted themselves as if they were deeply religious. They used the reputation and exemptions they attained in this way to become, in time, a dark organization that pitted itself against religious moral values with evil goals, awakening feelings of hatred and fear in the hearts of those throughout Christian society. The records, belonging to the courts of Templars that began in 1307, and the historical documents of their time undoubtedly revealed the dark face of the organization.
The conclusions, deduced from these surviving documents and researches of historians who are experts on the subject, has shown that shortly after the foundation of their order, the Templars departed from their original purpose, began to follow a perverted, fallacious teaching, and left Christianity behind. The Templars considered every method that could lead them to wealth and power as wholly legitimate, while they were secretly practicing ceremonies and rituals that reflected these dark teachings.

In 1305, Pope Clement V initiated the process of eradicating the Templars with the support of King Philip IV of France.

Those who have escaped from religious morality and placed themselves under the control of satan for the sake of earthly ambition and profits are described as follows in the Holy Qur’an:

They have taken other deities besides Allah to be a source of power and strength for them! No indeed! They will reject their worship and will be opposed to them.

Do you not see that We send the demons against those who disbelieve to goad them on? So do not try to hasten their punishment. We are simply counting out the number of their days. (Surah Maryam, 81-84)

The Templars worshipped an imaginary entity known as “Baphomet,” a representation of satan, and an essential element of Masonic rituals.

For a long time, the Templars sustained their organization by counting on the exemptions they attained from the institution of the Papacy, especially at the very beginning. The perversions they had been performing in their secret rituals finally got discovered, and the Vatican decided to take long-lasting precautions. In 1305, Pope Clement V enlisted the support of Philip IV, King of France and started the procedure to eliminate the Templars.
It was an unexpected reversal for the Templars when the charges against them led to trials that resulted in conviction. However, this event taught the Templars to be still more secretive and more highly organized and laid the foundation for the existing Templar-Masonic secrecy. During this process, they formed feelings of a deep hatred and swore revenge against every belief and value represented by the Church that had imprisoned and persecuted them. The hatred and antagonism they fed for religious morality was the starting point of the ultimate goal they would strive for: anti-religious world domination.

Among the Templars, satan was symbolized by an inverted star and a goat’s head superimposed.

The Templars, who did not recognize any rules except their own perverted beliefs, have been functioning as the representatives of satan on Earth; as will be explained in later sections of this website. As an indispensable part of their rituals, the Templars worship a devil called Baphomet and deny Allah (God), the Lord of the Worlds. These people, who may be considered practically the leaders of those who revere satan as a deity, are predicted in the Qur’an, where they are named as “satan’s party.”
In one verse of the Qur’an, it says:

Satan has gained mastery over them and made them forget the remembrance of Allah. Such people are the party of satan. No indeed! It is the party of satan who are the losers. Those who oppose Allah and His Messenger, such people will be among the most abased. (Surat al-Mujadala, 19-20)

When beginning any investigation of the Templars, one important point must be emphasized: their organization’s great financial power. The Templars—or the Knights Templar, as they were more formally known—have been called the first international bankers in history.
But how did they attain this great financial power? What was the extent of their wealth, and what methods did they use to attain it? Who possesses the dark fortune they had formerly—and what do they use it for now?
Their organization and its successor—today’s Masons—were examined in our first book, The Knights Templar. This present one will review its history again and will answer all the questions raised above. The actions that the Templars financed with ill-gotten funds will be revealed.

PART I. THE CRUSADING TEMPLARS’ MENTALITY

To understand the Templars’ true identity and purpose and how they came about, one must go back to the time of the Crusades. Those who founded the order of the Templars were a group within the Crusader knights, who traveled and settled in Palestine with the excuse of “saving” and protecting the Holy Lands. When the first Crusade began, Europe was just emerging from the Dark Ages. On the one hand, there was poverty, hunger and ignorance, fights for authority and territory between duchies and little kingdoms and various feudal lords. On the other, a series of barbarian invasions from the north had turned Europe into a nearly unlivable continent. The trade and guilds that had just begun to arise were not enough to meet the people’s needs and establish a strong authority in Europe.
Amidst this time of chaos, the Catholic Church became the chief powerful and influential institution, with the support of the priests and clerics who wielded great influence over the lay public.
With their superior education, members of the Church attained a level of learning and awareness quite superior to that of both the ignorant populace and the largely uneducated aristocracy. However, a succession of some popes, the heads of the most organized power of their time, used these advantages and opportunities for their own purposes in a number of most strategic ways. They sometimes departed from the purpose of their foundation and became increasingly focused on worldly authority, and even subjugated many kings and aristocrats in Europe to their decrees.

Pope Urban II

At the summit of the Vatican’s power, Pope Urban II declared war. The Holy Land, which for centuries had been under Muslim control, were to be won back. Supposedly, the Pope’s goal was quite noble—from the Christians’ point of view: to have Christians in control of the Holy Land. But Urban II’s decision to start the first Crusade was never limited to that purpose alone.
As mentioned before, the lands ruled and influenced by the Papacy labored under great hardship and shortages. Merchants arriving from the East spread tales about the great wealth the Muslims possessed, about exotic fruits never heard of in Europe, and of the lavish clothes and treasures the Middle East enjoyed. And those became the chief motive that powered the Crusades.
The Papacy of the time planned a combination of occupation and colonization, expecting to seize a good deal of the wealth of the East and thus, even more political power. As a result, the Vatican longed to attain an ultimate victory over its rivals in Europe, who were figures of temporal authority. But while doing so, the Church set aside the pacifism, humility, and non-violence which were the very fundamentals of Christianity and thus abandoned its own 1,000-year-old tradition.
While selecting those to fight in the Crusades, anti-Christian practices were observed and thus began the Crusaders’ violent, cruel and ignorant reputation. The Papacy used every method at its disposal to increase the number of the soldiers, enlisting even excommunicated sinners and criminals into the army, assuring them that their sins would be forgiven if only they fought for Christendom.
Ignorance was the common failing among a great deal of the participants. These people did not know enough about the essential tenets of their own Christian religion, but were even more ignorant about Islam.
Thus, contrary to what is commonly assumed, their motives for joining up in the Crusade were as not religious or idealistic at all, but rather to obtain a share of Eastern riches. The kings and the local aristocrats, who had been in nearly constant conflict with one another, went on a kind of joint adventure, combining their respective armies, hoping to extend their wealth. This class, which had many internal rivalries, was usually acting on its own initiative, since there was no unity in the group. The vassals, who were essentially the feudal lords’ slaves, joined in the war to gain their freedom.
Among these Crusaders, the number of those who set off only on behalf of the Church was limited to only a small group. One source describes this situation as follows:

The Crusaders perpetrated terrible massacres right from the beginning of the conflict. The blood spilt during this slaughter is described in historical accounts as being “knee-deep.” Some 40,000 people are estimated to have lost their lives.

The participants in the First Crusade succeeded in capturing Jerusalem in 1099 and committed a terrible massacre there.

The French knights wanted more land. Italian merchants hoped to expand trade in Middle Eastern ports . . . . Large numbers of poor people joined the expeditions simply to escape the hardships of their normal lives.1
The Crusaders gave the impression of an unorganized, undisciplined and uncontrolled mob more than a unified army. They did what was expected of them and even in the very first Crusade, committed some of the greatest massacres of known history. Directly after conquering Jerusalem, they slaughtered almost the whole populace, who consisted mostly of Muslims and Jews.
Historical accounts described the blood spilled in the course of this massacre, in which approximately forty thousand people were killed, as “knee deep.” Actually, the original founders of the Knights Templar were not well-educated intellectuals trained in the scholastic traditions of the Church. Most of them were ignorant and vulgar warriors who joined the Crusade for such purposes as adventure, spoils, reputation and prestige. Nevertheless, the attitudes they demonstrated shortly after the founding of their sect revealed that these poor French aristocrats were far from being Christians and were actually in pursuit of darker goals. These soldiers, whose ambition and greed was an outgrowth of their poverty, would soon, after a series of events, develop into one of the greatest and most dangerous powers of medieval Europe.
 

The Templars on Stage

Nine French knights, led by the Templar Grand Master Hugues de Payens, appeared before King Baldwin.

Those who joined the first Crusade managed to conquer Jerusalem in 1099 and effect a genuine massacre. While most of the soldiers who had joined the war were on their way back to Europe, a group of Crusaders under the leadership of some French aristocrats and soldiers decided to stay on in the region. Ostensibly, the motive for their decision was to provide the security in the Holy Lands for all the Christian pilgrims who sought to go there and also to spread the Christian religion. Although it can be argued that this was the true aim of a handful idealistic soldiers and clergymen, clearly it was just an alibi or an excuse, when considered in light of the plan of the occupation as a whole.
As mentioned before, with the first Crusades, the colonization by the West had begun. It was then that first arose the troubles between some of the Westerners and the local Muslims, the results of which have persisted even to modern times. The reasons that the Crusaders gave for their killings were not actually very reasonable at all. The pilgrimage routes to Jerusalem which had been under Muslim control, had always been open to free passage, and people from all different religions had been living together in peace and tolerance. But this fact did not stop the Crusaders from slaughtering Muslims, Jews and even local Christians alike.

A miniature showing the first Templar Grand Master, Hugues de Payens and those nine knights.

The Kingdom of Jerusalem was founded in 1099, and the occupation spread to Antioch-Urfa. Twenty years later, under the leadership of Hugues de Payens, nine French knights presented themselves before King Baldwin II of Jerusalem and announced that they were volunteering, supposedly to protect the pilgrims in the travel routes between Jerusalem and the Mediterranean coast.
The King of Jerusalem accepted their offer with gratitude. And thus began the swift rise of the Knights Templar.
The word poor in the title "Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ," which those nine knights gave themselves, was contradictory to those soldiers' actual designs. They were always hungering for money, and but their title was a believable disguise for deceiving others. Deception was not just limited to their name. They didn't neglect to create the image of priest-soldiers who had left behind the worldly life and hope of material gains. However, as you will see in detail in the following sections, these Knights were soon going to transform themselves into a materialistic order that was actually opposed to religious moral values-even anti-religious, in fact.

An oil painting showing the taking of Jerusalem by the Templars

King Baldwin II of Jerusalem afforded the Knights a number of privileges, and also allotted to them the district where Solomon's Temple had once stood, including the Temple Mount, currently the site of the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Baldwin undoubtedly had his own designs: His Kingdom of Jerusalem was under a threat with the increasing influence of the Muslims in the district. Therefore, the presence of the experienced Knights and their guarding of particular sacred locations was an advantage for his kingdom. Yet the number of the Templars in the district was actually very few. Therefore King Baldwin and Hugues de Payes, the first Grand Master of the Templars, planned to increase their number. Eventually, by gaining the support of the Papacy, they gave the Templars what they wanted.

St. Bernard was respected by the entire Christian world.

In 1127, the two of the Templars, together with a letter they received from King Baldwin, asked for the advice of St. Bernard, who then exerted great influence over the Papacy and during his lifetime, was highly regarded as one of the most important persons in Christendom.
Bernard, renowned as one who could open all doors, belonged to the Cistercian Order, one of the most favored monastic orders in Christendom. In addition, members of this order held very important positions in the Catholic Church. Those French Templars who headed for Jerusalem were warmly supported by representatives of the Cistercian order in France. In his letter, King Baldwin praised the Templars extravagantly, explaining the importance of the lands' protection by the poor so-called religious soldiers but also indicating their requests: Their Order had to be recognized by the Church, especially by the Pope, and had to be provided with help and support.
The support that had been anticipated for so long was soon hastening on its way. Hugues de Payens and his Templar brothers were accepted by the new Pope Honorius with a special privileges and exemptions.

St. Bernard bestowed enormous privileges on the Templars.

In 1128, The Council of Troyes invited the Templars to a council meeting, where the Knights obtained a wide range of opportunities and a great amount of financial support. As a gift from King Henry I, they obtained a great treasury of gold and silver, as well as material support in the form of equipment like armor and horses from district rulers in England, Scotland, France and Flanders.
Before Hugues de Payens left England, he opened a district branch of Templars in the region donated to them and installed one of the Templar brothers as its leader. His mission was to rule the districts donated to the Templars, to transfer their income to Jerusalem, to recruit new members, train them in their responsibilities and send them to the various districts under Templar rule. In addition, personal incomes in the district of Province were donated to the Templars, and landowners became exempt from royal taxation by donating several landed properties to the sect. Thus, the first strands of the order's web were woven.2

A few of the temples in the Middle Ages:Morts à Sarlat, Périgord and l’Eglise.

According to Anglo-Saxon records, it was written down that the number of members Hugues de Payens recruited for the Order was greater than the number of soldiers Pope Urban II enlisted for the first Crusades.3 In any case, such great interest was shown in the Order that groups of Templars were soon widely established in England, and a new branch of the Order was similarly created in Jerusalem.
Princes and aristocrats were at the forefront of their membership, but people from all walks of life were competing to assist the Order or to become affiliated. The Templars, gathering the material means of the Papacy and the King, prolonged this campaign and succeeded in influencing people from every level of society with publicity and propaganda methods that can be appreciated only in our day. They were so influential that some people asked to be buried in the Templars' distinctive uniforms when they died.

In guaranteeing that the Templars would be accountable to none but the Pope, St. Bernard laid the groundwork for very serious danger.

In fact, the really interesting point is the trick the Templars played on the European aristocrats: They claimed that they were soon going to be in battles with the Muslims and so requested financial help. Nonetheless, the contributions they collected throughout Europe were not being used to equip their coming war, but were transferred directly to the Templars' coffers. Thus, The Knights took their first step on the path to establish their ill-gotten fortune.
The year 1127 became a turning point when the two Templars paid a visit to St. Bernard. During their visit, the Templars explained to the Pope and others in the Vatican the general rules of the Order yet most of them were not pleased. At this stage, Bernard took charge, defending the order and saying that with a modicum of reforms and adjustments, it might be more in accord with the tenets of Christianity. Right after this, he wrote The New Templars' Rule, following to the principles of his own Cistercian Order and announced that he would take responsibility for the Templars' moral training. Thus, the order removed all the handicaps that they could possibly encounter by gaining the privilege of giving accounts and explanations only to the Pope. Henceforth, no authority except the Pope could ever bring them to task or charge them with an assignment. In providing this kind of privileges, St. Bernard believed that applying them long-term would be useful in gaining power for the Papacy. But he was unaware that in fact, he was laying the groundwork for a greater danger.

A historical miniature depicting Pope Urban II

The Papacy's Full Support

The emblem of the Hospitallers, the first knightly order

Christianity is a divinely inspired religion that preserves the elements of Allah's words, although it has been corrupted over time. And one of the subjects frequently mentioned in the Christians' New Testament is being on the side of the peacemakers. But despite that, from time to time during its history Christianity has entered some violent periods in the name of its religion.
One of the main reasons for this is the predominating battle for the supremacy of the Papacy, which drew the Vatican into countless games of politics. As a result, more than once the Papacy grew far distant from the original purpose of its existence: During these periods, it set a priority on increasing its own influence over the crowned heads of Europe, and thus effected a long-standing change.
This all began with Pope Gregory VII, who stated that the force of arms could be employed for the sake of protecting the Papacy. In defending the notion that the Church was the highest temporal institution, he started the so-called Gregorian Movement and got into a squabble for authority with the powerful rulers of his time. The policies he initiated were widely accepted and were sustained with great enthusiasm. Although this process did provide the Vatican with increased power, it caused many rulers and numbers of the ruled to turn against the Papacy.
Pope Urban II later furthered Gregory's politics of force and agreed with his thesis, which can be summarized as "Violence is justified in the battle for religion"- which of course goes absolutely against Christian religious values. Thus, the so-called religious justification for the first Crusade was put in place. During his lifetime, St. Bernard strongly defended these policies, though they went against the essence of Christianity. He even brought this error to an extreme, saying that, "When the knight of Christ kills someone who has done evil deeds, this is not killing a man, but expelling the evil."
After the first Crusade, the Papacy was instrumental in founding the Hospitallers order, the very first of the Knights' organizations. At the very beginning, this sect took on the responsibility of aiding pilgrims to the Holy Lands and for tending to and curing the sick. Yet, for certain self-seeking groups in the Papacy, that was not enough. They wanted more: Any army that belonged to the Papacy was actually under their command, and thus they could compete against the armies of other European rulers. Therefore, they could extend their own potential by using the Papacy's authority and to protect the possessions they had already gained. And while doing so, they could expand Christianity by force of arms.
Furthermore, sovereignty over the Holy Lands would be permanent, and the acts of colonization would continue, under their control. Within the leading body of clergy, the group that harbored such wrong thoughts set themselves to creating an army that could perform their plan. The Templars appeared exactly at this moment and started to make defense of their political agenda their primary goal.
All of these showed that the Knights' visit to Bernard had been an important part of their strategy. They knew very well that Bernard was the only one who could provide them the advantages they wanted, out of a desire for mutual benefit.
Saint Bernard had many goals and plans to further the interests of the Church. By the help of his relationship with the nobles and because of his expertise in political strategies, he had held very important positions, even since his youth. He wielded such great influence, in fact, that he had his most loyal follower elected as Pope.
Bernard was fully aware how thoroughly difficult it was for priests to serve as soldiers. Actually, there was no need for them to do so. In his opinion, having the warriors who already currently served in the Holy Lands to become more loyal to the Church's doctrines was an easier, brighter plan. Yet he foresaw one obstacle: How could anyone transform these brutal, vigorous, ignorant lovers of violence into loyal Knights? In what would later prove a serious mistake, he let himself believe that this group of unlettered men could be tamed and taken under control by using a few techniques. Among them, bribery-under the disguise of concessions and donations-was the most popular.
The Templars had followed Bernard and his strategies since the very beginning and they continued to make their plans dependent on him. Bernard was planning to establish an army of the Church by using first of all, the Templars and then their Knights. Even as he was planning to do so, the Templars-who had drifted away from religious morality-were expecting to attain great privileges, all thanks to Bernard.
In this mutual relationship of theirs, members of the order would seem to be religious, and the Papacy would be going to advance their every interest.
Furthermore, even despite the Templars being arrested in 1307-and despite the revelation of their perversions-some groups within the Papacy would try to acquit these Templars and to save them from further persecution.
 

Unlimited Privileges

The small group initially consisting of nine knights grew into the Templar order with astonishing speed.

The support by the Papacy was not limited to its officially recognition of the Templars. Since the Council of Troyes, thanks to the privileges that the Papacy, the Church and the aristocrats had granted them, the Knights had enjoyed unlimited privileges. Among them, the shield of immunity was easily the most important. Since the Knights were directly affiliated with the Papacy, they didn't have to answer to any authority but the Pope. It was not possible for any ruler, not even for a monarch, to question them, or employ them in his own service, much less have them arrested.
Except from these religious concessions-such as the right to build churches and give them names of their own choosing, organizing religious rituals and assigning priests-the Templars had the right to found their own courts, to gather taxes and to accept contributions and donations. Members of their order were exempted from any kind of levies, since the real estate properties owned by the Templars were exempted from the Papacy's tithe (or one-tenth) tax on the value of land.
Historians and investigative writers like Alan Butler and Stephen Dafoe have provided the following information:
Bernard's document, De Laude Novae Militae ("In Praise of the New Knighthood") swept through the Christendom like a tornado; in no time, the number of Templar recruits increased. At the same time donations, gifts and bequests from Monarchs and Barons throughout Europe were arriving regularly on the Templars' doorstep. With a staggering rapidity the fledgling little band of nine knights grew into what we refer to as Templar, Inc. 4
When it came to granting privileges and being generous, the lay rulers, monarchs and nobles were not far behind the Papacy: They donated farms, palaces, sometimes entire towns and even a whole district to the Templars. They further eased their finances by appointing them to various offices that generated income and by granting them perpetual donations.
The privileges the Templars were granted, as a result of relations based on mutual interest, resulted in the order's power becoming uncontrollable. Shortly after its founding, the order's inward qualities and outward appearance changed completely. The Knights put aside their self-appointed task of guarding the Holy Lands and furthering Christianity, and started to seek the domination of Europe, following the goal of their corrupted belief system.

A few of the 12th century temples the Knights used more as offices for usury than as temples (Safita, Larzac, Metz and Laon)

CHAPTER II. A MEDIEVAL MAFIA: THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR

Following the Council of Troyes, the Templars swiftly increased their numbers of recruits and became the most powerful and the most formidable knightly order of their time. They amassed great donations, obtained taxes on private income, and made lucrative investments in such diverse fields as construction, agriculture, cattle breeding, shipping and transportation. However, these ostensible activities were largely for show, inasmuch as the order's true source of income was through ill-gotten means.
While amassing their capital, the methods Templars employed were not terribly different from the methods that organized crime has been using in our own day. Actually they first developed those same methods later used by the Mafia and organized crime.
Illegal policies, employed by the ruffian kings and those clergymen who followed the evil pathways, became an illicit source of income for the Templars and gave them further power to wield. The organized clandestine methods they had been using was the reason why their order's members-who had originally sworn to remain poor and to live as so-called missionaries-attained such great wealth, almost equal to a monarch's, by methods that included usury; ransacking, usurpation, and despoliation under the name of war; bribery; political trickery; arbitrary taxes; demanding undeserved privileges; slave-trading; colonial activities; and trade in drugs available at the time, including opium.
As you will soon see, the Templars aimed at organizing and propagating numerous forms of evil. But their chief goal was to expand their influence and to gain profit and earthly power. In the Qur'an, Allah speaks of those who organize and propagate evil:

Do those who plot evil actions feel secure that Allah will not cause the earth to swallow them up or that a punishment will not come upon them from where they least expect? Or that He will not seize them on their travels, something they are powerless to prevent. Or (do those who plot evil actions feel secure) that He will not seize them little by little? For your Lord is All-Compassionate, Most Merciful. (Surat an-Nahl: 45-47)

The Templars were as wealthy as kings.

Usury was the first method that the Templars used in building their clandestine fortune. Actually, usury is specifically forbidden in Christianity, and severe punishments are threatened for committing it. During the Middle Ages, therefore, usury was largely the monopoly of some Jews. Some Jewish bankers, who were exempted from these New Testament strictures, earned great profits through their money lending and were, accordingly, granted considerable great privileges by the monarchs and the nobles who had fallen into their debts and had trouble paying them back. In short, the Templars replaced the Jewish bankers by entering this field, where no Christian had ever dared venture before.

King Richard I of England

The Templars continued with these forbidden practices by referring to the ten-percent interest they charged as "rent" or "donations." The network they established that reached into all the important financial centers, enabled them to transfer money securely between all well-known civilized regions, particularly between the Holy Land and the important European capitals. A great amount of this money was stored in the Templars' castles, which operated much like banks-particularly in major trade centers and along pilgrim routes.
Anyone who wanted to transfer funds used to invest his money at the nearest Templar mansion and received a bearer draft in return. When arriving at his destination, he could receive his money by cashing his draft-after paying a certain amount of interest.
What's specifically more interesting was that they kept their profit system a secret. Meanwhile, the money invested in the Templars' original branch offices was being used for various reasons. The order, which performed ostensible charity work, collected a great deal of interest income from a variety of classes, including the poorer and less well-to-do. This money in the Templars' account was to be used for purposes known only to them, without the control or supervision of any authority. Since no one could ask them for an account, the Templars were able to transform usury into an institution in their missionary order. Only much later was that fact revealed, leading to their imprisonment.

In 1207, Pope Innocent III accused the Knights of abusing their privileges.

During the first Crusade, the total annual income of France was about 250 thousand livres.5 At that time, the order's annual cash income in Europe alone-except for the real estates in 9,000 different districts-was estimated to be some 30 million livres.6 When this income is compared with present-day rates of exchange, it is clear that the Templars were controlling wealth that could compete with that of monarchs. Their fortune was so great that in 1191, they purchased the entire island of Cyprus for 25 thousand marcs from King Richard of England and enjoyed a further income by imposing heavy taxes on the island until they sold it to Guy of Lusignan, one year later.
A part of the Templars' tainted money came from ransacking. Templars pretended to be waging war with the enemy, while they were actually searching for pillage. They attacked defenseless caravans and residential districts in the Holy Lands and the borders where civilians lived in grand houses. Nevertheless, what they were doing was actually similar to the actions of gangsters: usurpation, ransacking, abduction, and mass murder.
The most interesting example of their actions was the order's collaboration with the corrupted group of Assassins. The two organizations made an agreement with each other in return for an annual payment of 2,000 besants. Assassins organized the assassinations of monarchs who were known to be the Templars' rivals. The Knights later adopted the same methods of this corrupt group that they admired and employed.7
The Templars were so eager and obsessed about ransacking that they caused the Christians to be defeated many times, as is also revealed by historical documents. In the attack to Aschkelon in 1150, a city wall was brought down, giving Christians an opportunity to win the battle. But at this point, Grand Master Bernard de Tremelay stopped the Crusaders and let the Templars enter the city to pillage it first.

The Templars attacked villages and carried off their Muslim inhabitants, selling them as slaves in Europe or else using them for their own purposes.

However, the Templars' obsession with wealth eventually resulted in their defeat and the demise. William of Tyre, the famous historian and clergyman of the time, blamed the Knights of chasing after their worldly ambitions:
Bernard de Tremelay had ordered his knights to prevent anyone else from joining them in this initial assault because he wanted to reserve for his Order the glory of taking the city and a lion's share of the booty.8
After amassed a certain store of money, the Templars applied the technique of bribery more often to get their works accomplished. Ultimately, they found it possible to do almost anything by bribing and being bribed in turn. When they wanted to settle down in a given region, they would bribe the district's ruler under the guise of an aid. This way, they could obtain the district as well as some privileges for themselves.
After the death of King Richard I, the Templars preserved their rights and privileges by bribing his heir, King John with horses and 1,000 pounds. Buying the influence of Europe's poor aristocrats at very low cost and cheap gifts increasingly encouraged the Templars, and enabled them to move more easily throughout Europe. The Templars grew accustomed to receiving bribes as a source of income, just as they got used to handing them out. In so doing, they were of course abusing the special privileges the Church had granted them.
Nobles who did not care to go to war often made a substantial donation to the Knights, who would then go fight in their names. Any aristocrats who had become outcasts could easily redeem themselves by that same method. Criminals wanted by the law in various jurisdictions devoted themselves to the Knights and were thus granted the right of immunity.
Clearly, Templars were abusing the privileges the Papacy had granted them, and from time to time, that deeply angered the Vatican. In 1207, Innocent III declared that the knights had grown proud and misused their prestigious position. The Pope complained that virtually anyone with money in his pockets could join the order, and that people previously refused access to the Church, those who were excommunicated and "those who add sin to sin, like a long thread,¨ were being buried in holy ground. The Pope demanded that the necessary action be taken.9

The Roman Emperor Frederick II, known as a friend of Muslims, joined forces with the Pope and seized all the assets of the Templars who had fought against him. He freed hundreds of Muslim slaves working for the order, thus becoming a target for the Knights’ hatred.

After establishing deals with construction, real estate, and transport, the Templars abused these businesses in order to speculate and as a result of these speculations, increased both the taxes and the rents they were enjoying. They were also speculating over products they were trading and mines whose value they had increased by "salting" them with high-grade ores. For example, their activities increased by 50% the value of the lands and properties in England. Due to their commercial privileges, they earned still more money by exporting English wool to the entire continent of Europe.
But this, of course, was only a cover operation.

Pope Gregory IX

Gathering money from the poor, Templars claimed that they were fighting a great struggle in the name of Christianity. However, this was simply an alibi to keep alive their sources of donations. After the Council of Troyes, the Templars got defeated in their next three wars. In contrast to the stories of heroic deeds, which were usually exaggerated, the Knights were not undefeatable warriors. Mainly, all they did was murder the innocent and the defenseless. When faced with no choice except to fight, they were doomed to lose, because they had simply hoarded a great deal of their dark donations, instead of expending the fortune on arms and defense.
In addition to these covert operations, the Templars also became organized in slave trading and smuggling. When the methods they employed in slave trading were finally revealed, the Pope was forced to admonish them. As is well known, slave trading was not illegal at the time, but Christians were forbidden to own Christian slaves. Accordingly, Templars were kidnapping innocent Muslims by attacking Palestinian villages and enslaving the young people. They either sold them to Europe, or else used them for their own cruel purposes.
Collaborating with the Pope, and the Roman Emperor, Frederic II, known as a friend of Muslims, seized the Templars' property by force. He freed hundreds of Muslim slaves, though he received nothing in return. Thus he became truly hated by the Knights.10
For the Templars, trading Muslim slaves was not enough. They were also selling Greeks, Bulgarians, Russians and Romanians (the latter of whom were Orthodox Christians), claiming that they were Muslims. Pope Gregory IX complained about these abusive deeds to the Syrian bishop and the Grand Master of the Templars. Nevertheless, the Templars continued their exploiting of humans through slave trading. African peoples soon provided a significant source of their income.
Beside these underhanded methods, the Templars performed some nefarious deeds in politics, as well. Through dishonest methods, they turned themselves into a very rich organization that more and more people grew to resent. No longer perceived as religious, their cruel tactics especially caused great troubles to local populaces. Their aberrant beliefs and life styles that were later disclosed so tarnished their reputation that they finally became an embarrassment to Christendom.

CHAPTER III. THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR ENCIRCLING EUROPE

The Knights Templar tried in every way to make their idea of world sovereignty come to pass, as an anti-Christian order. As soon as they obtained the assurance they'd sought, they abandoned their pretense of being devoutly religious and the oaths they had given as alleged missionaries. And they immediately settled down to using finances to achieve a greater sovereignty. The Templars' web encompassed all of Europe and the Mediterranean's sea lanes and ports, which provided the heart of the sea trade. The equivalent of these organized actions can be seen only in the international Mafia cartels of our day. Members of the order infiltrated a major share of maritime and inland commerce from northern countries like England and Ireland.

Meanwhile, the Templars were spending the income they had earned in illegal ways for several investments, the first among which were buying lands and construction. They had become experts in building substantial castles and churches, while constructing villages, towns and even cities in the lands they owned. Establishing residential districts was an easy way to penetrate their influence and to obtain legitimate but important sources of income like tax and tribute.

The Templars began their transport activities by way of the sea.

After banking, real estate and construction, navigation was most important to the Templars. In that era, traveling by land was costly, very dangerous and difficult; whereas the sea lanes were rather comfortable, economic and relatively safe. Therefore, effecting fast, secure transportation between the ports controlled by Christians was quite profitable. As a result, Templars shifted their transport firms from land to maritime.
Initially they mastered navigation and constructed their own fleet by working together with professional mariners like the Venetians and the Genoese.
Marseille was then the most important Mediterranean port and enjoyed great commercial privileges. Nevertheless, the Templars' wealth was not limited to Marseille. The order had centers and a merchant marine in every significant port from Alexandria to Tripoli, from Antioch to Sidon. While exerting superiority over the transportation routes, the order attained great naval power between the years 1216 and 1233, which caused hard times for individual merchants who were doing their private nautical trading. Their great naval experience would play a significant role later when they fled the Inquisitions and emigrated to further places like America and also in their various colonies.
In 1220, the Roman Emperor Frederic II realized the dangerous conduct long before the King of France. Philip IV, did and forbade the Knights Templar to buy lands freely without limit, since he feared that it was possible for them to own the whole country. In the course of time, Frederick impounded the goods of the Templars living in his territories and abolished their privileges.
These actions angered the Templars-and thus, the Papacy. Pope Gregory IX excommunicated Frederic II in 1227, and thus, the order won a chance to sustain their activities for a while longer without any interruption.
In 1258, when the King of Sicily Manfred, son of the Roman Emperor Frederick II, ascended to the throne, Albert de Canella, the master Templar in the region, became Manfred's private protector, because he took back the rights the Templars had lost by convincing the King through bribery.
During these times, the Templars spread throughout Europe and they formed essentially a new international government within the local governments. Their administration unit and systems were active in every important center of Europe.
The historian Henry D. Funk describes the true face of the Knights as follows:
They came out and claimed that they were the Poor Fellow Soldiers of Christ. However, this was hardly true. One could see the wealthiest men of Europe and the leading bankers from London and Paris among the Templars: Hugh Conte de Champagne, Alphonse de Poitiers, Robert of Artois, the ministers of finance of James I of Aragon, and Charles I of Naples, the chief advisor of Louis VII, King of France, were all Templars. 11

A Templar maritime colony Holy Rom an Emperor Frederick II

Louis VII of France, whose principal advisors were the Templars

The order paid special attention to some specific countries and regions, where they founded their own centers: Jerusalem, Tripoli, Antioch, France, England, Poitiers, Aragon in Spain, Portugal, Apulia in Italy and Hungary were the first of these. In England alone, Knights owned 5,000 real estates. Alan Butler and Stephen Dafoe explain with these words:
As a result, the Templars became so wealthy that some rulers of the kingdoms where the Knights were very active became completely dependent on their support. Most of the English kings mortgaged the royal treasury to the Templars' center in London as a means of repaying their heavy debts to the order. This helped the Templars attain a great power and exert an influence over royal decisions. Templars also used their influence to offer consistent arbitrations between rulers who were constantly quarreling with each other. 12
Templars' economic dominance has been reported in yet another source:

The Templars became so wealthy that the rulers of some countries in which they operated became totally dependent on them. A 13th-century Templar castle

King Henry III of England constantly borrowed money from the Templars.

The Templars turned into a huge private organization employing illegal methods, and carefully concealing all their knowledge, keeping that subject secret even from the Church.

In fact, the throne of England chronically owned a lot to the Templars. King John and Henry III, whose treasure got consumed in the military expeditions during the years between 1260 and 1266, continuously took accommodation from the Templars. 13
In their mansions the Knights dealt with politics, commerce and finance in the city centers, while ruling over such sectors as agriculture, cattle-breeding and mining. Each Templar center housed approximately two or four Knights, brothers who provided control over and management of the far-flung operations.
Their system can be likened to that of a multinational company in our own day. The Templars grew to become a huge organization that sustained its existence through illegal ways, keeping the company's secrets with great care and never revealing any kind of information, not even to the Pope.
However, it is possible to obtain various information about the Templars' secret acts through close reading of various data. According to the historical resources, there were at least 20,000 Knights, with seven or eight servants for each Knight. These groups dealt with any kind of business under the control of the order's members; from navigation to trade and from agriculture to construction. Simple calculations show that at the time of their persecution, the Templars employed a staff of at least 160,000.14 This cadre, surrounding Europe and all shores of the Mediterranean, was also the most powerful widespread organization of its time.
Neither the Pope nor the King of France could confiscate the order's property, which had expanded into such a great area. Later, when the Templars were fleeing the Inquisition, their property-which was then comparable to the wealth of kings-was enough to provide the protection and security they required. In these times, the methods of exploitation they had first invented, such as colonialism, imperialism, brutal capitalism and international organized crime and money, were all widely applied.
The author of a book titled The Temple and The Lodge, draws the reader's attention to this subject by stating, "No medieval institution contributed to the rise of capitalism as much as the Templars did." 15
The courts that began interrogating the Templars in 1307 proved that Frederic II had been right to have his doubts. After several years of arrests, persecution, and executions, the order was claimed to have been officially wiped out by the Papacy. But no matter-they continued to maintain their actions throughout Europe by changing their name and their identities.
As the information and examples so far clearly show, the Knights Templar who brought all of Europe under their control were hardly of a religious order dedicated to Christian principles.
On the contrary, all of their actions were completely against the religious moral values. As you will see in the following chapter, the beliefs and actions of those who dominated the Templars had set up an un-Christian, even an anti-Christian, structure.

CHAPTER IV. THE PERVERTED RELIGION OF THE TEMPLARS

Those who founded the Templar cult, and the great majority of those who subsequently joined it, eventually became quite far removed from Christianity. Saint Bernard, one of the most eminent original supporters of the cult, had aimed to turn the warrior knights into soldiers loyal to the Church. His plan ended in failure, however.

The agreement they forged, which at first had appeared to favor the Church, soon began working against Christianity. The main reason was that the Knights rejected the faith that the Church offered and turned to follow a very different system of belief.
Ever since it was first established, Christianity had been gravely troubled by different movements. Another few hundred years passed before Christian unity could finally be established. During that period, a great many movements, from Gnosticism to Aryanism, from Bogomilism to Waldensianism, had offered themselves as alternatives to the Catholic Church. Although up to a certain point it managed to suppress or even eliminate these movements, the Church's absolute sovereignty later came to an end with the reactions that climaxed in the Reformation.
Long before this, the Church had effectively maintained dominion over the whole of Europe. But especially during the time of the Knights, very different popular Christian beliefs still persisted. For example, great differences in terms of faith, rituals and traditions existed between the Latin peoples dominating Southern Europe and those residing in the North, particularly the Germans. Generally the northern European peoples, from whom most of the Knights originated, maintained their own beliefs and superstitious traditions, largely because their local kings had obliged them to convert to Christianity, onto which they managed to append their old beliefs.

The Kabbalah is a work of Jewish mysticism, and refers to a secret tradition passed on by word of mouth. The Templar crosses on the Kabbalah are worthy of note.

Thus it was that many who were outwardly Christian, but who actually lived by their own traditional beliefs, emerged onto the chessboard of history.
In these dark Medieval times, Europeans lay in a state of terrible ignorance. Even among institutions affiliated with the Church, literacy was very low. Since almost all religious texts were written in Latin, those who spoke only other vernacular languages knew them largely by hearsay. Ordinary people's connection with the Church was through local religious authorities who often worked them like slaves, imposed heavy taxes and donations, and themselves lived lives of great wealth in monasteries. But these clerics had no satisfactory knowledge of their own to pass on to the ordinary laity. The ignorant populace was kept under control through legends and fabricated information, instead being set free by the true words of Allah.
As a result, fantasies that had originated from ancient Egypt, Persian and Indian legends, plus legends from Greek, Roman, Viking and Celtic mythology, were believed unreservedly by a large part of the population. Superstitious practices such as sorcery, using charms and magical talismans to cure the sick, alchemy and fortune-telling were condemned but also widely employed to obtain powerful advantages. In addition to such irrational practices, belief in enchanted forests and such fantastic creatures as fairies, monsters, and dwarves (also known as homunculi), occupied an important place in this darkened world.
In this climate, the perverted beliefs of the Templars took root. Supposedly loyal to Christianity and the Church, the Knights were still under the influence of superstitious traditions established in their own homelands. Furthermore, Christian belief among the aristocracy was far more flexible than among the ordinary people. Kings and nobles never hesitated to oppose the Church whenever it suited them. They entered into relationships of mutual self-interest with the clerics. Both intelligence from different sources and information regarding events in far-off countries led kings and nobles to be suspicious of the Church, and even to regard senior Church dignitaries as rivals for their local power.

The Kabbalah was believed to offer methods of controlling natural forces and contained information regarding magic spells, mysteries and symbols and how these were to be employed. The reason the Templars took such a close interest in the Kabbalah is obvious: They sought supernatural help to obtain the wealth they desired.

Dreams of acquiring the great treasures of the East and being elevated as heroes seduced the Templars as much as they did nobles throughout impoverished Europe. Yet the Templars who settled in the Holy Land suffered a terrible disappointment when they failed to find unlimited wealth. They even excavated the base of the Temple of Solomon in the hope of finding sacred objects they believe would bring them infinite powers.16

Albert Pike, one of Freemasonry’s best-known names

But in the face of their disappointment, the Templars persisted in their objectives and began implementing new methods to secure world dominion. At this time, members of the cult entered into a kind of training period and acquired a whole new perspective from various teachings such as Jewish mysticism, Cabbalism, Gnosticism and those of the Assassins; and from heretical Christian sects such as the Monarchians, Paulines and Cathars. They also received instruction and experience from Jewish experts in subjects such as sea-faring, commerce, engineering and science.
By the end of this period, the perverted mindset that the Templars acquired can be summarized as follows:
1- Fundamentally, the Templars had fallen under the influence of the Cabbala, a system of Jewish mysticism that entails the word-of-mouth transmission of secret traditions. Some Cabbalist masters aim to establish relations with-and direct-infernal powers by using various meditations, magical and talismanic techniques. The Cabbala itself, a collection of writings that they imagined to be a means of controlling natural forces, contained information about mysteries and how spells, talismans, and symbols, could be employed. The Knights were indoctrinated with these traditions.
At this time, as already stated, the validity of such matters as magic, alchemy and astrology were accepted in without question. The Templars learned Cabbalistic knowledge directly from Cabbalists. The reason why they took such a close interest was obvious: They believed in order to obtain the material power they desired, they needed supernatural assistance.
Albert Pike, one of the best-known figures in Freemasonry, sets out the Templars' objective in his book, Morals and Dogma:

The Templars were influenced by satanic indoctrination, in a similar manner to modern-day satanists.

Thus the Order of Knights of the Temple was at its very origin devoted to the cause of opposition to the tiara of Rome and the crowns of Kings, and the Apostolate of Kabalistic Gnosticism was vested in its chiefs. . . . To acquire influence and wealth, then to intrigue, and at need to fight, to establish the Johannite or Gnostic and Kabalistic dogma.17
2- In addition, the Templars had also fallen under the influence of the dualist belief that began with Manicheanism in Persia and reached its peak with the Cathars in France. According to this perverted belief, the way to obtain world dominion was by serving the devil. And so, the Templars fell under the influence of satanic indoctrination, much as have modern-day satanists.
As we are told in the verse, "Do you not see that We send the daemons against those who disbelieve to goad them on?" (Surah Maryam, 83), satan deceived the Templars, as he has with all other Allah-deniers, by means of such false promises, turning them away from the true path and leading them to Hell.
In the Qur'an, Almighty Allah, the Lord of all on the Earth and in the skies, describes the nature of satan, who deceives and leads people to Hell:

He makes promises to them and fills them with false hopes. But what satan promises them is nothing but delusion. The shelter of such people will be Hell. They will find no way to escape from it. (Surat an-Nisa', 120-121)

When the affair is decided, satan will say, "Allah made you a promise, a promise of truth, and I made you a promise, but broke my promise. I had no authority over you, except that I called you and you responded to me. Do not, therefore, blame me, but blame yourselves. I cannot come to your aid, nor you to mine. I reject the way you associated me with Allah before." The wrongdoers will have a painful punishment. (Surah Ibrahim, 22)

The Templars regarded homosexuality as legitimate. The figure on the official Templar seal above is said to represent this perversion.

Like human beings, satan is an entity created by Allah and remains under His control in all respects. He has no power or influence of his own-as revealed in another verse:

Those who believe fight in the way of Allah. Those who disbelieve fight in the way of false gods. So fight the friends of satan! Satan's scheming is always feeble. (Surat an-Nisa', 76)

Allah has made of satan a means whereby human beings are tested, and has promised Hell to the deniers who adhere to and follow him, and Paradise to those who follow the true path revealed by Allah.
In the Qur'an, Allah informs us what He said to satan:

He said, "Go! And as for any who follow you, your repayment is Hell, repayment in full!" "Stir up any of them you can with your voice and rally against them your cavalry and your infantry and share with them in their children and their wealth and make them promises! The promise of satan is nothing but delusion. But as for My servants, you will not have any authority over them." Your Lord suffices as a guardian. (Surat al-Isra', 63-65)

These superstitious beliefs adopted by the Templars led them on to yet another perversion: Homosexuality between knights was regarded as legitimate. During the Templars' trials in France, it emerged that this sexual depravity had become widespread among them.
3- As a result of all these perverted beliefs, the Templars had turned their backs on Christian moral values and had become a completely dark organization interested only in its own worldly gain.
The Templars' ideals, summarized here, would later be inherited by Freemasonry, and would survive and persist as the fundamental mindset of those wielding power secretly, behind the scenes. The architects and practitioners of the still-widespread philosophy that is incompatible with religion are none other than the heirs of this perverted cult, the loyal servants of satan.

The Knights of the Temple and their successors, the Freemasons, were communities largely of those who followed satan’s path and sought to impose satan’s perverted philosophy on the world. The Templar mindset and ideals were inherited by Freemasonry and have survived and remained influential right down to the present day, constituting the mindset of those who hold the hidden reins of power.

In fact, satan is the origin of all these evils cherished and committed by the Templars. In Jerusalem, they came under the influence of satan's twisted philosophy and adopted his path from the moment they were taken in by the Cabbala and other mystical teachings. From then up to the present, their heirs-the Knights of the Temple and many of the Freemasons-have represented communities that follow in the path of satan and seek to impose satan's perverted way of thinking on the world.
In fact, this is an excellent lesson for believers in terms of revealing the evil end that awaits those who follow satan. In the Qur'an, Allah warns the faithful not to comply with him:

You who believe! Do not follow in the footsteps of satan. Anyone who follows in satan's footsteps should know that he commands indecency and wrongdoing. Were it not for Allah's favor to you and His mercy, not one of you would ever have been purified. But Allah purifies whoever He wills. Allah is All-Hearing, All-Knowing. (Surat an-Nur, 21)

However, never forget that some Masons-who for centuries have been under the influence of satan, "the arranger of evil" and "he who commands ugly depravities"-must have help in order to be liberated. Using pleasant words, tolerance, modesty and affection to invite Masons to adhere to the faith of Allah and helping them escape this world of darkness is an important responsibility incumbent on all believers.
No doubt they will experience intense regret, both in this world and in the Hereafter, when they realize the losses inflicted by this corruption that has persisted for hundreds of years.
But once they have made this decision, they will abandon their wicked actions. Allah will help them to find the true path, will impart peace and security in their hearts, and bestow on them lives of peace and love. For that reason, the moment they understand the true facts, Masons must leave behind all their wickedness and turn aside from their paths of perversion.