The Templars' Last Days (5 page)

It was King Philip IV who started a series of very spiteful tit-for-tat actions between the two institutions, when he passed a law which would enable him to tax the clergy and thus divert money away from Rome, and thus the Crusades, into his own depleted treasury. This move absolutely infuriated Boniface VIII who issued a Bull threatening to excommunicate King Philip IV if such a tax was ever introduced.

This Bull was met by King Philip IV forbidding the movement of any assets being transferred outside of the French territory to Rome. To reinforce his determination to accumulate as much money as he could, he went on to expel every one of Pope Boniface's papal legates from all of his lands, for King Philip believed that they had been sent to all Christian lands with the express purpose of raising funds for Boniface's planned crusade to the Holy Lands and in his mind were a major cause of the lack of revenue reaching his treasury.

Battle lines were now firmly drawn, and Europe watched and waited to see the outcome of this clash between these two titanic personalities. Eventually, an uneasy peace was negotiated as the result of a compromise position which saw King Philip IV able to tax a small portion of Church income. But, both parties knew that this truce would not last too long, for their priorities remained at odds with each other and King Philip's need of finances had not diminished.

The next five years saw both Philip IV and Boniface VIII rise to the peak of their powers and influence, and in 1302 Philip IV felt strong enough to again directly challenge the power of the Church. It was a small and insignificant dispute between the representatives of the two sides, which provided King Philip IV with the excuse he needed to once more go into battle against Pope Boniface VIII. Seizing this opportunity, he escalated this small argument into open hostilities against the Roman Catholic Church, which finally cumulated in Philip IV sending a large force, aided by the equally disgruntled Italian family of Sciarrillo Colonna, against the virtually defenceless Boniface VIII, who was at this time known to be relaxing at his retreat at Anagani.

No assault on the Pope was ever to be expected, and this audacious raid on the Pope’s person caught both him and his small personal guard of Knights Templar totally by surprise. This unthinkable attack on the Pope caught the small Templar bodyguard unprepared and they were quickly overpowered by the sheer numbers of the assailants. Pope Boniface VIII was captured and then given the uncompromising option by Philip's commander to either resign from his office or die.

The assailants treated the Pope with no respect at all, for he was thrown into jail and badly beaten, and was given only a few days to decide his fate. However, matters were taken out of everybody's hands when Boniface VIII suddenly died before he gave any answer. Officially his death was reported to have been from kidney stones and, being 68 years old, died of natural causes. However, his sudden and suspicious death gave rise to the very strong rumour which swept across Europe that the Pope's death was anything but natural, but was caused by foul play instigated by King Philip, and carried out by the King's attack dog, William de Nogaret.

Pope Benedict XI was the next Pope, who proved to be more of a friend to King Philip IV, for one of his first acts after taking office was the lifting of the excommunication imposed on Philip by Pope Boniface VIII. However, at the same time, Benedict XI then excommunicated William de Nogaret for the alleged part he had played in the death of Pope Boniface VIII. The pontificate of Pope Benedict XI lasted less than a year, with his death also occurring in questionable circumstances. Once again Europe was awash with a rumour that it was once more the King who was complicit in this terrible deed. The difference this time being that it was William de Nogaret himself who, with the King's approval, had been both the instigator and executioner of this Pope.

The influence of King Philip IV on the papacy was now increasing and becoming ever stronger as he chased after the papal wealth. This battle for papal supremacy was fought out between the Cardinals of France and those of Italy during the year-long interregnum following the death of Pope Benedict XI.

As always in situations such as this, a compromise figure was sought. The selection was never about who was the person best to lead the Catholic Church but all about an individual who was proven to be inoffensive and acceptable to both the French and Italian Cardinals. In the person of Raymond Bertram de Got, both sides believed they had found their ideal candidate. He had been chaplain to Pope Boniface VIII, and was therefore well known to both the French and Italian Cardinals. Before his death, Pope Boniface VIII had elevated Raymond to the position of Archbishop of Bordeaux as a reward for his long service and his dedication to both him and the Church.

He was seen by both sets of Cardinals as a weak and pliable individual, forever keen to avoid conflict and always ready to settle any dispute with any sort of compromise, if that brought about a peaceful and swift resolution to the problem.

Although not a Cardinal, Raymond Bertram de Got was elected on 14th November 1305, with his coronation taking place at Lyon, where he took the title of Pope Clement V. King Philip IV attended this coronation believing that he now had his man at the head of the Catholic Church. In a like manner, the Italian Cardinals who were in attendance also believed that they had their man firmly in power. Conflict had not been avoided, merely delayed.

Guy's concentration on the conversation with Matthew was suddenly broken by a burst of activity from the Templar sailors, and he redirected his attention to establishing why the sailors had broken their afternoon siesta.

Even though it was some distance away, the towering figure of the castle of Ceze now dominated the skyline, which indicated that they did not have too far to go before reaching their destination. The Templar sailors brought the hulk to the banks of the river, and when securely moored sent a small party off to purchase some of the renowned local wines to accompany the evening meal. Unfortunately, the sight of such a large centre of population brought with it the risk of King Philip’s spies and agents, and Matthew and Guy were urged to join the Pope and take cover by remaining within their quarters until they reached Avignon.

It was intended to arrive in Avignon under the cover of nightfall, and so the hulk remained moored until just prior to sunset before continuing its journey. Under normal circumstances, the last few hours of a journey would be filled with joyous and uplifting emotions of arriving safely; however, this was not a normal occasion, and the atmosphere on board the hulk became increasingly tense amongst both the Templar sailors and the Papal delegation as the hulk approached its final destination.

For it was absolutely imperative that none of Philip’s spies or agents, of which there were many, gained any knowledge of the Pope’s arrival at Avignon.

Under the cover of darkness, our hulk sailed silently into the busy docks of Avignon, darting between the crafts that were already secured for the evening, and made its way to the prearranged landing place at the mooring point closest to the Templar enclave.

The Pope and his party stayed deliberately out of sight waiting for the hulk to be moored securely at the quayside and to be given the signal that their transport from the dock to their accommodation had arrived and was ready to take them on the last leg of their hazardous journey.

As it turned out, the timing could not have been better, for as they moored their coach was just arriving. Covering their robes with black cloaks and their heads with hoods, the Papal party darted down the gangplank and into the coach, which, without a moment’s hesitation, moved off to take them on the final short journey to the security of the Templar quarters.

The windows of the coach were each covered with a black material, shielding the occupants from any prying eyes that may be about at this late hour. The coach quickly covered the ground leading from the quayside to safety, and swept briskly through the outer gates of the Templar preceptory into the wide expanse of the courtyard of the encampment.

As the coach entered the safety of the Templar courtyard, a lone rider dressed in a black cloak set off out of town heading west.

The outer gates to the encampment were closed before the Papal party were invited to disembark from the coach. Surprisingly, there was no one there in the courtyard to greet them, but as they were ushered through the main doors, there in the Hall was our Master, together with Walter du Menils, the master of Avignon, Jon and myself, ready to welcome the Pope and his party.

We each knelt in turn and, taking the hand of the Pontiff, kissed the ring of his office. Upon rising, Walter du Menils enquired if Pope Clement V and his party required any refreshment. This Clement declined for he only wished to go directly to the Chapel and give thanks for his safe deliverance.

Walter led the party to the Chapel, which was situated deep in the heart of the Temple, myself and Guy following the main body of the party and as we slowly processed to the Chapel we inquired quietly as to each other’s wellbeing and how his journey from Lyon had gone. The Chapel was quickly reached, and it willingly accepted its visitors into its bosom and sanctity. The Pontiff led the prayers of thanksgiving for the safe journey and deliverance. He prayed for God’s strength, wisdom and guidance for all present, for them to make the right choices and decisions, and the ability to reach a consensus regarding our way forward which had to be reached over the next few days. Prayers being completed, we each made our way back to our rooms. Even at this late hour, I felt mentally refreshed from prayer, and glad that the Holy Father, Matthew and Guy had all made the journey safely.

Although not too many hours of darkness lay ahead, I felt that time would pass slowly and I knew that at best it would be a restless and light sleep that awaited me.

The lone rider knew he would not enjoy any sleep at all that night, and with this thought he stuck his spurs into the side of his steed to ensure he kept the gallop at its maximum.

Chapter 4

As King Philip and William moved around the table to take their seats opposite the mystery guest, he rose to greet the King with a bow of the head. William was still struggling to adjust to the darkened atmosphere of the library, but as they all sat, he brought into sharp vision the identity of the guest. It was none other than Foulques de Villaret, the Grand Master of the Knights of St. John.

Foulques de Villaret had succeeded his uncle Guillaume de Villaret as head of that auspicious organisation only two years earlier following his uncle’s death. Whilst he was wise beyond his young age in matters of warfare, he was still somewhat naive when it came to the world of politics, a world in which King Philip IV excelled.

The Grand Master was dressed in a black surcoat with a white cross on his left breast, the usual attire for a Knight of St. John when not in combat. As he settled into his chair, William chuckled to himself inside, for although he had no idea as to why his King had invited Foulques along today, he knew that Foulques would be fighting for the survival of his Holy Order, but would not know it.

It had been almost a year since they had last met when, following Foulques’ appointment to the head of the Knights of St. John, King Philip IV had invited him to his palace here in Fontainebleau for a weekend’s hunting. During that visit, King Philip had quizzed the young Foulques about many things, but especially as to his feelings towards the much wealthier and stronger Knight Templars.

His reply had left both William and King Philip in no doubt that he was extremely envious, and disgruntled about the disparity in the wealth and reputation that existed between the two Holy Orders, but that he also greatly admired their piety and held the Knight Templars in high esteem for all they had done in the name of the Church and the victories they had secured in the Holy Lands.

The conversation today between the King and the Grand Master began with the usual exchange of pleasantries, and gradually moved onto the topic which the King wished to discuss: that being the best way to organise the next Crusade to the Holy Land, particularly as to how it could be best financed.

This clearly was a subject close to the heart of Foulques, who readily engaged in the conversation with an open and enthusiastic manner. For the next hour or so the two exchanged ideas on how these two objectives could be effectively achieved. There was no doubt in the mind of Foulques that the Knight Templars’ money and ships, combined with the knights’ courage and bravery on the battlefield, would be pivotal to the success of any Crusade to the Holy Land.

William, who had remained silent throughout the exchange, mused to himself that the fish had taken the bait – now all the King had to do was reel it in to the keep net. William had just started to wonder just how the King would do this, when much to William’s surprise, Philip suddenly broke off from the intensity of the conversation and invited Foulques to lunch in the garden, to which he readily agreed.

As the King rose, so did William and Foulques. William opened the door which led the way out of the library, through the brightness of the drawing room and into the main gallery, where the King's butler led the party down the gallery to the doors which opened onto the expansive lawns.

The protocol of silence, whilst in public, was most noticeable given the free-flowing nature of the conversation that had just been exchanged in the library. William sensed a glow of satisfaction in the King’s face, whilst it was one of excitement in that of Foulques’, although for his own part, he still had no idea what the King was up to or why – but had no doubt that all would become clear after lunch.

Philip and Foulques strode together across the wide piazza and down the steps leading to the well groomed gardens where the lunch was to be served, with William following at a respectable distance behind the two protagonists. As the party headed across the lawn, the expanse of green was broken by the glittering of the sun bouncing off the large silver candelabra which formed the focal point of the large table where lunch would shortly be served.