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Templar castles in Europe. The legacy of the Templars in art and life. Economic legacy of the Templars

11.03.2024

The small town of Tomar (40 thousand) 140 km from Lisbon is famous for its Templar castle, included in the UNESCO cultural heritage list since 1983

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Gradually, many powerful people, including kings, became their debtors. Under Philip Augustus and Saint Louis, the royal treasury was kept in the Parisian castle of the Templars, and the Chief Master actually served as minister of finance. Growing competition began to cause concern for the “Iron King” Philip the 4th; moreover, the royal treasury was in dire need of funds, and the king himself was in debt to the Templars. All this led to the fact that on Friday, October 13, 1307, at 6 am, the Templars were arrested throughout France and charged with blasphemy, renunciation of Christ and other serious crimes. The process took 7 years. In 1312, Philip's protege Pope Clement, with his 5th bull, dissolved the order, which by that time had castles throughout Europe. And in March 1314, the chief master of the order, Jacques de Molay, and his two assistants were burned at the stake. At the stake, he cursed the king, all his future descendants, the pope and promised them death within a year. Mysticism is mystical, but the pope actually dies in an accident a month later, and King Philip, relatively young and healthy, 8 years later... Misfortunes and violent deaths began to haunt his descendants. And soon a hundred years war broke out, in which France only miraculously, with the help of God and Joan of Arc, retained its statehood...

But let's return to the Templars. In other European countries, their fates developed differently depending on their personal qualities and the attitude of the authorities towards them.

The Portuguese Templars were the luckiest of all. King Dinish 1st, appreciating their military assistance in the Reconquista, created a new Order of Christ, gathering into it the knights who remained out of work and transferred the property of the Templars to it. In 1318 this was formalized by the Holy See. Thus, the Portuguese Templars emerged from this story without much loss and were in fact simply renamed. The legendary Holy Grail or the hidden treasures of the Templars have been sought for many centuries, and according to some legends they are hidden in Tomar.

The Tomar fortress was founded in 1160, and in 1347 it became the main residence of the Order of Christ. The new Order gradually became so strong that the role of Chief Master was performed by the kings themselves. Knights of the Order took part in sea expeditions during the era of geographical discoveries. During the time of Henry the Navigator, the monastery treasury received taxes from the African colonies. The flowing gold of the river made it possible over the centuries to expand, reconstruct and decorate the castle, which was converted into a monastery in the 15th century. As a result, the complex includes a lot of different buildings and different styles: Romanesque art of the Templars, Gothic and Manueline of the period of the Great Discoveries, and then Renaissance art.

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Castle courtyard - Armory Square

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Manueline portal

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The round (or rather octagonal) church - Rotunda or Sharola, was built in the 12th century in the image of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem.

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In the center there is an altar - 8 columns painted in gold

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Later, a nave was added to the altar, richly decorated in the Manueline style.

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Here is the pearl of the castle, the famous window - a masterpiece of the Manueline style - one of the calling cards not only of Tomar, but of all of Portugal. According to unverified data, during this window in the 19th century, either the British or the Spaniards even offered Portugal to write off the entire national debt, but the proud Portuguese refused to part with their national treasure. There is a legend that the path to the hidden treasures of the order is encrypted in the design of the window.

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The window is richly decorated with marine motifs: ropes, shells, seaweed - symbols of sea voyages in the era of geographical discoveries

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The window overlooks the Renaissance cloister of Santa Barbara

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In general, the castle has eight cloisters, incl. Gothic (1430s) from the era of Henry the Navigator. The monks' clothes were washed here using rainwater from two well-cisterns.

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The cloister of John III (2nd half of the 16th century) connects the dormitories of the monks with the church

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Dormitory with monks' cells on both sides

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Tiny cells - 6 meters each

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their refectory

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Bakery with oven in the back

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Olive oil storage cellar

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monastery notary's office

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Monastery walls

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From the mirador near the castle there is a view of the city

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There are knightly symbols at every turn in the city.

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Brief information: The Templars (or Templars) are a spiritual knightly order created in the Holy Land in 1119 after the first crusade. The second most founded of the religious orders after the Hospitallers (or the Order of Malta). It got its name from the name of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, where the Temple of Solomon used to stand, on which the order was given a small residence (Temple - temple in French). In the 12th-13th centuries, the order became very rich, mainly from financial transactions - the Templars were talented financiers and invented checks, calculating compound interest on loans, the principle of double entry in accounting, etc.
Gradually, many powerful people, including kings, became their debtors. Under Philip Augustus and Saint Louis, the royal treasury was kept in the Parisian castle of the Templars, and the Chief Master actually served as minister of finance. Growing competition began to cause concern for the “Iron King” Philip the 4th; moreover, the royal treasury was in dire need of funds, and the king himself was in debt to the Templars. All this led to the fact that on Friday, October 13, 1307, at 6 am, the Templars were arrested throughout France and charged with blasphemy, renunciation of Christ and other serious crimes. The process took 7 years. In 1312, Philip's protege Pope Clement, with his 5th bull, dissolved the order, which by that time had castles throughout Europe. And in March 1314, the chief master of the order, Jacques de Molay, and his two assistants were burned at the stake. At the stake, he cursed the king, all his future descendants, the pope and promised them death within a year. Mysticism is mystical, but the pope actually dies in an accident a month later, and King Philip, relatively young and healthy, 8 years later... Misfortunes and violent deaths began to haunt his descendants. And soon a hundred years war broke out, in which France only miraculously, with the help of God and Joan of Arc, retained its statehood...
But let's return to the Templars. In other European countries, their fates developed differently depending on their personal qualities and the attitude of the authorities towards them.
The Portuguese Templars were the luckiest of all. King Dinish 1st, appreciating their military assistance in the Reconquista, created a new Order of Christ, gathering into it the knights who remained out of work and transferred the property of the Templars to it. In 1318 this was formalized by the Holy See. Thus, the Portuguese Templars emerged from this story without much loss and were in fact simply renamed. The legendary Holy Grail or the hidden treasures of the Templars have been sought for many centuries, and according to some legends they are hidden in Tomar.
The Tomar fortress was founded in 1160, and in 1347 it became the main residence of the Order of Christ. The new Order gradually became so strong that the role of Chief Master was performed by the kings themselves. Knights of the Order took part in sea expeditions during the era of geographical discoveries. During the time of Henry the Navigator, the monastery treasury received taxes from the African colonies. The flowing gold of the river made it possible over the centuries to expand, reconstruct and decorate the castle, which was converted into a monastery in the 15th century. As a result, the complex includes a lot of different buildings and different styles: Romanesque art of the Templars, Gothic and Manueline of the period of the Great Discoveries, and then Renaissance art.

Castle courtyard - Armory Square

Manueline portal

The round (or rather octagonal) church - Rotunda or Sharola, was built in the 12th century in the image of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem.

In the center there is an altar - 8 columns painted in gold

Later, a nave was added to the altar, richly decorated in the Manueline style.

Here is the pearl of the castle, the famous window - a masterpiece of the Manueline style - one of the calling cards not only of Tomar, but of all of Portugal.
According to unverified data, during this window in the 19th century, either the British or the Spaniards even offered Portugal to write off the entire national debt, but the proud Portuguese refused to part with their national treasure. There is a legend that the path to the hidden treasures of the order is encrypted in the design of the window.

The window is richly decorated with marine motifs: ropes, shells, seaweed - symbols of sea voyages in the era of geographical discoveries

The window overlooks the Renaissance cloister of Santa Barbara

In general, the castle has eight cloisters, incl.
Gothic (1430s) from the era of Henry the Navigator. The monks' clothes were washed here using rainwater from two well-cisterns.

The cloister of John III (2nd half of the 16th century) connects the dormitories of the monks with the church

Dormitory with monks' cells on both sides

Tiny cells - 6 meters each

their refectory

Bakery with oven in the back

Olive oil storage cellar

monastery notary's office

Azulejos!

Monastery walls

From the mirador near the castle there is a view of the city

There are knightly symbols at every turn in the city.

1 out of 10

Poor knights of Christ and the Temple of Solomon, “Templars” – that was the name given to the legendary knights-monks of the Templar Order, founded in 1119. However, the Templars were poor only at the beginning; by the 14th century it was one of the richest orders of medieval Europe. Kings and rich nobles gave them estates, castles and even entire cities, and the templars themselves were outstanding economists and accountants of their time.

The end of the history of the Templars came in the first quarter of the 14th century, or more precisely in 1307, when King Philip the Fair of France virtually destroyed the Order by ordering mass arrests of knights. On March 18, 1314, the execution of the last Grand Master of the Order, Jacques de Molay, took place, who was burned at the stake by the verdict of the Inquisition court.

2 out of 10

The most famous monastery of the Templars in Spain is the medieval fortress of Castillo de los Templarios in the city of Ponferrada (Ponferrada Castle). It was donated to the Order by King Leon Fernando II in 1178 with the condition that they would protect pilgrims going to Santiago de Compostela.

The Templars practically rebuilt the fortress that was almost destroyed at that time. And the castle gates were decorated with the motto of the militant monks: “If the Lord does not protect the city, the efforts of those who guard it will be in vain.”

At the end of the 12th century, the Templars were expelled from Ponferrada Castle for some time, but in 1212 it was again returned to the Order, which owned the fortress until 1308.

3 out of 10

Gisors Castle in France is considered to be a Templar castle. The first fortifications on this site date back to 1087, but the main construction work on the construction of the fortress complex, which has survived to this day, was carried out throughout the 12th century.

In the second half of the century, it was transferred to the control of the Templars, although every now and then it was passed from hand to hand, becoming a bone of contention and at the same time an outpost on the border of the interests of France and England.

In 1308, the Gisors Templars were arrested and imprisoned in the “tower of prisoners” built here in the castle. For 6 years, Gisors turns into a prison for the knights of the Order.

5 out of 10

The Castle de la Suda in the Spanish city of Tortosa is also associated with the Knights Templar. Initially, it was a citadel of one of the Muslim kingdoms of the Iberian Peninsula, but during the Reconquista the city was recaptured from the Saracens (mid-12th century), and the castle was donated to the Templar Order as a token of gratitude for their military assistance.

6 out of 10

The most famous Templar temple in Spain is the Vera Cruz Church in the city of Segovia, founded by knights-monks in the 12th century.

Interestingly, the dodecagon underlying her plan was apparently taken from the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem.

7 out of 10

One of the most striking examples of Templar fortress architecture in Europe is the Miravet Castle in the province of Tarragona in northeastern Spain.

Miravet is located at an altitude of 220 meters above sea level. Originally founded by the Moors in the 11th century, it came into the possession of the knights-monks in 1154 and became the starting point for the spread of their power in these lands.

In terms of its cultural wealth, Spain is rightfully considered the pearl of the Mediterranean. Moreover, not only the Moors left their unique heritage here. So, the numerous castles that once belonged to the noble knights of the Templar Order are of great interest to tourists coming to Spain. The route through the castles of the Templars - one of the first religious military orders - is one of the most unusual and interesting routes in Spain.

One of the most important castles in Catalonia can be called the castle Miravet. This Templar stronghold in the Ebre River valley is one of the best examples of the order's Romanesque, religious and military architecture. Miravet is a medieval castle-fortress, the walls of which remember the rule of Muslims, the times of the Great Templars, and the years of the Civil War in Spain. The castle stands on a cliff 100 m high and from its walls there is a beautiful view of the city and the surrounding area.

Zuda Castle is a little better preserved Tortosa. It was first mentioned in the 2nd century. BC, at a time when the city was an important strategic point among the Roman conquerors and bore the name Dertosa. Later, in the 9th century, the city of Tortosa became a Saracen fortress, but control over it was lost in 810, a period of progress and prosperity. Tortosa today is a history and culture of many centuries, in which Romanesque, Spanish and Muslim traditions are woven together, whose traces are still visible today. Interestingly, there is a hotel in the fortress, so anyone can spend the night in a real ancient castle.

Peniscola- this is one of the largest resort centers in Valencia. Here is the symbol of Peniscola - the magnificent Papa Luna Castle, which is surrounded by massive fortress walls. The castle got its name thanks to Pope Benedict XIII, who hid here in 1411 after accusing him of heresy and turned the place into his palace. Recognized as a historical and artistic world heritage site by UNESCO in 1922, and as a historical and artistic monument in 1931, the castle became famous thanks to the filming of the film “El Cid” in 1961.

In the region of Castile and Leon there is a Templar castle in Ponferrade. Built in the 9th-14th centuries, it guarded the road to Santiago de Compostela. In the Middle Ages it was one of the largest fortresses in northwestern Spain. Currently, every year, on the first full moon of July, modern Templars gather here and organize a holiday.

Lock Monzon is a castle-fortress located in a place of the same name (province of Huesca, Aragon). The construction of the castle dates back to the 10th century, and in 1143 it passed to the Knights Templar and was expanded and slightly rebuilt. After the collapse of the order and until the 19th century, the castle served as a defensive structure, was constantly strengthened and acquired its modern appearance only in the 18th century. Since its appearance, various legends and fables have always been associated with the castle. Monzon Castle is now recognized as a national monument.

Caravaca de la Cruz(province of Murcia) - the fifth of the holy cities (Rome, Jerusalem, Santiago de Compostela, Camaleño). In 1998, the municipality of Caravaca de la Cruz was included in the five Holy Cities of the Roman Catholic Church, thereby receiving the right and privilege to celebrate the Holy Year every seven years - a special year when a great pilgrimage is made to holy places for the remission of sins. This is a place of religious worship, a stronghold of faith and centuries-old traditions. A unique Christian relic is kept here - the True Cross - according to legend, a particle of the very Cross on which Jesus Christ was crucified.

The city lies at the foot of a heptagonal hill, on which rises a castle with fourteen towers and a Baroque sanctuary. The roots of the castle are of Islamic origin, but the way we see it now, it became under the Templar Order in the 13th-15th centuries. The city's annual festival is associated with the castle. According to legend, during the Arab siege, the defenders of the castle, going for water, confused and brought wine. The drunk wine spurred on the Christian forces and helped them completely defeat the Moors. Every year, at the beginning of May, wine flows like a river on the streets of Caravaca and is available to everyone.

There is a tiny town in Normandy called Gisors. In the 11th century, the first Merovingians built an impregnable castle-fortress here. And at the end of the 12th century, the Order of the Templars settled in it, which, as is known, owned untold wealth. Nobody knows where they disappeared to. However, during the Second World War, an event occurred that gives reason to believe that the Templar treasure is still kept in the dungeons of the Zhizors Castle.

STRANGE STORY

Alas, time spares no one. So the Templar castle, as historians often call it, turned into majestic ruins by the end of the 20th century. All that remains of it are 12 massive towers located in a circle. They, like faithful knight guards, preserve the peace of the ancient fortress, which has seen many wars and sieges in its lifetime. Moreover, in the center, on an earthen embankment, rises an octagonal tower - the donjon, the main keeper of the secret of Gisors.

During World War II, Roger Lomois was assigned to guard the peace of the ancient castle. He alone performed the duties of caretaker, gardener, cleaner and tour guide. Although what kind of tourists are there during the war? People had no time for that...

Finding himself out of work, left to his own devices, Lomua decided to explore the mound on which stood the central tower, which had seen a dozen kings in its lifetime, including Richard the Lionheart. Lomua knew that since 1158 the castle had been owned by the Templars - the Knights of the Order of the Temple of Christ, and it was under this tower that they dug underground passages and galleries. “What if there are countless treasures hidden there?” - Lomua once thought. Since then, this thought literally took possession of the castle keeper. He stopped eating and sleeping, and kept dreaming of finding a chest filled to the brim with jewelry in one of the castle’s dungeons. And then one day, taking a shovel in his hands, Lomua began to dig.

Having dug a narrow vertical shaft 15 meters deep in the hill, he came across a small underground chamber. I was as happy as a child and went downstairs in the hope of finally seeing the treasures of the Templars... But, alas, the chamber was completely empty. Lomua almost cried from insult. But something told the watchman: he needed to move on no matter what.

THE WORK OF SISYPHUS

Having made an impressively sized hole in the wall, he began to dig a horizontal passage to the center of the tower. But a few days later, another stone wall appeared on the treasure hunter’s path. Being a rare stubborn person, Lomua made his way through it too... And he found himself in a spacious hall decorated with statues of Christ and the 12 apostles. There were 19 stone sarcophagi along the walls, and 30 huge metal chests occupied the central space of the hall. The gardener's joy knew no end. He cried with happiness, anticipating what his life would be like now!

Being a decent person and law-abiding citizen, Lomua rushed as fast as he could to the city hall to report his discovery. He felt like a hero, a great treasure hunter worthy of a reward. However, to his surprise and disappointment, the sensational news was received more than coolly by the city fathers. Moreover, the overly curious watchman was fired for unauthorized treasure hunting! And the authorities ordered the mine he dug to be filled up, without even bothering to look at what was inside. Unable to survive what happened. Lomua is taken ill. And having recovered from the illness, he left his hometown without even saying goodbye to anyone. He wandered wherever his eyes looked to heal his spiritual wounds...

INCREDIBLE GUESS

Lomua wandered around the country for several years. He lived in one city, then in another, until he finally reached the capital. In Paris he met journalist Gerard de Sade. He loved to chat with the tramp over a glass of Burgundy, philosophize, and talk about life. And then one day, having taken on his chest a little more than he should have, Lomua told a new acquaintance about his find and the inglorious result of titanic work. The story impressed Gerard so much that without hesitation he went to Gisors.

Imagine the journalist’s surprise when, after going through the archives, he found documents that directly stated: in the years when the Templars were the owners of the fortress, some kind of underground work was actually carried out on its territory. It is quite possible that the passages and galleries that Lomua dug up were dug by the knights of the order.

Gerard knew very well that the Templars enjoyed the patronage of dukes and kings, who brought generous offerings to the order. The Templars owned dozens of castles in Palestine and even more in Western Europe, they owned gigantic land plots and thousands of peasants and artisans. Their wealth was truly fabulous. It's hard to believe that they voluntarily abandoned him to his own devices.
fate.

In addition, the reaction of the Gisors authorities to the discovery of the watchman Lomua was incomprehensible...

The strange behavior of the city fathers prompted the journalist to believe that they knew about the cache and what was in it. How else could their reaction be explained? “If for so many centuries the treasure remained intact,” the journalist reasoned, “this meant only one thing: the Order of the Templars did not disappear, it still exists today. Moreover, he retained his power and secret power. Why not a plot for a newspaper article? What articles and books are there!”

THE TEMPLARS ARE AMONG US!

Two months later, de Sade’s literary masterpiece with the intriguing title “The Templars Among Us” was published in one of the Parisian printing houses. Needless to say, it produced the effect of a bomb exploding. Everyone, young and old, dreamed of purchasing the book. But not because it had a gripping plot or was written with special grace. No The book actually indicated the address of the Templar hiding place.

Under public pressure, the then French Minister of Culture Andre Malraux was forced to send a group of specialists to Gisors to verify the information contained in the book. And then strange things began again.

The Parisian experts, having arrived in Gisors, did not even try to examine the mine dug by Lomois, the half-buried entrance to which was still visible on the surface. They said that this hole posed a threat to the foundation of the tower, and without further discussion they ordered it to be concreted over. What was done right away...

SACRED TREE

...Alas, since then no one else has ever been able to obtain permission to excavate in the Templar castle. But numerous researchers, haunted by the mystery of the ancient fortress, began to search and find very interesting facts.

For example, it turned out that a strange event happened here in 1188. In those days, there was a meadow in front of the castle, which was called the sacred field. In the middle of the field there grew a mighty elm. It was so huge that nine people, with their arms outstretched, could barely grasp its trunk. In the shade of the branches of an ancient elm, Philip II negotiated with Henry II. On the third day, a conflict arose between the monarchs. History is silent about why the quarrel broke out, but as a result, the angry Philip II ordered his soldiers to cut down the sacred tree. (Apparently, it was an important symbol for both sides.) Six squadrons of French soldiers, armed with axes, slings and clubs, were sent to carry out the order. The son of Henry II and heir to the English throne, Richard the Lionheart, came to the defense of the sacred elm. It was not possible to defend the shrine. The tree was cut down.

The encroachment on the elm by the royal person clearly had an important meaning. But which one? Gisors stubbornly keeps his secrets. However, it cannot be otherwise. After all, every decent castle should have its secrets.

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