>> male narrator: THE KNIGHTS
TEMPLAR DEFENDED THE HOLY LAND.
THEIR TOOLS WERE BLOODSHED
AND PRAYER. FOUNDED IN THE 12TH CENTURY,
THESE CHRISTIAN WARRIOR MONKS
WERE AN UNBEATABLE FORCE
FOR NEARLY 200 YEARS. THEN THEY SUFFERED A SPECTACULAR
FALL FROM GRACE.
TRIED FOR HERESY, THEY WERE
ACCUSED OF PRACTICING STRANGE RITUALS.
ACCUSERS SAID THEY SPAT ON
THE CROSS, WORSHIPPED A SEVERED
HUMAN HEAD, AND ENGAGED IN PERVERSE SEXUAL ACTS.
THEY WERE DISBANDED.
THEIR GRAND MASTER WAS BURNED
AT THE STAKE. EVER SINCE, THEIR NAME
HAS CARRIED AN AIR
OF MYSTERY AND ROMANCE. TODAY, BOOKS LIKE<i>
THE DA VINCI CODE</i> EMBELLISH
THE MYTH OF THE TEMPLARS.
CLAIMS PERSIST THAT THEY GUARDED THE MOST SACRED OBJECT
IN CHRISTENDOM--
THE HOLY GRAIL.
BEHIND THE LEGEND, WE EXPLORE THE REAL WORLD
OF THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR,
A WORLD BUILT FROM STONE.
800 YEARS AGO, THEY CONSTRUCTED SOME OF THE FINEST
FORTIFICATIONS EVER KNOWN.
>> OH, MY, LOOK AT THIS.
THIS IS FANTASTIC. >> narrator: TODAY, MUCH
OF WHAT THEY BUILT IS CRUMBLING
INTO THE LANDSCAPE.
NOW A TEAM OF EXPERTS IS JOURNEYING BACK
TO THEIR WORLD.
>> I DON'T THINK THIS HAS BEEN
USED FOR CENTURIES. >> narrator: USING
STATE-OF-THE-ART COMPUTER
ANIMATION, THEY WILL REVEAL,
FOR THE FIRST TIME IN EIGHT CENTURIES, THE LOST WORLD
OF THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR.
[dramatic music]
♪ ♪ IN A HIDDEN CORNER OF THE MIDDLE
EAST IS THE LONG FORGOTTEN WORLD
OF THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR. TORTOSA, IN MODERN SYRIA,
WAS ONCE A TEMPLAR CITY.
THEIR SPLENDID MILITARY
HEADQUARTERS WAS AT ITS HEART. THOSE WHO PASSED THROUGH
THE CITY IN THE 13TH CENTURY
TELL OF AN ENORMOUS CHAPEL
AND GREAT HALL, AN IMPREGNABLE CASTLE AND FINE
WALLS WITH TOWERS AS IF CROWNED
WITH PRECIOUS JEWELS.
NOW ALL THAT STANDS INTACT IS A CATHEDRAL.
AT THE TIME OF THE TEMPLARS,
THIS WAS AN IMPORTANT PLACE
OF PILGRIMAGE. THE REST OF THE CITY
IS DECAYING, JUST FRAGMENTS
OF RUINS EMBEDDED
IN THE MODERN CITY. TODAY, LOCAL PEOPLE SEEM UNAWARE
THEY ARE LIVING WITHIN WHAT WAS
ONCE A GREAT CITY OF A SECRETIVE
INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION. OUR EXPERTS WILL PIECE TOGETHER
CLUES FOUND AT TORTOSA.
THEY WILL RECONSTRUCT THE
LONG LOST WORLD OF THE TEMPLARS. THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR WAS FORMED
IN THE 12TH CENTURY.
ITS PURPOSE WAS TO PROTECT
CHRISTIAN PILGRIMS ON THEIR WAY TO JERUSALEM.
PROFESSOR PAUL CRAWFORD
IS TRAVELLING ALONG THE OLD
ROUTE TO THE ANCIENT CITY. >> IT WAS SO DANGEROUS THAT ONE
PILGRIM WROTE BACK HOME AFTER
HAVING GONE ALONG THE PILGRIM
ROUTE AND SAID THAT HE SAW HEAPS OF BONES LITTERING THE SIDES
OF THE ROADS WHERE PEOPLE
HAD DIED AND ROTTED. IF YOUR FRIENDS ARE KILLED,
DON'T STOP TO BURY THEM, BECAUSE
IF YOU DIG THEM A GRAVE,
THAT GRAVE WILL TURN OUT TO BE YOUR OWN GRAVE.
SOMEONE WILL COME ALONG
AND KILL YOU AND PUT YOU IN IT. >> narrator: THE KNIGHTS TOOK
VOWS OF POVERTY, CHASTITY,
AND OBEDIENCE.
THEY OFFERED THEIR LIVES TO SAFEGUARD THE ROUTES
THAT THE PILGRIMS TOOK.
THEY WERE NOW WARRIOR MONKS. SOON, THE ROLE OF THE TEMPLARS
EXPANDED TO DEFEND THE CHRISTIAN
TERRITORIES IN THE HOLY LAND
FROM LOCAL MUSLIM WARLORDS. >> THE TEMPLARS REPRESENTED
A NEW CONCEPT.
THEY REPRESENTED A FUSION
OF THE MEDIEVAL CALLING OF WARRIOR ON THE ONE HAND
WITH THE MEDIEVAL CALLING
OF RELIGIOUS ON THE OTHER HAND.
FUSE THEM TOGETHER, AND YOU GET FIGHTING RELIGIOUS.
>> narrator: THIS CONCEPT OF
HOLY WAR WAS NEW AND SHOCKING. TORTOSA WAS HANDED
TO THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR IN 1152.
IN RETURN, THEY WOULD PROTECT
THE CITY AND THE SURROUNDING LAND FROM MUSLIMS WHO WANTED
THE CHRISTIAN SETTLERS TO LEAVE
THE HOLY LAND.
THE HUB OF THE CITY WAS THE TEMPLARS' CASTLE,
MANNED BY THE WARRIOR MONKS. DAVID NICOLLE IS ATTEMPTING
TO FIND THE CASTLE WALLS
TO UNDERSTAND HOW THEY
ENGINEERED THEIR DEFENSES. >> WELL, HERE WE HAVE
THE INNER WALL.
ITS QUITE SHORT SECTIONS OF WALL
AND THEN THESE PROTRUDING TOWERS.
THEY LOOK LIKE SORT OF ZIGZAGS,
ACTUALLY, IN THE WALL,
BUT THEY ARE INDIVIDUAL TOWERS. >> narrator: AS DAVID PASSES
BETWEEN THE FORTIFICATIONS,
IT BECOMES CLEAR THAT THERE
IS A REMARKABLE AMOUNT STILL STANDING.
>> IT DOES SEEM THAT THIS LITTLE
STREET THAT WE'RE ON
JUST HUGS THE WALL. IT'S NOT POSSIBLE TO FOLLOW THE
WALL ANYMORE IN THIS DIRECTION,
BUT THE WALL, MADE OF THESE
REALLY LARGE PIECES OF MASONRY, DISAPPEARS INTO THESE HOUSES.
>> narrator: LINKING TOGETHER
THE REMAINS, THE SCALE
OF THE CASTLE CAN BE REVEALED. DOUBLE CONCENTRIC WALLS
SURROUND IT ON THREE SIDES.
PROTECTING THE SEAWARD FLANK
ARE TWO STRONG TOWERS. THESE WALLS WERE DESIGNED
TO WITHSTAND EVEN THE MOST
RUTHLESS ATTACKER.
RECORDS FROM THE TIME TELL US OF ENEMY ARMIES ATTEMPTING
TO TUNNEL UNDERNEATH
THE DEFENSES TO TAKE THE CASTLE.
THE FIRST STEP WAS TO GET RIGHT UP AGAINST THE BASE OF THE WALL.
>> THE NORMAL SYSTEM OF DOING
THAT WAS AT LEAST IN MEDIEVAL
FRENCH, WOULD BE CALLED A<i> CHAT--</i> A CAT.
>> narrator: THE CAT WAS
A HEAVY-FRAMED, STURDY WOOD
STRUCTURE THAT COULD CREEP UP TO THE WALLS, WITHSTANDING
THE ARROWS AND ROCKS THAT
THE DEFENDERS WOULD RAIN DOWN
FROM ABOVE. >> IT WOULD BE INCHED FORWARD
SLOWLY, SLOWLY, SLOWLY,
UNTIL IT GETS RIGHT THERE.
>> narrator: THEN THE ATTACKERS DIG, DESTABILIZING THE WALL.
PIT PROPS SUPPORT THE TUNNEL
UNTIL A SECTION IS UNDERMINED.
>> YOU PUT INFLAMMABLE MATERIAL AROUND THERE--STRAW AND OIL
AND OLIVE OIL AND FAT
AND ANYTHING THAT'S GONNA
MAKE A GOOD OLD BLAZE-- AND THEN YOU LIGHT IT
AND GET OUT QUICK.
>> narrator: THE PIT PROPS BURN
AWAY, AND UNDER ITS OWN WEIGHT, THE WALL BEGINS TO COLLAPSE.
>> YOU'VE CRACKED THE SHELL. >> narrator: THE TORTOSA CASTLE
WALLS WERE DESIGNED TO RESIST
THE ENEMY TUNNELERS.
THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE TOWERS SEEMS TO BE THE RANGE
OF A CROSSBOW.
>> THE SPACING ENABLED ARCHERS
TO COVER THE AREA BETWEEN. YOU'VE GOT A RELATIVELY LOW
OUTER WALL, A PROBABLY SLIGHTLY
HIGHER INNER WALL SO THE ARCHERS
AND WHAT HAVE YOU OVER THERE CAN SHOOT DOWN OVER THE OUTER WALL. >> narrator: BUT THERE WAS
A PROBLEM IN SHOOTING DOWN
FROM THE TOWERS AT TORTOSA.
MOST CROSSBOWS OF THE TIME WERE DESIGNED TO SHOOT HORIZONTALLY,
AND HERE, THE TEMPLARS
WOULD HAVE TO AIM DOWNWARDS.
>> YOU ARE CLEARLY GOING TO HAVE A PROBLEM RATHER LIKE...
THAT,
GIVING YOUR ARROWS
TO THE ENEMY BUT NOT QUITE IN THE WAY THAT YOU INTENDED.
>> narrator: SO AN INGENIOUS
DEVICE WAS ADDED.
>> IT HAS HERE A CLIP WHICH, ALTHOUGH IT DOESN'T HOLD THE
BOLT VERY STRONGLY, IT DOES HOLD
IT IN PLACE, AND YOU CAN VERY
CLEARLY SHOOT... AT ANY ANGLE YOU WISH.
YOU DON'T LOSE THE THING.
>> narrator: BUT BOWS AND ARROWS
WERE USELESS AGAINST THIS, THE ULTIMATE MEDIEVAL
WAR MACHINE.
IT'S CALLED A TREBUCHET.
THIS ENORMOUS CATAPULT, AT NEARLY 60 FEET TALL, IS THE
BIGGEST LIKE THIS IN THE WORLD.
SIX OAK TREES WERE USED
TO BUILD IT. >> PULL!
>> narrator: FOR THE TEMPLARS
INSIDE TORTOSA, THE SIGHT
OF A MACHINE LIKE THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN TERRIFYING.
SOON, 50-POUND STONE BALLS
WOULD BE RAINING DOWN
ON THE FORTIFICATION. IT WOULD BE DEVASTATING. WITH A RANGE OF UP TO
1/4 OF A MILE...
>> OKAY!
>> narrator: TREBUCHETS HAD THE POWER TO BREAK
THROUGH STONEWORK. DAVID NICOLLE HAS PIECED
TOGETHER CLUES TO REBUILD
THE TOWERS AND WALLS, ENGINEERED
TO WITHSTAND BOTH TREBUCHETS AND TUNNELERS.
IF THE ENEMY BREACHED THE OUTER
WALL BY TUNNELING,
THERE IS STILL AN INNER WALL TO BREAK THROUGH,
AND AT 20 FEET THICK,
THEY WERE ALMOST IMPREGNABLE. TORTOSA WAS THE GATEWAY
TO A STRING OF EQUALLY IMPOSING
FORTIFICATIONS PROTECTING
TERRITORY ACROSS THE HOLY LAND. AT THE HEART OF THE CHRISTIAN
KINGDOM WAS JERUSALEM, AND HERE,
THE TEMPLARS ADAPTED THE WORLD'S
MOST IMPORTANT RELIGIOUS SITE TO SUIT THEIR OWN PURPOSES. IN THE FIRST CRUSADE OF 1099,
CHRISTIANS SEIZED JERUSALEM
FROM MUSLIM RULE.
ON TEMPLE MOUNT STOOD THE MAGNIFICENT AL-AQSA MOSQUE,
BUILT IN THE 7TH CENTURY.
IN CHRISTIAN JERUSALEM, THIS WAS
TO SERVE AS THE HEADQUARTERS OF THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR.
IT MEANT THE TEMPLARS WERE NOW
LINKED WITH ONE OF THE MOST
IMPORTANT SITES IN CHRISTENDOM. >> THERE ARE ALL THE STORIES
FROM THE BIBLE
ASSOCIATED WITH THAT AREA.
THAT'S WHERE JESUS WAS SUPPOSED TO HAVE WALKED, WHERE HE'S
SUPPOSED TO HAVE DONE
HIS MIRACLE.
THE TEMPLARS WERE ASSOCIATED WITH ALL THESE EVENTS
IN THE BIBLE.
>> narrator: THE FORMER MOSQUE
WAS ADAPTED TO BECOME AN ADMINISTRATIVE CENTER. BENEATH IT, IN SUBTERRANEAN
VAULTS, THE WARRIOR MONKS
STABLED THEIR HORSES, READY
TO GO INTO BATTLE TO DEFEND JERUSALEM'S HOLY PLACES.
THE MAGNIFICENT ARCHES
OF THE STABLES WERE 30 FEET HIGH
AND COVERED AN AREA OF SOME 60,000 SQUARE FEET.
>> IN IT, THEY CAN HAVE
MAYBE 1,000 HORSES.
ONE WESTERN VISITOR SAYS THAT IF YOU FIRED A CROSSBOW BOLT,
THE BOLT WOULDN'T HAVE EVEN
REACHED THE END OF THE ROOM,
IT WAS THAT BIG. THIS IS THE PERFECT PLACE
FOR THE TEMPLARS
TO SET THEMSELVES UP.
>> narrator: THIS MILITARIZATION OF THE HOLIEST OF SITES EMBODIED
THE SPIRITUAL AND MILITARY ROLES
OF THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR.
THE DEFENSE OF THE CHRISTIAN EAST COST MANY LIVES.
AT THE FURTHEST REACH OF THEIR
NETWORK WAS A CHURCH WHERE
NEW RECRUITS WERE INDUCTED, BUT HERE, THE STRANGE RITUALS
OF THE TEMPLARS WERE SHROUDED
IN MYSTERY. >> narrator: IN THE HEART
OF THE CITY OF LONDON STANDS
THE ENGLISH HEADQUARTERS
OF THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR. TEMPLE CHURCH
WAS CONSECRATED IN 1185.
ITS STRUCTURES ECHOES
THE MOST IMPORTANT CHURCH IN THE CHRISTIAN WORLD:
THE HOLY SEPULCHER IN JERUSALEM. THE HOLY SEPULCHER IS BUILT ON
THE SITE WHERE MANY CHRISTIANS
BELIEVE JESUS WAS CRUCIFIED,
BURIED, AND ROSE FROM THE DEAD. AS WITH THE HOLY SEPULCHER,
THE NAVE OF TEMPLE CHURCH
IS CIRCULAR.
WITHIN THESE WALLS, A MYSTERIOUS RITUAL TOOK PLACE TO INDUCT NEW
MEMBERS INTO THE BROTHERHOOD.
ACROSS EUROPE, KNIGHTS WERE
RECEIVED INTO THE TEMPLARS AT A PHENOMENAL RATE.
THEY REPLACED MEN LOST IN BATTLE
DEFENDING THE KINGDOM
OF JERUSALEM. >> THERE ARE TIMES THE TEMPLARS
SUFFERED TERRIBLE CASUALTIES
IN BATTLE.
THERE'S ONE BATTLE IN 1244-- 348 TEMPLARS WENT IN;
312 WERE KILLED. >> narrator: NEW RECRUITS
WOULD ENTER THE TEMPLE
BY THE WEST DOOR,
WHICH WAS THEN LOCKED SHUT. THIS WAS A SECRET CEREMONY.
>> THE CEREMONY TOOK PLACE
AT DAWN, JUST AS THE SUN
WAS RISING, AS IF THEY WERE GOING INTO A NEW LIFE.
>> narrator: THE INITIATES
PASSED THROUGH THE CIRCULAR NAVE
AND BETWEEN THE GHOSTLY STATUES. THEN BEGAN A SOLEMN RITUAL.
THE NEW RECRUITS WOULD TAKE
MONASTIC VOWS OF POVERTY,
CHASTITY, AND OBEDIENCE. >> YOU'RE NOT ALLOWED TO KISS
WOMEN, NOT EVEN YOUR MOTHER
OR YOUR SISTER.
>> narrator: AS KNIGHTS, THESE MEN WOULD SUFFER ALL FOR GOD
AND BE SERVANTS
TO THE TEMPLARS FOREVER.
THE SECRECY OF THE CEREMONY PROVOKED RUMORS FROM THOSE
OUTSIDE THE BROTHERHOOD.
>> WE HEAR STRANGE THINGS
THAT WERE GOING ON. ONE KNIGHT SAYS THAT HE HAD TO
ACTUALLY KISS THE WHITE, SCABBY
BELLY OF ONE OF THE MASTERS.
HE RECOILED FROM THIS-- THIS TERRIBLE SIGHT.
THESE IS NONETHELESS A STRONG
SUSPICION THEIR INITIATION RITES
ARE RATHER SUSPECT. >> narrator: THE SECRET RITUALS
GOING ON INSIDE TEMPLE CHURCH
CONTRASTED WITH ITS HIGHLY
VISIBLE PRESENCE FROM THE OUTSIDE.
THE CHURCH WAS BUILT AS AN
ADVERTISEMENT FOR THEIR CAUSE,
THE KINGDOM OF JERUSALEM. SOON, THE GREAT AND THE GOOD
WERE BEQUEATHING THEIR MONEY
AND ESTATES TO THE TEMPLARS.
THESE STRANGE STATUES ON THE FLOOR OF THE NAVE
REPRESENT THE MOST GENEROUS
DONORS TO THE TEMPLAR CAUSE.
>> ALL THESE PEOPLE WOULD BE VERY RICH LANDOWNERS IN ENGLAND,
SO THESE REPRESENT THE CREAM OF
ENGLISH CHIVALRY OF THE PERIOD.
>> narrator: BY BESTOWING VAST SUMS OF MONEY TO THE TEMPLARS,
THE DONORS WERE ASSURED
OF GLORY IN THE EYES OF GOD.
THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR BECAME, BY TODAY'S STANDARDS,
A MULTIBILLION DOLLAR
MULTINATIONAL ORGANIZATION.
>> WITH THE WEALTH AND THE LANDS THEY ACQUIRED, THE TEMPLARS
BECAME INSTITUTIONALLY
FANTASTICALLY RICH.
THEY HAD OFFICES, IF YOU LIKE, WITH THEIR REPRESENTATIVES
ALL OVER CHRISTENDOM.
THEY WERE ALSO TRUSTED.
MEN GOING AWAY ON CRUSADE WOULD GIVE THEM THEIR WEALTH
TO LOOK AFTER.
>> narrator: THE TEMPLARS
OPERATED AN INTERNATIONAL BANKING SYSTEM.
PILGRIMS COULD DEPOSIT MONEY
IN EUROPE AND WITHDRAW FUNDS
ONCE THEY REACHED THE HOLY LAND. IT REDUCED THE RISK OF ROBBERY
ON THE ROAD.
>> THE TEMPLARS ARE THE FIRST
INTERNATIONAL BANKING ORGANIZATION. >> narrator: THE CITY OF TORTOSA
WAS NOT ONLY AN IMPORTANT
TEMPLAR HEADQUARTERS.
ITS COASTAL LOCATION PROVIDED A VITAL SHIPPING LINK
WITH THE WEST.
DAVID NICOLLE HAS LOCATED THE
PORT BY THE CASTLE WALLS WHERE THE TEMPLAR SHIPS WOULD DOCK.
>> MEN AND GOODS, HORSES, FOOD
AND SUPPLIES--PRACTICALLY
EVERYTHING IS BROUGHT IN BY SEA, AND THEN COMMUNICATIONS,
MESSENGERS, REPORTS GOING BACK
TO THE TEMPLAR HEADQUARTERS,
KEEP EVERYBODY INFORMED TO WHAT'S GOING ON IN THIS PART
OF THE WORLD.
>> narrator: NOW WE CAN RECREATE
HOW THE PORT AT TORTOSA WOULD HAVE BEEN AT THE TIME
OF THE TEMPLARS.
800 YEARS AGO, THE SEA WOULD
HAVE LAPPED AGAINST THE CASTLE WALLS, ALLOWING MEN AND GOODS
TO BE OFF-LOADED INTO THE CITY.
THESE WALLS ENCLOSED AN AREA
NOW PACKED WITH MODERN HOMES. THEY MASK WHAT WERE ONCE
MAGNIFICENT MEDIEVAL BUILDINGS.
CONTEMPORARY SOURCES TELL US
THE WEALTHY TEMPLARS BUILT AN IMPRESSIVE GREAT HALL HERE,
AND IT'S HERE THAT BATTLE PLANS
AND TACTICS WOULD HAVE BEEN
DRAWN UP AS THE TEMPLARS DEFENDED THE SURROUNDING
TERRITORY.
PAUL CRAWFORD IS SEARCHING FOR
REMAINS OF THE TEMPLAR BUILDING CANNIBALIZED IN THIS ROW
OF HOUSES.
>> BE REALLY NICE TO SEE
WHAT'S IN THERE BEHIND SOMEBODY'S HOUSE NOW. [knocking at door]
>> [speaking native language]
>> MAY I COME IN?
MAY I COME IN? <i>SHUKRAN, SHUKRAN.
SHUKRAN.</i> AND IN HERE,
LET'S SEE IF WE CAN GO UP.
THEY'VE BUILT THEIR HOUSES
OUT OF BITS OF THE GREAT HALL ITSELF. OH, MY, LOOK AT THIS.
THIS IS FANTASTIC.
PEOPLE ARE LIVING UP AGAINST THE
WALLS OF THE GREAT HALL HERE. >> narrator: UP IN THE VAULTS
IS EVIDENCE OF THE GOTHIC STYLE
OF ARCHITECTURE
THAT THE TEMPLARS FAVORED. THE TEMPLARS BUILT THE VAULTED
ARCHES OF THE GREAT HALL
FROM WEDGE-SHAPED STONES.
A KEYSTONE AT THE CENTER WAS HELD IN PLACE BY THE PRESSURE
OF NEIGHBORING PIECES.
THE KEYSTONE IS THE SUPPORTING
ELEMENT FOR A STRUCTURE LIKE THIS.
WITHOUT IT, THE ARCH
WOULD COLLAPSE. THE WEIGHT IS DIRECTED TO STRONG
SPRINGING POINTS AT THE BASE
OF THE ARCHES.
>> IF WE FOLLOW THE LINES OF THIS VAULT DOWN, WE SHOULD BE
ABLE TO FIND THE SPRINGING POINT
SOMEWHERE, AND IT SHOULD BE,
LET'S SEE, RIGHT ABOUT IN HERE. HMM, LETS GIVE THIS A TRY.
THE WASHROOM AND--
OH, LOOK AT THAT.
LOOK THERE. DECORATED--OH, THAT'S ORNAMENT--
THAT'S BEAUTIFUL.
LOOK AT THAT.
IMAGINE YOURSELF BELOW THAT MAYBE 18 FEET,
LOOKING UP AT IT.
OH.
THAT'S AMAZING. >> narrator: WE CAN NOW REVEAL
THE MAGNIFICENCE
OF THE GREAT HALL.
EIGHT CENTURIES AGO, IT WOULD HAVE BEEN BUSTLING WITH ACTIVITY
AS THE TEMPLARS PLOTTED AGAINST
THE GREAT MUSLIM LEADER SALADIN.
>> ON THE FLOOR, PERHAPS LONG TABLES, KNIGHTS SITTING ALONG
THEM PLANNING, DOING STRATEGY.
IMAGINE, IN 1188, THEY'RE
SITTING THERE TALKING, AND A SCOUT COMES IN, SAYING,
"SALADIN'S ON THE WAY; SALADIN'S
ON THE WAY," AND THEY ALL JUMP
UP AND RUN TO THEIR STATIONS. >> narrator: THE WARRIOR MONKS
WOULD SEIZE THEIR WEAPONS
AND FIGHT TO THE DEATH TO DEFEND
TORTOSA FROM THE ENEMY. BUT TO THE TEMPLARS,
JUST AS IMPORTANT AS FIGHTING
WAS PRAYER,
SO BURIED SOMEWHERE WITHIN THE CASTLE WALLS THERE MUST BE
THE REMAINS OF A CHAPEL.
PAUL CRAWFORD IS HOPING
TO FIND THEM. >> AH, WE'VE GOT IT.
LOOK UP THERE.
IT'S AMAZING TO WALK INTO THIS
THING--DISCOVER IT TUCKED AWAY IN A LITTLE CORNER OF TARTUS,
NOBODY HAVING USED IT
FOR HUNDREDS OF YEARS.
IT'S AN AMAZING THING. IT'S WONDERFUL.
>> narrator: REMARKABLY,
THE TEMPLAR CHAPEL
IS STILL BEING USED AS A HOME.
>> PEOPLE WITH THEIR HOUSES
BUILT INTO IT,
BUT THEY'VE ALL JUST BEEN ADDED IN SORT OF LIKE WASPS' NESTS
INSIDE AN ABANDONED BARN.
>> narrator: THESE BUILDINGS
MASK THE SCALE OF THE CHAPEL, AND CENTURIES OF DEBRIS
HAVE RAISED THE FLOOR LEVEL
BY 15 FEET, AS THE POSITION
OF THESE WINDOWS SHOWS. WE CAN NOW REVEAL THE ONCE
MAGNIFICENT TEMPLAR CHAPEL.
THE SPACE WOULD HAVE BEEN
MASSIVE--80 FEET LONG, 30 FEET WIDE, AND 50 FEET TALL.
THE SCALE AND SPLENDOR
OF THE BUILDING
IS AN INDICATION OF THE CRUCIAL IMPORTANCE OF PRAYER
TO THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR. AT THE NUCLEUS OF THE CASTLE
WAS THE KEEP.
THIS STRONG STONE TOWER
WOULD HAVE BEEN THE MILITARY NERVE CENTER OF THE CASTLE.
IT DOMINATED THE ENTIRE CITY.
TODAY, THE KEEP HAS BEEN
OBSCURED BY OVER 800 YEARS OF CONFLICT AND CHANGE.
MILITARY HISTORIAN DAVID NICOLLE
BELIEVES HE HAS LOCATED REMAINS
OF THE TOWER, BUT WHAT LIES INSIDE HAS
REMAINED HIDDEN FOR CENTURIES.
HE IS ABOUT TO INVESTIGATE.
>> THIS IS THE ACTUAL CENTER OF THE OLD TOWER.
THIS IS QUITE DIFFICULT
TO GET THROUGH.
IT HAS NOT BEEN CLEARED AT ALL, AND I DON'T THINK THIS
HAS BEEN USED FOR CENTURIES.
AH, THERE'S A DOOR.
>> narrator: DAVID HAS STUMBLED UPON THE INNER SANCTUM
OF THE KEEP.
IF THE CITY WAS ATTACKED, THIS
WOULD BE THE FINAL STRONGHOLD THE TEMPLARS COULD RETREAT TO.
HERE MAY BE CLUES AS TO HOW
THEY SURVIVED DURING A SIEGE.
>> JUDGING BY THE SOUND OF IT, IT'S FULL OF WATER,
WHICH IS A BIT SCARY.
IT ECHOES, AND THERE'S STEPS
LEADING DOWN INTO THE WATER. THIS IS CREEPY. >> narrator: THIS IS A STUNNING
FIND--A CISTERN, STILL STOCKED
WITH WATER CENTURIES AFTER
THE TEMPLARS LEFT. >> HOW DEEP'S THAT WATER?
[water splashes]
DEEP ENOUGH.
I DON'T WANT TO GO IN THERE. [indistinct shouting]
>> narrator: DURING A SIEGE, THE
KNIGHTS COULD HAVE BEEN TRAPPED
WITHIN THE KEEP FOR WEEKS. THE CISTERN WOULD BE
AN ESSENTIAL SUPPLY OF WATER.
NEXT DOOR IS ANOTHER CHAMBER. EVEN IN THE DEPTHS OF THE KEEP,
THE QUALITY OF THE CONSTRUCTION
IS OUTSTANDING.
>> BEAUTIFULLY MADE. I MEAN, LOOK AT THAT WINDOW.
I THINK YOU'D HAVE BEEN
PROUD TO FIND THAT IN YOUR LOCAL
PARISH CHURCH. >> narrator: THIS WAS
THE WEAPONS STORE.
AT THE TOP OF THE VAULT,
THERE IS A SMALL ACCESS HOLE. A SECRET TRAPDOOR WOULD HAVE
PROVIDED THE TEMPLARS WITH
A SUPPLY OF SWORDS, SHIELDS,
AND CROSSBOWS. THE CISTERN AND THE WEAPONS
STORE CONTAINED IN THE 60-FOOT
SQUARE KEEP REPRESENTED
THE LAST LINE OF DEFENSE FOR THE TEMPLARS.
IN 1188, THEIR GREAT ENEMY,
SALADIN, ATTACKED TORTOSA.
THE CITY AND WALLS FELL, BUT THE KEEP, WITH ITS
15-FOOT-THICK WALLS, HELD OUT.
IT WAS A TESTAMENT
TO ITS CONSTRUCTION AND DESIGN. NOW, FOR THE FIRST TIME,
THE TEAM OF HISTORIANS
HAS REDISCOVERED THE LONG LOST
TEMPLAR CITY OF TORTOSA AND BROUGHT IT BACK TO LIFE.
>> THROUGH REDISCOVERING
TEMPLAR TORTOSA, WITH THE CASTLE
AND THE CHAPEL SO CLOSE TO ONE ANOTHER, WE CAN SEE
THE DUAL ROLE OF THE WARRIOR
AND THE MONK ENCAPSULATED.
>> narrator: FROM TORTOSA, POWER RADIATED OUT TO A NETWORK
OF CASTLES AND CHRISTIAN CITIES
ACROSS THE HOLY LAND,
BUT THE LYNCHPIN OF THE NETWORK IS NOT A CASTLE
BUT A UNIQUE FORTIFIED CHURCH.
WITHIN THIS BUILDING,
THE TEMPLARS WOULD HAVE TAKEN PART IN A SINISTER RITUAL:
VENERATING RELICS,
THE BODY PARTS OF SAINTS. >> narrator: FROM THE PORT
OF TORTOSA, THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR
RADIATED THEIR POWER AND WEALTH
ACROSS THE HOLY LAND. JUST 25 MILES FROM TORTOSA
IS CHASTEL BLANC.
IT'S OUT IN THE FRONTIER LAND
OF THE CHRISTIAN KINGDOM. TODAY, ALL THAT REMAINS
IS A SOLITARY STONE TOWER
ON A HILL THAT DOMINATES
THE MODERN TOWN OF SAFITA. CHASTEL BLANC TOWERS 100 FEET
OVER THE HIGHEST PEAK
IN THE REGION,
BUT THIS IS A VERY SPECIAL AND UNIQUE BUILDING.
IT IS A FORTIFIED CHURCH. IT IS THE TEMPLAR IDEAL
SET IN STONE:
THE CHRISTIAN FAITH
DEFENDED BY MILITARY MIGHT. >> THE FUSION OF THE WARRIOR
CALLING AND THE RELIGIOUS
CALLING, BECAUSE THIS
IS A RELIGIOUS BUILDING. IT'S A CHURCH,
BUT IT'S A CHAPEL
WITH ARROW SLITS INSTEAD OF
STAINED GLASS WINDOWS. >> narrator: HIDDEN WITHIN
THE 15-FOOT-THICK WALLS
OF THE FORTIFIED CHURCH
IS A SECRET STAIRCASE. IT LEADS TO THE ROOF.
PAUL CRAWFORD IS EXPLORING
THE FORTIFICATION TO DETERMINE
WHY CHASTEL BLANC WAS CONSTRUCTED ON THIS SITE.
>> I CAN SEE WHY THE TEMPLARS
PUT A NETWORK OF CASTLES
HERE ON THIS SPOT. THIS ISN'T DRY, DEAD DESERT.
THIS ISN'T HEAPS OF GRAVEL.
ITS ORCHARDS, OLIVE TREES,
ORANGE TREES, LEMON TREES. LOOK AT THE RICHNESS AND THE
BEAUTY OF THIS COUNTRYSIDE.
IT'S NOT ONLY APPEALING
TO THE EYE. IT'S APPEALING
TO THE POCKETBOOK.
ITS ECONOMICALLY, FINANCIALLY
VALUABLE TERRITORY. >> narrator: FROM HERE,
THERE ARE SIGHT LINES TO ALL
THE NEARBY FORTIFICATIONS,
PUTTING CHASTEL BLANC AT THE CENTER OF AN IMPREGNABLE
WEB OF DEFENSES.
>> IT FORMS A LINCHPIN
OF A NETWORK OF CASTLES THAT HOLDS THIS RICH, BEAUTIFUL,
FERTILE, VALUABLE LAND IN PLACE
AND DEFENDS IT.
>> narrator: CHASTEL BLANC IS A BEAUTIFULLY COMPACT DESIGN WITH
A CHAPEL ON THE LOWER LEVEL.
IT HAS A DORMITORY ABOVE.
CUT INTO THE ROCK BELOW IS A WATER CISTERN.
BUT TO THE MEDIEVAL BUILDER,
CONSTRUCTING A FORTIFICATION
HIGH ON THIS HILL REPRESENTED A MAJOR ENGINEERING CHALLENGE.
>> A CASTLE LIKE THIS IS
INCREDIBLY EXPENSIVE TO CREATE.
LOOK AT THE DEPTH OF THE WALLS, THE SIZE OF THE BLOCKS.
LOOK AT HOW CAREFULLY
THEY'RE PUT TOGETHER.
HISTORIAN DAVID NICOLLE HAS STUDIED HOW THE TEMPLARS MOVED
THE GIGANTIC, 2,000-POUND STONES
TO CONSTRUCT THEIR CASTLES.
>> THEY USED TIMBER CRANES AND PULLEY SYSTEMS.
IT WAS VERY, VERY SOPHISTICATED.
IN A SENSE, THEY HAD ALL
THE ENGINEERING THAT WE HAVE, THE ONLY DIFFERENCE BEING THAT
IT WAS MADE OF WOOD AND ROPES,
NOT FROM STEEL OR ANY OF THAT
KIND OF STUFF. >> narrator: AND INSTEAD
OF ELECTRIC OR DIESEL POWER,
THE TRACTION WAS PROVIDED
BY HUMANS OR ANIMALS. >> THERE'S A PERSON INSIDE
A WHEEL WHICH THEY WALK ALONG,
LIKE HAMSTERS IN A--IN A WHEEL
IN A CAGE, AND THAT IS CONVERTED INTO POWER, WHICH WILL THEN
PULL THE ROPES.
IT'S VERY, VERY EFFECTIVE.
>> narrator: AND IT'S NOT JUST THE SCALE OF THE ENGINEERING
THAT IS IMPRESSIVE.
IT'S THE QUALITY.
EVERY STONE IS ENGINEERED TO PERFECTION.
>> AND LOOK AT THIS.
THE BOTTOM OF THE ARROW SLIT
IS ANGLED SO WHEN YOU COME OVER HERE, YOU CAN LOOK, AND IF
THERE'S AN ENEMY OUT THERE, YOU
SHOOT YOUR LITTLE BOW AT HIM,
AND YOU CAN GET HIM BECAUSE OF THE ANGLE.
THERE'S NO BLIND SPOT
FOR HIM DOWN THERE.
>> narrator: FOR THE TEMPLARS, GUIDANCE IN BATTLE
CAME FROM GOD.
WITHIN THEIR FORTIFIED CHAPEL,
THE WARRIOR MONKS WOULD HAVE TAKEN PART IN RELIGIOUS RITUALS
VENERATING RELICS,
THE BODY PARTS OF SAINTS.
>> THERE'S ALWAYS BEEN THIS ELEMENT IN CHRISTIAN HISTORY
OF COMING CLOSE TO A HOLY
PERSON, BEING IN THEIR PRESENCE,
OR BEING ABLE TO TOUCH THEM. >> narrator: OFTEN, A RELIC
WOULD BE A FRAGMENT OF BONE OR
A PIECE OF A SAINT'S CLOTHING.
SOMETIMES, IT WOULD HAVE BEEN MORE GRUESOME,
LIKE A SEVERED HEAD. THE RELICS WERE SO IMPORTANT
TO THE TEMPLARS, THEY WERE
TAKEN INTO BATTLE TO PROVIDE
DIVINE GUIDANCE. BUT THE ULTIMATE RELICS WERE
THOSE OF JESUS CHRIST HIMSELF.
>> WE CAN'T HAVE RELICS OF OUR
LORD, 'CAUSE HE WAS ASCENDED INTO HEAVEN, AND SO WE'VE
LATCHED ONTO THE THINGS
WHICH WERE CLOSEST TO THEM,
AND FOR MANY, OF COURSE, THE CUP OF THE LAST SUPPER IS SOMETHING
WHICH IS VERY IMPORTANT.
>> narrator: THIS CUP, THE
HOLY GRAIL, HAS FOR CENTURIES BEEN THE SUBJECT OF MYTHOLOGY.
IT IS CLAIMED THE TEMPLARS,
IN THEIR SEARCH FOR RELICS,
UNEARTHED THE HOLY GRAIL AT TEMPLE MOUNT.
THIS BECAME THEIR MOST SACRED
POSSESSION, WHICH THEY GUARDED
WITH THEIR LIVES, BUT THERE IS LITTLE EVIDENCE
THAT THIS PERSISTENT LEGEND
IS TRUE.
>> THIS WAS THE INVENTION OF A 12TH-CENTURY
FRENCH ROMANCE WRITER
CALLED CHRETIEN DE TROYES.
THE TEMPLARS COULD NEVER HAVE HAD HOLD OF THIS--THIS THING
THAT GOES BACK--CENTURIES BACK--
TO THE TIME OF CHRIST.
>> IN THE MIDDLE AGES, THERE WERE PEOPLE WHO WE WOULD CALL
TODAY FANTASY WRITERS WHO
APPARENTLY THOUGHT THAT IT WOULD
BE REALLY COOL TO CONNECT THE IDEAS OF THE HOLY GRAIL
WITH THE IDEAS OF THE TEMPLARS.
>> narrator: IT SEEMS LINKING
THE MYSTERIOUS AND SECRETIVE TEMPLARS WITH THE GREATEST ICON
IN CHRISTENDOM WAS THE ULTIMATE
MEDIEVAL FANTASY.
>> WELL, TROUBLE IS, IT TAKES ON LIFE OF ITS OWN, GOES ON
AND ON, AND THEN PEOPLE START
TO BELIEVE IT, BUT IT'S FANTASY.
>> narrator: BY STRIPPING AWAY THE MODERN SETTLEMENTS, WE CAN
REVEAL CHASTEL BLANC AS THE
TEMPLARS WOULD HAVE KNOWN IT.
ON TOP OF THE STEEPLY SIDED HILL, PROTECTED BY DOUBLE
CONCENTRIC WALLS, THE FORTIFIED
CHURCH WAS FANTASTICALLY
DEFENDED. THIS CENTERPIECE OF THE NETWORK
LINKS THE HEADQUARTERS
AT TORTOSA TO THE REST
OF THE CHRISTIAN DEFENSES, BUT JUST 25 MILES AWAY
IS THE WORLD'S FINEST CASTLE,
KRAK DES CHEVALIER,
BUILT TO WITHSTAND THE MOST BRUTAL ATTACK. >> narrator: LAWRENCE OF ARABIA
DESCRIBED KRAK DES CHEVALIER AS
THE FINEST CASTLE IN THE WORLD. WITH OUTER WALLS 100 FEET THICK
AND SEVEN GUARD TOWERS 30 FEET
IN DIAMETER, THIS CASTLE
WAS VIRTUALLY IMPREGNABLE. THE FORTRESS WAS
CONSTRUCTED AND MANNED
BY THE HOSPITALERS, PARTNERS
AND RIVALS OF THE TEMPLARS. ITS LOCATION IS CRUCIAL.
IT DEFENDS THE MOST IMPORTANT
TRADE ROUTE IN THE REGION.
>> OVER THERE, YOU HAVE THE LONG VALLEY WITH THE MAIN ROAD.
IT'S A MAIN ROAD TODAY, AND
IT WAS A MAIN ROAD IN MEDIEVAL
TIME, LINKING THE COAST TO THE INLAND CITIES, WHICH,
IN THE CRUSADER PERIOD,
WERE THE CENTERS OF ISLAMIC
POWER, AND THE COAST WAS THE CENTER OF THE CRUSADER POWER.
>> narrator: THE HOSPITALERS
AND THE TEMPLARS JOINED FORCES
TO DEFEND THIS IMPORTANT TERRITORY.
THIS WAS A MASSIVE MILITARY
OPERATION, AND DAVID NICOLLE
IS ON A QUEST TO FIND OUT HOW THE KNIGHTS OPERATED.
HORSES WERE ESSENTIAL TO THE
HOLY WARRIORS, BUT STABLING THE
ANIMALS WAS A MAJOR UNDERTAKING. >> THE FIRST OF TWO STABLES.
THIS ONE IS THE SMALLER
OF THE TWO.
STILL PRETTY BIG. >> narrator: THESE MAGNIFICENT
VAULTED BUILDINGS COULD STABLE
UP TO 1,000 HORSES.
FROM HERE, THEY COULD BE OUT AND IN BATTLE IN MINUTES.
>> THEY ARE QUITE LITERALLY
CHOMPING AT THE BIT.
THEY'RE PROBABLY AS EAGER AS THE MEN WHO ARE GOING TO RIDE
THEM TO GET OUT THERE
AND GET INTO ACTION.
>> narrator: HORSES WERE ALSO ESSENTIAL TO TRANSPORT WEAPONS,
FOOD, AND MEN AROUND THE CASTLE.
THE DESIGNERS OF
KRAK DES CHEVALIER HAD TO FIND A WAY OF ALLOWING THE ANIMALS
TO MOVE AROUND THE STEEP
INCLINES OF THE FORTRESS.
THEY SOLVED THE PROBLEM BY CONSTRUCTING THE PASSAGES
AS LONG, SHALLOW STEPS
INSTEAD OF SLOPES.
>> BY HAVING THESE RELATIVELY SHALLOW STEPS, IT REDUCES
THE SLOPE, WHICH MAKES IT EASIER
FOR THE ANIMALS.
AND OF COURSE IT GETS WET. IT GETS SLIPPERY, AND IF YOU
GOT THAT MANY ANIMALS,
YOU'RE GONNA HAVE AN AWFUL LOT
OF ANIMAL DUNG. >> narrator: MOVING MEN
ABOUT THE CASTLE WAS
JUST AS IMPORTANT, ESPECIALLY
WHEN UNDER ATTACK. >> WE'RE DEEP INSIDE THIS
REALLY, REALLY THICK, SOLID
PIECE OF MASONRY.
>> narrator: THIS IS KNOWN AS A GALLERY WALL, A SECRET
PASSAGE WITHIN THE BROAD
FORTIFICATIONS, ALLOWING THE
KNIGHTS TO MOVE CLANDESTINELY AROUND THE CASTLE
IN TIMES OF ATTACK.
>> THEY'D LIKE TO KEEP IT
AS HIDDEN AS POSSIBLE FROM THE ENEMY.
IMAGINE YOURSELF
BEING UNDER ATTACK.
PEOPLE RACING BACKWARDS AND FORWARDS WITH NEW ARROWS
FOR THE CROSSBOW MEN OR BRINGING
WATER OR FOOD TO THEM
OR HELP TO THE INJURED, THERE'S GONNA BE A LOT OF ACTIVITY
GOING ON DURING A SIEGE. >> narrator: KNIGHTS WOULD BE
MANNING NOT ONLY THE ARROW
SLITS, BUT AN INGENIOUS PIECE
OF HIGH-TECH MEDIEVAL ENGINEERING KNOWN
AS MACHICOLATIONS.
MACHICOLATIONS PROTRUDE
FROM THE CASTLE WALLS. THEY ARE A CUNNING
ANTI-TUNNELING MEASURE.
>> IF YOU CAN GET ABOVE THEM
AND THEN DROP ROCKS OR INDEED ANYTHING NASTY ON TOP OF THEM--
BOILING WATER--
FORGET THE BOILING OIL.
THAT'S FAR, FAR TOO EXPENSIVE TO WASTE.
BUT I THINK SOME BOILING WATER
ON TOP OF THE ENEMY MINERS'
HEADS COULD BE QUITE EFFECTIVE. THAT'S PUT THEM OFF. >> narrator: BUT THE GREATEST
EXAMPLE OF MILITARY ENGINEERING
AT KRAK DES CHEVALIER
IS THE GREAT SLOPING WALL THAT SURROUNDS THE CENTRAL KEEP.
KNOWN AS A TALUS, IT PREVENTED
THE ENEMY UNDERMINING
THE TOWERS. >> THE IDEA BEING THAT IF YOU DO
GET PENETRATING INTO THAT,
IT ALL FALLS DOWN ON TOP OF YOU.
>> narrator: DESPITE THE WEB OF FORTIFICATIONS, BY 1187,
THE TIDE WAS TURNING
AGAINST THE TEMPLARS.
THEIR GREAT ENEMY, SALADIN, SWEPT THROUGH THE HOLY LAND,
GRABBING TOWN AFTER TOWN
FROM THE CHRISTIANS.
ULTIMATELY, HE CAPTURED JERUSALEM.
WITHIN MONTHS, HIS ARMY WAS
AT THE GATES OF TORTOSA, THE
TEMPLARS' MILITARY HEADQUARTERS. THE CITY FELL, BUT THE KNIGHTS
MANAGED TO SHELTER
WITHIN THE CASTLE.
THE TEMPLARS NEEDED TO REGROUP. THEY SET ABOUT REBUILDING
THEIR FORTIFICATIONS.
DAVID NICOLLE IS SEARCHING
FOR CLUES AS TO HOW THEY REINFORCED TORTOSA.
>> NOW, THIS DIAGONAL LINE HERE
IS A BEAUTIFUL CLUE.
I THINK YOU CAN SAY WITH REASONABLE CERTAINTY
THAT THAT MARKS THE LINE
OF THE TALUS THAT WENT AROUND
THE BASE OF THIS TOWER. >> narrator: THIS TALUS MEANT
TORTOSA WOULD NOW RESIST
AN ENEMY ATTEMPTING
TO UNDERMINE ITS WALLS. INSIDE, DAVID NICOLLE
MAKES ANOTHER DISCOVERY.
IT IS CLEAR THE INNER SECTION
OF THE KEEP, CONTAINING A WEAPONS STORE AND CISTERN,
IS SURROUNDED BY A LATER
FORTIFICATION.
>> WHAT THE TEMPLARS DO IS BUILD THIS EXTRA BIT ON THE OUTSIDE.
THEY STRENGTHEN AND GREATLY
ENLARGE THIS, AND ON THE OUTSIDE
OF THAT, THE SEA. THE WHOLE STRUCTURE IS NOW
VERY STRONG.
VERY STRONG INDEED.
>> narrator: DAVID'S FIND REVEALS HOW REINFORCEMENTS
WERE CONSTRUCTED AROUND
THE EXISTING KEEP AT TORTOSA.
THIS SECOND WALL CREATED A PASSAGE WHERE ARCHERS
COULD HIDE TO DEFEND
THE INNER FORTIFICATIONS.
IN COMBINATION WITH THE TALUS, THE KEEP WITHIN THE CASTLE
AT TORTOSA WAS NOW IMPREGNABLE. BUT DESPITE THE UNPARALLELED
FORTIFICATIONS, THE TEMPLARS
WERE UNABLE TO RESIST THE TIDE
OF THE MUSLIM FORCES WHO WANTED TO SWEEP THEM OUT
OF THE HOLY LAND.
BY THE END OF THE 13TH CENTURY,
EVERY TEMPLAR CASTLE HAD FALLEN EXCEPT TORTOSA,
BUT WITHOUT THEIR NETWORK
OF CASTLES, THE TEMPLARS
WERE DOOMED. REALIZING ALL WAS LOST,
THEY RETREATED TO A TINY ISLAND
LESS THAN A MILE FROM TORTOSA.
THEIR WEALTH, SECRECY, AND BRUTALITY WERE ABOUT
TO COME BACK TO HAUNT THEM. >> narrator: BY 1291,
THE TEMPLARS HAD FAILED IN THEIR
TASK TO DEFEND THE CHRISTIAN
TERRITORIES OF THE HOLY LAND. THEIR SEEMINGLY IMPREGNABLE
FORTRESSES HAD FALLEN.
THE TEMPLARS WERE PUSHED BACK
TO THE COAST TO TORTOSA, THE ONLY CASTLE THEY STILL HELD. BUT WITHOUT THEIR ONCE GREAT
NETWORK, THIS CASTLE TOO
WOULD SOON FALL.
THE TEMPLARS WERE LEFT WITH LITTLE CHOICE BUT TO ESCAPE.
>> TORTOSA BECAME POINTLESS,
IN A WAY, AND INDEFENSIBLE,
SO IN AUGUST OF 1291, THE TEMPLARS GOT ON THEIR BOATS
AND SAILED AWAY. >> narrator: THE TEMPLARS SAILED
TO THE ISLAND OF CYPRUS.
THIS WAS A SECURE BASE
WHERE THEY COULD REGROUP, READY TO LAUNCH AN ATTACK
ON THE MAINLAND TO RETAKE
TORTOSA AND THE CASTLE NETWORK. THEY ASSEMBLED A FLEET OF SHIPS
DESIGNED TO TRANSPORT
THE KNIGHTS TO THE MAINLAND.
HORSES WOULD BE ESSENTIAL TO THIS NEW ASSAULT,
AND THE TEMPLAR SHIPS
WERE DESIGNED TO TRANSPORT
UP TO 30 ANIMALS EACH, BUT THE JOURNEY BY SEA
FROM CYPRUS TO TORTOSA
IS OVER 100 MILES.
TRANSPORTING HORSES OVER THIS DISTANCE WOULD BE CHALLENGING.
>> HORSES GET SEASICK
JUST LIKE HUMANS DO.
UNLIKE HUMANS, HORSES CAN'T THROW UP,
AND THAT CAUSES A PROBLEM.
>> narrator: LAUNCHING AN ATTACK
WITH SICK HORSES WOULD BE DISASTROUS,
SO THE TEMPLARS NEEDED
A STAGING POINT FOR THE ANIMALS
TO RECOVER. LESS THAN A MILE
OFF THE COAST OF TORTOSA
IS THE ISLAND OF RUAD.
>> IF YOU HAVE RUAD, YOU CAN BRING THE HORSES BY TRANSPORT
AND TAKE THEM OFF, REST THEM UP
THEN PUT THEM BACK ON THE SHIP
AND TAKE THEM THE MILE OR SO OVER TO THE MAINLAND,
AND THEY WONT BE IN BAD SHAPE
WHEN THEY GET THERE.
>> narrator: IN 1300, THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR SET SAIL FOR
RUAD ISLAND WITH A HUGE GARRISON
OF 120 KNIGHTS AND 500 ARCHERS,
READY TO LAUNCH THE ATTACK. >> THE TEMPLARS CAME BACK HERE
IN FORCE, INTENDING TO USE IT AS
A BEACH HEAD TO RETAKE TORTOSA
AND THEN THE ENTIRE MAINLAND. >> narrator: THE ONLY TERRITORY
IN THE HOLY LAND NOW HELD
BY THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR WAS RUAD,
AN ISLAND LESS THAN 1/2 A MILE ACROSS.
>> IMAGINE HAVING HELD
ALL OF THAT--
THE COASTLINE THAT WE CAN SEE-- HAVING BEEN IN THE CITY
OF TORTOSA, THE CATHEDRAL,
KRAK DES CHEVALIERS,
CHASTEL ROUGE, CHASTEL BLANC, ALL THOSE GREAT STRUCTURES
IN THOSE NETWORKS OF CASTLES
ACROSS THE HINTERLAND--
AND HAVING LOST THEM ALL, HAVING BEEN REDUCED TO POSSESSING
AN ISLAND ONLY SLIGHTLY LARGER
THAN THE DIMENSIONS
OF THE CITY OF TORTOSA. >> narrator: BUT IN 1302,
THINGS WENT FROM BAD TO WORSE
FOR THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR.
A MUSLIM FORCE GOT WIND OF THEIR GARRISON ON RUAD
THREATENING THE MAINLAND.
THEY LAUNCHED
AN AMPHIBIOUS ATTACK. >> MADE CONTACT ON TWO POINTS
ON THE ISLAND, ATTACKED
THE TEMPLARS AND THEIR INFANTRY,
DROVE THE TEMPLARS BACK TO A CASTLE--A FORTRESS--
POSSIBLY THIS ONE, ON THIS END
OF THE ISLAND, AND SEPARATED
THEM FROM THEIR INFANTRY. AND THERE WAS FIERCE
HOUSE-TO-HOUSE FIGHTING
IN THE NARROW ALLEYWAYS
AND THE BUILDINGS THAT WERE ON THE ISLAND.
>> narrator: REALIZING THE GAME
WAS UP, THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR
SURRENDERED. THEIR LAST FOOTHOLD
HAD FALLEN TO THE ENEMY. THE ERA OF THE TEMPLARS
AS DEFENDERS OF THE HOLY LAND
WAS OVER.
BACK IN EUROPE, THEY WERE HELD TO ACCOUNT.
>> THEIR VOCATION WAS TO DEFEND
THE HOLY PLACES,
AND THEY'D FAILED. I MEAN, EVERYBODY'S POURED
ALL THIS MONEY IN OVER CENTURIES
NOW ON THE BASIS
THAT THEY WOULD GUARD THE CHRISTIAN PLACES.
IT HASN'T WORKED.
>> narrator: THE REPUTATION
OF THE ONCE GREAT TEMPLARS WAS NOW IN TATTERS.
ON FRIDAY, 13 OCTOBER, 1307,
THE KING OF FRANCE
ORDERED THEIR ARREST. >> HE ACCUSED THEM OF DENYING
CHRIST, SPITTING ON THE CROSS,
URINATING ON THE CROSS.
HE ACCUSED THEM OF HOMOSEXUAL PRACTICES.
HE ACCUSED THEM OF WORSHIPPING
IDOLS, OF WORSHIPPING HEADS. >> narrator: THEIR MYSTERIOUS
RITUALS WERE CHALLENGED.
IN PARTICULAR, THE SECRET
RECEPTION CEREMONY WHERE NEW KNIGHTS WERE SWORN
INTO THE BROTHERHOOD.
>> THERE WERE MUTTERINGS ABOUT
WHAT COULD POSSIBLY BE HAPPENING BEHIND THESE CLOSED DOORS.
"IF IT WAS A GOOD THING
LIKE THE TEMPLARS SAID,
AND HOLY AND HONEST, WHY CAN'T WE GO IN TO SEE?
THEY MUST BE UP TO SOMETHING
HORRIBLE AND OBSCENE IN THERE
THAT THEY WANT TO KEEP A SECRET. THERE'S NO SMOKE WITHOUT FIRE."
>> narrator: THE TEMPLARS
WERE INTERROGATED
UNDER BRUTAL TORTURE. >> THERE'S ONE RECORD
OF A TEMPLAR PRIEST
WHOSE FEET WERE HELD OVER
A FIRE, AND THE SOLES OF HIS FEET WERE BURNED
UNTIL A FEW DAYS LATER,
THE BONES FELL OUT.
THERE WERE OTHER TEMPLARS WHO WERE HUNG FROM THE CEILINGS
OF DUNGEONS AND HAD WEIGHTS
ATTACHED TO THEIR FEET OR EVEN
THEIR SENSITIVE PRIVATE PARTS AND THEN DROPPED.
>> narrator: THESE BROKEN MEN
CONFESSED TO EVERYTHING
FROM IDOL WORSHIP TO SODOMY. >> WE KNOW THAT TODAY YOU CAN
MAKE A MAN SUFFER ENOUGH THAT
YOU CAN MAKE HIM SAY ANYTHING,
AND THAT FACT ALONE MAKES HISTORIANS SUSPECT
THAT THE CHARGES AGAINST
THE TEMPLARS WERE NOT TRUE.
>> narrator: IN MARCH 1314, THE TEMPLARS WERE FOUND GUILTY
EN MASSE.
THE GRAND MASTER
WAS BURNED AT THE STAKE, AND THE KNIGHTS DISBANDED.
WHEN AN ORGANIZATION AS BIG,
GRAND, AND POWERFUL AS THIS ONE
FALLS, CONSPIRACY THEORIES WILL INEVITABLY DEVELOP. THE MOST ENDURING MYTH
IS THAT OF THE HOLY GRAIL AND
THE TEMPLARS QUEST TO FIND IT.
IT HAS GRIPPED WESTERN IMAGINATION MORE
THAN ANY OTHER LEGEND.
>> IN THE TRIAL PROCEEDINGS,
IN THE INTERROGATIONS, THIS THING ISN'T MENTIONED.
IF THE TEMPLARS HAD HAD IT
IN THEIR POSSESSION,
THIS WOULD HAVE COME TO LIGHT IN THE TRIAL PROCEEDINGS.
IT'S NOT MENTIONED AT ALL.
>> narrator: THE DESTRUCTION
OF THEIR RECORDS IN THE 16TH CENTURY BY TURKISH INVADERS
MEANS THERE WILL ALWAYS
BE AN AIR OF MYSTERY
ABOUT THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR. >> THE TEMPLAR'S OBSESSION
WITH SECRECY AND THEIR INTEREST
IN RELICS AND ARCANE RITUALS
MEANS THAT IN MANY RESPECTS, THEY'RE THEIR OWN WORST ENEMY.
THEY GO FROM THE HEROES
OF CHRISTENDOM, AND THEY FALL,
AND THEY'RE THE BAD GUYS. >> narrator: TODAY, EVERYONE
KNOWS THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR
FOR THE MYSTIQUE THAT SURROUNDS
THEM, BUT THEIR BUILDINGS DEFENDED THE HOLY LAND
FOR ALMOST 200 YEARS.
NOW THEY'RE SLOWLY CRUMBLING
INTO THE LANDSCAPE, AND SO IT SEEMS THE MYTHICAL
STATUS OF THE TEMPLARS
WILL OUTLIVE THEIR LOST WORLD.
