July 10, 2017
Jones’s narrative history of the Order of the Poor Knights of the Temple (popularly known as the Templars) will have wide appeal among those who appreciate well-sourced history told in an easy, readable fashion. Jones (The Plantagenets), a journalist and historian of medieval and early modern Europe, draws on sources from across Europe and the Middle East to recount how a small group of crusaders formed what began as a charity-dependent protective detail for European pilgrims and Christian holy sites. Earning the patronage of powerful monastic Bernard of Clairvaux, the Templars rapidly became major players across two centuries of Christian Europe’s holy war against the Islamic world. In four thematic sections, the author tells a chronological tale of the Templars’ hardscrabble beginnings (ca. 1102–1144); their rise as military leaders (1144–1187); the consolidation of their economic, military, political, and social power (1189–1260); and finally their fall from grace (1260–1311) as their widespread influence threatened competing European and Christian political and religious authorities. A short epilogue touches on the lasting cultural influence of the Templars—an order, the author observes, that “always existed in two spheres, the real and the imaginary.” This is an engrossing examination of a period whose conflicts are still reverberating today.
April 15, 2017
An award-winning historian of the Middle Ages known for New York Times best sellers like The Plantagenets, Jones chronicles the Knights Templar, the order of holy warriors established in 1119 to protect Christian pilgrims to the Holy Land. They flourished for two centuries before being denounced as heretics and destroyed. With a six-city tour.
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September 1, 2017
An up-close look at the legendary band of Crusaders.Jones (Magna Carta: The Birth of Liberty, 2015, etc.) examines the storied Templars, an organization of quasi-monastic warriors who rose to fame and power in the midst of the Crusades, only to rapidly collapse in questionable scandals. The author realizes that the allure of the Templars, then and now, is related to their otherworldly ideal. "In a sense," he writes, "the Order had always existed in two spheres, the real and the imaginary." The Templars uniquely combined the rigid discipline of a monastic order with the seemingly secular profession of soldier. This unusual pairing, along with the epic backdrop of the Crusades, made them popular among their contemporaries and has kept them in the public imagination since. Starting in 1119 as a band of soldiers committed to protecting Christian pilgrims visiting the Holy Land, the Templars soon received the spiritual patronage of 12th-century divine Bernard of Clairvaux. Bernard wrote the "rule" by which the Templars were to live and work and advocated for them with the powers that be. The Templars would go on to achieve great fame and eventually become very wealthy landowners. Late in the century, the armies of Saladin would decimate them and reverse their achievements; however, the order would live on and rise to prominence again. Early in the 14th century, Templar leaders were, rightly or wrongly, accused of heresy and many were imprisoned or put to death, putting an end to the order and, most importantly, to its power. Jones provides a meaty, well-researched history replete with primary source quotes. Organized in four distinct parts, the narrative clearly lays out the story of the Templars and their changing fortunes. Though steeped in the facts of medieval history, the book presents as accessible to general readers. An exceptional introduction to the Templars.
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July 1, 2017
Jones (The Plantagenets; War of the Roses) brings his well-tuned narrative style to the subject of the Templars, who played a critical role in the Crusades from their beginnings in 1119 through the early 14th century, acting as knights and financiers, and whose castles dotted the Holy Land of Jerusalem. Jones divides the book into four parts: "Pilgrims," which discusses the order's founding; "Soldiers," covering campaigns in the Holy Land and in Spain; "Bankers," highlighting growing financial and landed interests; and "Heretics," detailing the Templars' dramatic end by arrest and inquisition in the early 1300s. Readers will discover important figures in Crusade history, including Richard the Lionheart, St. Bernard of Clairvaux, Saladin, the Baldwin dynasty, and many others. Critical events, including the Battle of Hattin (1187) and the capture of Acre (1191) are well detailed. The book reads well, but it is information rich; a general background of the Crusades is recommended. VERDICT Both seasoned medievalists and lay readers wanting a detailed account of the Crusades will find food for thought here. Highly relevant to current events. [See Prepub Alert, 3/27/17.]--Jeffrey Meyer, Mt. Pleasant P.L., IA
Copyright 2017 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.