Knights Templar History and Medieval Resources: Knights Templar Books

Umberto Eco used the Knights Templar history and lore in his novel Foucault's Pendulum. At least two quotes from this book are occasionally used to summarize the meaning of all things Templar in modern culture.

Ci sono anche i matti senza Templari, ma quelli coi Templari sono i più insidiosi.
There are lunatics who don't talk about the Templars, but those who do are the most insidious.

I Templari c'entrano sempre.
The Templars have something to do with everything.

Every once in a while a movie comes out that manages to demonstrate with perfect clarity how bad the original book was and then adds more levels of ridiculousness to the whole deal. NBC's "Last Templar" is such a movie. The first night of the mini-series was completely unnecessary. It did not establish anything that could not have been told in a few words. Sure enough, you can't have Templars without a Templar treasure. And there should be a document describing the whereabouts of the said treasure. Can we get to the point now? Well, apparently not without showing Mira Sorvino fight crime Amazon style!

My favorite thus far is the miraculous delivery of a small group of Templar Knights during a storm. They way they rise victoriously out of the sea, wearing their chainmail suits of armor weighing over 50 pounds... And don't forget the swords!

I wish it was possible to come up with a more believable name for the Turkish town. When I read the book it became immediately clear to me that the word "Fonsalis" probably has something to do with the Latin words FONS and SALIX. And yet it took an almost revelatory experience on Tess' part to figure this out. She is supposed to know Latin, you know.

Still I am waiting to see if the script writers managed to escape one little mistake that the author of the book made. I will have to wait until later today to find out...

Just a quick note. The much awaited book by Barbara Frale "The Templars: The Secret History Revealed" well, has been revealed... I haven't received it yet. Was the release of the book meant to capitalize on the interest in all things Templar when NBC shows its mini-series "The Last Templar" in late January?

The Templars: The Secret History Revealed

I have a growing collection of Templar related merchandise. Yet I find it silly for an adult to buy toy soldiers, no matter how well they are made. This exquisite set of bookends features Crusader knights in armor. There can hardly be a better way to highlight an area in your home library (should you have one) where you keep books on the Knights Templar, the Middle ages or history in general.



See also:
Bookends in home library design

Lambuth University has acquired a reproduction of the rare text Proceedings Against the Templars for display in the Luther L. Gobbel Library. An unveiling ceremony will take place at 4 p.m. today, according to a Lambuth press release.
...
On Monday, Lambuth will host an overview lecture about the Knights Templar at noon; "The Da Vinci Code" will be shown in the library at noon on April 1; Lambuth University Religion professors Gene Davenport and Cindy Wesley will debunk The Da Vinci Code and discuss myths of non-mainstream faiths in the library at noon on April 2.

Seriously? They will actually show "The Da Vinci Code" as a part of the festivities commemorating the purchase of a $9000 book published by the Vatican?

http://www.jacksonsun.com/apps/pbcs.dll ... 80309/1002

I have added another long document:
"Sketch of the History of the Knights Templar" by James Burnes
A fairly delightful read! I have excluded the later chapters of the book, not present in the first edition, where the author makes claims about the history of the order after its official disbandment.

I was convinced that the theme of the Knights Templar would die out for a few years after being exploited to the max just recently. Apparently, Dan Brown thinks otherwise:

The whole industry is impatient. Book sales are generally sluggish, and one explosive, high-profile title can jump-start sales across the board as customers pour into the stores and walk out with a bagful of titles. When Bertelsmann AG reports 2007 results in March, it will be the first time since 2002 that it didn't get a boost from "The Da Vinci Code."

Meanwhile, the nation's biggest retailers can barely restrain themselves. "We're constantly asking," says Bob Wietrak, vice president of merchandising at Barnes & Noble Inc.

So where is the new novel? It's a mystery worthy of the deepest secrets of the Knights Templar. Mr. Brown, holed up in New Hampshire, isn't saying. His agent, Heide Lange, isn't, either.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120122061077215305.html

Well, I bet anything that Brown has been looking at this old book:

"Geschichte des Tempelherrenordens, nach dem vorhandenen und mehreren bisher unbenutzten Quellen" by Wilbelm Ferdinand Wilcke.

It is a rather early publication (1826-27) that seems to be full of all sorts of speculations, some of which possible went unnoticed in the ensuing amateurish Templar lore-passing.