Knight Templar: sword, dagger, piece of armor

In the XIIIᵉ century, some Temple houses were more than just chapels and barns. At South Witham, archaeologists have uncovered a complete water mill, complete with holding pond, nearly 45 m dike, reach, wooden wheel and sluice gates, linked to a series of fishponds for rearing fish. At Eagle Hall, the enclosure still retains control ponds and ditches, integrated into the farming operation. These structures are part of a widespread medieval practice: managing water to produce flour, store fish protein and secure rents, thanks to mill rights and the sale of fish. In short, the Knights Templar were also hydraulic engineers, inheriting and perfecting monastic know-how... efficient and discreet.

In January 1129, the Council of Troyes established the primitive Rule of the Temple, a Latin text appended to the minutes that organizes the common life, vows and discipline of a fraternity of repentant knights, more monastic than seigneurial. In the same intellectual vein, Bernard de Clairvaux composed his treatise De laude novae militiaegiving theological meaning to the "new militia". Ten years later, on March 29, 1139, the bull Omne datum optimum of Innocent II established the Order's legal status: direct protection by the Holy See, exemption from tithes, own chapels and burial grounds, Order priests, election of the Master reserved for the interior, prohibition on imposing an external superior. In practice, the Knights Templar no longer reported to bishops or local lords; they became a militia Christi operating on two registers, contemplative and military. This Council + Bull diptych founded the model for the religious-military orders of the XIIᵉ century.

At the heart of the Crusades, two military orders dominated: the Knights Templar, founded in 1129, and the Hospitallers, established in 1113. Although united by faith and combat, their relations oscillated between cooperation and rivalry.
On the battlefield, they fought side by side, as at the Battle of Montgisard in 1177, when the Hospitallers, led by Roger de Moulins, and the Templars joined forces to defeat Saladin. However, tensions arose, notably in 1179, requiring the intervention of Pope Alexander III to establish a truce between the two orders.
The rivalry culminated in the Battle of La Forbie in 1244, when a Christian coalition including Knights Templar and Hospitallers suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of Ayyubid forces. The defeat marked a turning point, permanently weakening the Christian presence in the Holy Land.
Despite their differences, the two orders shared a common destiny. Following the dissolution of the Knights Templar in 1312, their assets were transferred to the Hospitallers, reinforcing the latter's power.