The Templars: The Secret History Revealed

With a Foreword by bestselling author Umberto Eco, The Templars chronicles the rise and fall of the organization against a sweeping backdrop of war, religious fervor, and the struggle for dominance,

Barbara Frale gives us an explosive, exhaustively researched history of the medieval world’s most powerful military order, the Templars. At its height, the Order of the Knights Templar rivaled the kingdoms of Europe in military might, economic power, and political influence. For 700 years, the tragic demise of this society of warrior-monks amid accusations of heresy has been plagued by controversy, in part because the transcript of their trial by the Inquisition—which held the key to the truth—had vanished. The table of contents includes:

1. Jerusalem, the Holy Sepulchre, and the Temple
2. An Order of Holy Warriors
3. The Templar Code of Honor
4. In Service to the Holy Land
5. Between a Rock and a Hard Place: The Papacy, Philip the Fair, and Jacques de Molay
6. On Trial

Historian Barbara Frale happened to be studying a document at the Vatican Secret Archives when she suddenly realized that it was none other than the long-lost transcript! It revealed that Pope Clement V had absolved the order of all charges of heresy. Let her finally lift the centuries-old cloak of mystery surrounding the world’s most intriguing secret society.

Barbara Frale is a historian on staff at the Vatican Secret Archives. An expert in ancient documents, the Templars, and the Crusades, Frale is the author of several books including The Last Battle of the Templars, The Papacy and the Trial of the Templars, and The Templars. She is also the author of the acclaimed The Templars: The Secret History Revealed. Frale earned her PhD at the University of Venice. She lives in Italy.