Order of the Knights Templar

In 1095, Pope Urban II called on Christians in Clermont in the Auvergne region to take up arms in the fight against the barbarians called the Seljuk Turks. This is how the armies of the First Crusade were formed. After fierce battles in July 1099, the knights, with faith in God and at the request of the Church, finally liberated Jerusalem, the city of the longed-for “Kingdom of God”.

In 1103, the Templar Military Order was founded on the initiative of members of noble families. The Templars were officially recognized as a religious and military order at the Council of Troyes in 1129. The Order gradually became an important political and economic force in the world at that time.

After the fabricated trials brought by the French King Philip IV. Similarly in 1307, the Order was dissolved as an ecclesiastical order by the Pope in 1312. On March 18, 1314, the Vicemaster of the Order, Jacques de Molay, and the Preceptor of the Order, Geoffrey de Charney, were burned at the stake in Paris on the Île de la Cité.

For the next almost 400 years, the Order operated in secret in France, Italy and Ireland. On April 11, 1705, the Order was officially recognized again in France by Philippe II, Duke of Orleans under the name “Ordre du Temple”. The further development of the Order was influenced by the history of France and Napoleon. As a result of the development, the name of the Order was changed to “Ordre Souverain et Militaire du Temple de Jerusalem” in 1932. The Order’s headquarters are now in Italy and its 47th acting Grand Master is the reigning Prince Alberto Zampolli.
The year 1103 is the date of the foundation of the Order on the initiative of the noble men Ugo de Paganis and Goffredo of Sant’Aldemaro
The year 1118 is the date of the official registration of the order.
1314 is the year when the vemaster of the order, Jacques de Molay, and the preceptor of the order, Geoffrey de Charney, were burned at the stake.
1705 is the date when the Order was re-authorized in France (Versailles) by Philip II, Duke of Orleans
the year 1804 is the date of the next registration of the Order in France (Paris)
1932 is the date when the name of the Order changed from “Ordre du Temple” to “Ordre Souverain et Militaire du Temple de Jérusalem” in Belgium (Brussels)
2002 is the date of registration of the Order in Italy (Pagani)
2005 is the date of registration of the Order in Switzerland (Lugano)
The year 2011 is the date of establishment of the Preceptoriat of the Order for Central and Eastern Europe based in the Czech Republic and at the same time the date of minting the coins.