The Templar navy - the later years

It is probably no coincidence that the Templars developed their own fleet shortly after the Fourth Crusade (1202–1204), breaking the Italian monopoly. This was fortunate, since it coincided with the decline of naval power in the Islamic world. 

The Templar fleet: mistery and fact

In many a conspiracy Templar tale the Templar fleet plays an important role in saving the "Templar Treasure" at the time of the demise of the Templar Order. But how important was this fleet, and did it play a major role in history?

The Templars at sea

Originally there was no reason for the Knights of the Temple to invest in maritime activities in the Mediterranean area. The foundation of the Temple did indeed have as only goal the pacification of "the roads and ways of the kingdom of  Jerusalem".

The Templar navy - the early phase

During the twelfth century the Frankish navy seems never to have passed an embryonic stage, which compelled the kings of Jerusalem to constantly search for external alliances. There was no direct reason for the Templars to invest in maritime activities in the Mediterranean and Eastern Europe directly after the First Crusade. Their first objective was pacification of the roads of the kingdom of Jerusalem.