volume one

HISTORY OF THE CEIJSADES. 307
infidels,—the humanity and the bravery of the knights cf
St. John* were equally conspicuous. Whilst some grew old
in the offices of hospitality, others went forth to combat
with the enemies of their faith. After the example of these
pious knights, several men of gentle birth met near the place
where the temple of Solomon had stood, and took an oath to
protect and defend the pilgrims who repaired to Jerusalem.
Their union gave birth to the order of the Templars, which,
from its origin, was approved of by a council, and owed its
statutes to St. Bernard.
These two orders were governed by the same principle
that had given birth to the crusade, the union of the military
spirit with the religious spirit. E-etired from the world,
they had no other country but Jerusalem, no other family
but that of Jesus Christ. AYealth, evils, and dangers were
all in common amongst them ; one will, one spirit, directed
all their actions and aR their thoughts ; all were imited in
one house, which appeared to be inhabited but by one man.
They lived in great austerity, and the severer their discipline
became, the stronger appeared the bonds by which it enchained
their hearts and their wills. Arms formed their
only decoration ; precious ornaments were never seen in
their houses or churches ; but lances, bucklers, swords, and
standards taken from the infidels abounded. At the cry of
battle, says St. Bernard,t they armed themselves with faith
within and with steel without ; they feared neither the
number nor the fury of the barbarians, they were proud to
conquer, happy to die for Jesus Christ, and believed that
every victory came from Grod.
^Religion had sanctified the perils and the violences of war.
Every monastery of Palestine was a fortress, in which the
din of arms was mingled with the voice of prayer. Humble
cenobites sought glory in fight ; the canons, instituted by
Grodfrey to pray near the holy tomb, after the example of
* The history of the knights of St. John has been written in Italian by
Bosio, and translated into French by Boyssat. The history since written
by the Abbe de Vertot has caused all that preceded it to be forgotten.
The Templars, after their tragical end, had no historian of their exploits
in the Holy Land ;
M. Raynouard.
but they have in our days found a very eloquent one in
See Saint Bernard, Exhortatio ad Milites Templi.
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