June 1209 A.D. – Outremer – Guillame de Chartres

The thirteen men had spoken and chosen the next leader of the order. The newly elected Grand Master approached the small wooden box with a little trepidation. He knew the great Templar seal was contained within. What else was contained therein was a mystery to him. He unlocked the complex triple mechanism and lifted the lid. The seal was on top of a small pile of papers. Two knights on horse back on one side and the temple of the rock on the reverse. Guillame de Chartres picked it up carefully and laid it reverentially on the table beside the box. Then he turned his attention to the other contents.

The first item, although leather bound, looked extremely old and very fragile. Opening the book, he could see it was written in Greek. Not Guillame’s best language and again he laid it carefully on the table, on top of the great seal.

The next document was written in French. That was better. He started to read. It was a letter to all newly elected Grand Masters from their esteemed founder, Hugh de Payns. His brow furrowed as he read Hugh’s message from the past. As he read the Great Prophecy, he determined that during his leadership, the Templars would be ever ready to be able to play their part.

De Chartres thought back, through the history of the Order over the last century. From the most humble of beginnings the growth had been nothing but phenomenal. The Templars’ belief system emphasised at the time of initiation remained strong and secret. The Great Prophecy was so well concealed that even he, had no inkling that it had existed until he had read Hugh’s letter.

But something disturbed the freshly elected Grand Master. The debacle at Jerusalem, two decades ago had shown how easily the Templars could be removed from their worldly goods. What Guillame de Chartres wondered would happen if the Order continued, but their riches were taken from them? How would they be able to fulfil their destiny under the Prophecy? He was surprised that the Grand Masters who had followed Gerard de Ridefort had not sought to solve this problem.

And so Guillame came to a crucial decision. He would take steps, to ensure that the Prophecy could always be fulfilled. What was needed was a source of wealth, known only to the Order that could be securely stored. More than that, even the source of the wealth must remain secret. In that way, the Order could, even if forced to return to its initial state of poverty, retain its ability to act, if the time came.

Returning the papers and locking the box securely, de Chartres called from his chamber to the main room. He summoned his closest ally Peter. He knew he could not give the full details of the Prophecy to his friend, but he never the less, felt he could divulge sufficient information, to allow his fellow knight to assist him.

“Peter, my friend, please enter, I have the need of wise counsel.”

His fellow monk raised his eyebrow in inquiry, lowered himself into a chair and listened to the outline of the Grand Master’s idea.

The basic issue, as Guillame described it to Peter was that the loss of the Templars’ fortune in Jerusalem had been a disaster. This had greatly limited the Order’s capability, in the ensuing decades, to provide the necessary level of military support in Outremer.

Guillame argued that this fortune needed replacing. And the wealth needed to be acquired secretively. Outside the Order, no one should be aware of the size or nature of the hoard. Not even the King of Jerusalem, or the Pope in Rome. This would allow the Templars the flexibility to spend the money on their own projects. Without obtaining papal or royal approval. Guillame hoped that sympathetic nobles in the west might be persuaded by this argument.

The Master confided in Peter, that in his opinion, these resources were needed as a matter of urgency. To this end, Peter was to be charged with the task of travelling to each of the provincial Masters to solicit their assistance, and to come up with a plan.

Guillame had a further idea he wished to share with his closest confidant.

“In order to achieve our goal, we will require assistance in the west. Someone who may have to move against powerful opponents, at great risk. I would prefer a young man who would be loyal to me personally. On whom I could rely, should we weave a plan that will allow us success. I do not wish this recruit to be tainted by any previous allegiances to Rome, before his initiation. You have heard of the movement developing in France, the Cathars?”

Peter indicated that he had.

“They already share many of the beliefs that were revealed to our Order. A young knight from their community would be ideal.”

Guillame’s advisor found the recruitment of a young Cathar knight, far easier than the acquisition of a secret treasure hoard. Peter wrote to the Paris Temple immediately, requesting that their representatives in the Languedoc, in the South of France be alerted to the Grand Master’s requirement. Within six months he received word that a suitable young man had been identified and successfully inducted.

But it took Peter two years of careful planning, before he felt able to set out for the west in search of hidden riches. He had drawn up a comprehensive list of contacts. It included those who were members of the Order and influential noblemen who were known to have Templar sympathies.