Cyprus
under The Knights Templars
The Knights
Templars formed one of the three great military orders of
knighthood, founded in the twelfth century to protect the
pilgrims who flocked to Jerusalem after the First Crusade. At
the head of the order was the Master of the Temple at Jerusalem
until 1291, when, on the fall of the Latin kingdom, the
headquarters of the order moved to Cyprus.
In 1128 the
rule of the order was sanctioned by the Council of Troyes. In a
few years, the order was established in almost every kingdom of
Latin Christendom, each establishment being richly endowed with
lands by kings and princes and with the gifts of grateful
pilgrims. Spiritual privileges were granted by the Popes. As
defenders of the Church, the Templars were exempted from payment
of tithes and gradually became free from the jurisdiction of the
diocesan bishops, owning spiritual allegiance to the Pope alone.
The result was that scarce twenty-five years after its
foundation the order was at open feud with the bishops and
clergy. But, protected by the Pope and endowed with great
wealth, the Position of the Templars was secure so long as the
crusading spirit lasted in Europe.
It was with the
support of the Templars that, on the death of Baldwin V, Sybilla
and Guy de Lusignan were crowned at Jerusalem, without the
knowledge or consent of the barons of the realm. The rule of the
Templars in Cyprus was marked by great severity and they quickly
incurred the hatred of the Cypriots by their harsh exactions. At
length, in despair at their treatment and seeing that Templars
were few in number, the islanders determined to attempt a
general massacre of the knights on Easter Day, 1192. The
Templars became aware of the plot and took refuge in their
stronghold at Nicosia, since they were too few to meet the
insurgents in the open. They offered to leave the island if
their lives were spared, but as this offer was rejected, they
determined to fight rather than to be starved into submission.
Sallying into
the streets at dawn, they took the Cypriots unawares and
slaughtered great numbers, sparing neither age nor sex. The
rebellion was crushed, but the Templars felt unable to hold
Cyprus by force and they therefore asked Richard to take back
their purchase. This he agreed to do, and the Templars retired
to Syria, retaining, however, some of their possessions in
Cyprus.
Meanwhile
Sybilla, the hereditary queen of Jerusalem, had died and the
opposition to the rule of Guy, her husband, increased. The
crusaders determined to elect a new king, and their choice fell
on Richard's nephew, Henri, count of Champagne, who with the
consent of his uncle, was elected king of Jerusalem. Guy de
Lusignan thus lost the crown of Jerusalem, but as he had
originally come from Richard's duchy of Aquitaine and had long
been a vassal of the English king, Richard offered him the
sovereignty of Cyprus in compensation for the loss of his
kingdom. It is uncertain, however, whether Cyprus was
transferred to him as a free gift or on the same terms as the
island had been sold to the Templars. It is probable that Guy
undertook the debt, but it is unlikely that he ever paid it.
Related Links
References
-
From:
Newman, P., (1940), "A Short History of Cyprus",
Longmans, Green & Co., London.
