On Friday, October 13th, 1307, more than 600 members of the Knights Templar were arrested in France, which led to hundreds of deaths and the dissolution of the order. Friday the 13th has been considered unlucky ever since.
The Knights Templar were an armed religious order founded in the early 12th century to escort Christians from Europe to fight in the Holy Lands during the crusades. Their duties quickly came to include financial transactions and they developed a network of castles and banks by which travelers could access funds. The Templars were popular with Christians, and they worked closely with Knights Hospitallers who also guarded travelers and treated the wounded. The Templars left behind many mysterious geometrical fortresses and were also rumored to have confiscated holy relics in Jerusalem, including the Holy Grail.
King Phillip IV of France had terrible money problems throughout his reign. He often solved them by attacking money handlers, like the Lombards and the Jews, and confiscating their treasuries. By 1307, Phillip’s avarice had found the Templars, and he secretly coordinated the arrest of the Templar leaders and hundreds of knights and their associates. They were charged with heresy, fraud, devil worship, cat worship, homosexuality, navel kissing, and spitting on the cross. Many men confessed during their torture by fire or brutal stretching, which justified King Phillip’s accusations and helped quiet the protests of Pope Clement V. Afterall, who could easily forgive an admitted navel kisser?
Music Du Jour:
- The March of the Templars by Antti Martikainen
- Friday the 13th theme song
- Templar Chants Playlist
Films Du Jour:
- Knightfall series (2018)
- Kingdom of Heaven (2005)
- The Knights Templar series on History Vault (2006)
- Templars documentary series (2023)
- Friday the 13th collection
- Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)
Cocktail Du Jour – Black Cat Cocktail
Recipe from Colleen Graham.
- 1 oz cherry brandy
- 1 oz vodka
- 3 oz cranberry juice
- 3 oz cola
Fill highball glass with ice and pour the brandy and vodka over the ice. Add cranberry juice, then add cola. Garnish with a cherry.
Mocktail Du Jour – Black Cat Mocktail
- 1 oz grenadine
- 1 oz Abstinence Cape Citrus Alcohol Free Spirit
- 3 oz cranberry juice
- 3 oz cola
Fill highball glass with ice and pour the grenadine and Abstinence spirit over the ice. Add cranberry juice, then add cola. Garnish with a cherry.
Beer Du Jour
Wookey Brewing Co. has a Knights Templar Black IPA and Hereford Brewery has a Knight’s Templar Pale Ale. If you can’t find them, try a Kronenbourg, which is brewed in Paris where the Templars lived at the Temple Monastery.
Wine Du Jour
Ile-de-France wines are made in Paris where the Knights Templar lived at the Temple Monastery. If you can’t find a Parisian wine, try a Moselland Black Cat Riesling.
Use freshly squeezed citrus in your cocktails and mocktails when called for – It makes such a difference! Here’s a reliable and inexpensive juicer.
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purchases. Photo attribution: “Templar cross” by Guillaume Paumier is licensed under CC BY 2.0
