Free The Templars' Last Days by David Scott

most of his life? How could he betray his Lord? Yet he feared that if he did not, his mortal life would become a living hell. Was there not a way, even at this late stage, where a solution to appease both could not be found?
    Although he held the exalted title of Pope Clement V, he was after all only a human being betrayed as anyone else by our human frailties. He was by nature a placid and timid individual, conservative and cautious and always keen to avoid confrontation. He always knew that this decision of loyalty would have to be faced and made at some point, and our Holy Father had been tussling with this dilemma ever since the day of his election. Now he was venting all that emotion and frustration that had built up in him over the past years of anguish.
    I instinctively clasped my hands together in front of me, lowered my head, and asked our Lord for his mercy, strength and guidance to be given to our Holy Father in this his hour of need and tribulation. The others in the room joined with me in this silent and spontaneous prayer of support.
    Very slowly the Pope began to regain his composure and I would like to think that our silent prayer of support had been answered and He had given to our Holy Father the strength he needed to get through this trial. Taking a sip of water from the goblet in front of him, and clearing his throat, the Holy Father began to give his account of the meeting with William of Nogaret. The Lord’s hand was now seeming to provide him with both the strength and direction he had so desperately called for, as the Pope now began to speak with purpose and a quiet determination.
    Looking directly across the table at Giles, the Pope began to give a full account of his last meeting with William of Nogaret, together with the outcome; Even though the meeting had taken place in Lyon only a few days ago, he was sure that by now King Philip would have been fully briefed by William.
    The Pope confirmed that the meeting had ended with the resolutions very much as Giles had predicted. King Philip was still pressing for control over the Knight Templars and the Knights of St. John; however, the Pope still believed it was for all the wrong reasons. For he was still not convinced that King Philip IV held any interest in leading the Crusade to the Holy Land desired by both the Holy Orders and the Church, but instead that this proposed union was for the sole purpose of taking control of the Knight Templar treasure and estates. The King's interests remained purely selfish and only concerned with his desire for the expansion of France
    It was for these reasons that the Pope was adamant in his resolve that, whilst he remained in office, he would never allow any individual, never mind one who had been excommunicated for his crimes against the Church, to have in their possession the remains of Christ's earthly existence, which formed not only the heritage, but the very raison d'être of the Catholic Church.
    By now it was clear that our Holy Father had regained full control over his emotions, and he continued by explaining that during that meeting he had enquired of William as to why King Philip could not behave like every other King who had led the Crusades and who had happily allowed the Holy organisations to remain independent and to fight alongside each other. Together you have fought valiantly, shoulder to shoulder, he argued, and yes, whilst there have been the odd occasions when a certain unseemly competitiveness to outdo each other has occurred, these outbursts have never been to the detriment of the Crusade or the Church.
    This view was countered vigorously by William, who informed me that King Philip held a completely different stance. The King believes that as two independent organisations they have become too busy fighting each other, to be truly effective in offering any real assistance to him in his Crusade. However, by uniting the two Holy Orders with King Philip as the sole commander-in-chief of both the