HUGH DE PAYENS — THE FIRST MASTER OF THE TEMPLE

Before the Knights Templar became one of the most famous military orders of the Middle Ages, they were only a small brotherhood of knights in Jerusalem. At the beginning of the 12th century, Hugh de Payens and his companions took an oath to protect pilgrims travelling through the Holy Land. Their small brotherhood received a place to live on the Temple Mount under King Baldwin II. From this beginning came the name that would become famous across medieval Europe — the Knights Templar. Hugh de Payens later travelled to the West seeking support and recognition for the new order. At the Council of Troyes in 1129, the Templars received a formal rule and recognition as a military religious order. This ballad tells the story of the *first Master of the Temple* — not the richest knight, not the most famous warrior, but the man who stood at the beginning. Nine knights. One oath. One brotherhood. And the beginning of the Knights Templar. *The Ballad Archives* presents the story of Hugh de Payens. #KnightsTemplar #Crusades #MedievalHistory