On This Day In History: Papal Bull Issued To Arrest All Knights Templar And Seize Their Lands – On 22 Nov, 1307

On November 22, 1307, a Papal Bull, the so-called “Pastoralis Praeeminentiae” was issued by Pope Clement V to all Christian monarchs.

Monarchs of Christendom were given orders to arrest the Knights Templar and sequester their lands in the name of the papacy.

Clement was forced to support the campaign against the Templars by Philip IV of France, who owed them a great deal of money and had initiated the first arrests against the Templars on 13 October 1307

Despite the papal request, not all the monarchs complied immediately. Especially, Edward II of England was the first who refused to believe the allegations, but later carried out the order.

After him, there were many others who did not believe the charges against the Templars, eventually they began to make arrests in Germany, England, Italy, and other countries, including Cyprus.

Following the arrests, a period of trials was sanctioned against the Templars, enforced by torture and pain-induced confessions.

Essentially, “Pastoralis Praeeminentiae” was a death sentence for the Knight Templars.

Whether or not the authorities could get a confession was typically dependent on whether or not the Templars were tortured. Following the arrests, King Philip took control of the Templars’ banking system. He confiscated their wealth for himself and cancelled his own debts.