The Knight Templar (Crusades trilogy)
Encyclopedia
The Knight Templar is a series of books about the fictional character
of Arn Magnusson. The series is written by Swedish author and journalist Jan Guillou
.
After finishing the Coq Rouge series, Guillou wrote a trilogy about Arn Magnusson, a fictional Swedish character from the Middle Ages who was forced to become a Knight Templar
. The series is an account of the life of Arn, a person who becomes witness as well as catalyst to many important historical events, both in his homeland of Götaland
, Sweden
and in the crusader states
.
The trilogy, dubbed the Crusades trilogy, consists of the following books:
Guillou also wrote a follow-up novel, The Heritage of Arn
(2001). In Guillou's universe Birger Jarl
, the founder of Stockholm
, is fictionalized to be the grandson of Arn Magnusson.
Two films based on the books have been produced. The first film in the series, Arn – The Knight Templar
, premiered in the theaters of Sweden in Christmas 2007. Its plot loosely follows the first two volumes of the trilogy. The second film, Arn – The Kingdom at Road's End
, followed in 2008.
, Västergötland
in 1150. At the age of 5, he had an accident, and was believed to be saved thanks to his mother's prayers to Saint Bernard of Clairvaux
. Since the boy was saved, his parents decided that in reward for the miracle
, he was to be sent to a monastery
. He spent the next twelve years of his life in the monasteries Varnhem
in Sweden and Vitskøl in Denmark (Vitae Scholae in Latin).
He met brother Guilbert, a former Knight Templar
, who instructed him in the use of the sword and the art of medieval war
in the Holy Land
s. The Prior
of the convent, Father Henri, told Arn to witness for himself the outside world, and only after that he would be able to take the eternal vows of poverty, chastity and obedience
. Arn did so, but fell into the terrible sin
of having sexual intercourse
with Cecelia, who was also in the nunery. Cecelia got pregnant and told her sister Katarina about what happened between her and Arn. Katarina became jealous and told the Head Mother that not only did Cecelia have sex with Arn, but lied that Arn had had carnal knowledge before marriage with her as well. According to the laws of the church, it was a great sin to have sexual intercourse with two women who had the same mother. He was then condemmed to spend 20 years in the Holy Land, as a Knight Templar, and Cecelia was kept in the nunery and her boy child taken away from her.
At the age of 27, Arn is already a veteran
in the Crusader army, when he faces the strangest experience a Knight Templar can have. While pursuing a band of Saracen
thieves, he comes across the very enemy of all Christendom, Saladin
, and saves his life. This idea is apparently borrowed from The Talisman by Sir Walter Scott. After this, both become very close friends, but great enemies at the same time. After a series of unimportant battle
s, Saladin seizes the city
and fortress of Gaza
, where Arn served as commander
. Saladin spares Arn's life, while willing to get a bigger prize, the city of Jerusalem. Arn is given the order to march with all his knights, and they finally defeat Saladin's army at the Battle of Montgisard
. When Arnaud de Toroge
is named Grand Master of the Knights Templar, Arn is summoned to Jerusalem to become Master of the city.
In the Battle of Hattin
, Arn is severely wounded and spends several weeks at Saladin's hospital in Damascus
, after that he accompanies him to Jerusalem, which is conquered (1187). In the very end of the second book, Richard the Lionheart comes to Palestine
with an army of crusaders. He captures Acre
from Saladin, and when about to buy off 5,700 prisoners from the Christian, Saladin and Arn were horrified see Richard having them slaughtered, even the children "as the mamluk
s were riding, trying to save them, in tears." Arn then confides that Richard "only will be remembered as the slaughterer" and that he will never capture Jerusalem, thus confiding himself that he doesn't care if the city remains in Muslim hands. He embraces Saladin, and then starts traveling home to Sweden, where a state is about to be formed.
After returning to Sweden along with a group of people from the Holy Land (among them two Armenian
craftsmen, two Englishmen specializing in crossbows and longbows, glass workers, felt
makers, copper smiths and two learned Saracen physicians), Arn has great plans for his childhood home, Arnäs and the estate which was to be his before he was forced to the Holy Land, Forsvik. He explains his idea of "building for peace" by constructing a modern castle at Arnäs and to create a manufacturing centre at Forsvik.
Arn starts training several young men and boys to become knights (or at least a competent cavalry force) at Forsvik.
When he returns to his family they are at first overwhelmed with a joy that soon cools when he voices his desire to marry Cecilia Algotsdotter. His family wishes to use him for a political marriage, but due to the intrigues of Cecilia and her friend the queen they are married either way, earning them the enmity of Birger Brosa. After a little time they have a daughter together and Forsvik grows rapidly.
However his newfound luck is shattered when King Sverker II attempts to kill the sons of the late King Knut
. Commanding his force of cavalry, he defeats the king's soldiers at the Battle of Älgarås
. He also takes command at the Battle of Lena
and emerges victorious.
Two years later, when King Sverker returns to once again with a Danish army and Arn commands the forces of King Erik
at the Battle of Gestilren
. He takes a fatal wound while pushing forward to kill King Sverker, he succeeds in this and the battle is won. He dies a few days later, now aged 60, and is buried in Varnhem monastery.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
of Arn Magnusson. The series is written by Swedish author and journalist Jan Guillou
Jan Guillou
Jan Oskar Sverre Lucien Henri Guillou is a Swedish author and journalist. Among his books are a series of spy fiction novels about a spy named Carl Hamilton, and a trilogy of historical fiction novels about a Knight Templar, Arn Magnusson...
.
After finishing the Coq Rouge series, Guillou wrote a trilogy about Arn Magnusson, a fictional Swedish character from the Middle Ages who was forced to become a Knight Templar
Knights Templar
The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon , commonly known as the Knights Templar, the Order of the Temple or simply as Templars, were among the most famous of the Western Christian military orders...
. The series is an account of the life of Arn, a person who becomes witness as well as catalyst to many important historical events, both in his homeland of Götaland
Götaland
Götaland , Gothia, Gothland, Gothenland, Gautland or Geatland is one of three lands of Sweden and comprises provinces...
, Sweden
Consolidation of Sweden
The consolidation of Sweden was a long process during which the loosely organized social system consolidated under the power of the king. The actual age of the Swedish kingdom is unknown...
and in the crusader states
Crusader states
The Crusader states were a number of mostly 12th- and 13th-century feudal states created by Western European crusaders in Asia Minor, Greece and the Holy Land , and during the Northern Crusades in the eastern Baltic area...
.
The trilogy, dubbed the Crusades trilogy, consists of the following books:
- The Road to JerusalemThe Road to JerusalemThe Road to Jerusalem is the first book in Jan Guillou's The Knight Templar book series. The book follows the fictional character of Arn Magnusson from his birth and until he sets off to Jerusalem....
, originally Vägen till Jerusalem, (1998) - The Knight TemplarThe Knight TemplarThe Knight Templar is the second book in Jan Guillou's The Knight Templar book series. This book follows the fictional character of Arn Magnusson as a Knight Templar in the kingdom of Jerusalem...
, originally Tempelriddaren, (1999) - The Kingdom at the End of the RoadThe Kingdom at the End of the RoadThe Kingdom at the End of the Road is the third book in Jan Guillou's The Knight Templar book series. This book follows the fictional character of Arn Magnusson as he returns home to Sweden after 20 years as a Knight Templar....
(also called Birth of a Kingdom), originally Riket vid vägens slut, (2000)
Guillou also wrote a follow-up novel, The Heritage of Arn
The Heritage of Arn
The Heritage of Arn is a follow-up to The Knight Templar by Jan Guillou about Birger jarl, the founder of Stockholm - fictionalized to be Arn Magnusson's grandson....
(2001). In Guillou's universe Birger Jarl
Birger jarl
, or Birger Magnusson, was a Swedish statesman, Jarl of Sweden and a member of the House of Bjelbo, who played a pivotal role in the consolidation of Sweden. Birger also led the Second Swedish Crusade, which established Swedish rule in Finland. Additionally, he is traditionally attributed to have...
, the founder of Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, is fictionalized to be the grandson of Arn Magnusson.
Two films based on the books have been produced. The first film in the series, Arn – The Knight Templar
Arn – The Knight Templar
Arn – The Knight Templar is a 2007 epic film based on Jan Guillou's trilogy about the fictional Swedish Knight Templar Arn Magnusson. The film was released in December 2007 and the sequel, Arn – The Kingdom at Road's End , was released August 22, 2008...
, premiered in the theaters of Sweden in Christmas 2007. Its plot loosely follows the first two volumes of the trilogy. The second film, Arn – The Kingdom at Road's End
Arn – The Kingdom at Road's End
Arn – The Kingdom at Road's End is a 2008 epic film based on Jan Guillou's trilogy about the fictional Swedish Knights Templar Arn Magnusson...
, followed in 2008.
Arn Magnusson
Arn was born in ArnäsEarnaness
Earnanæs , Aranæs and Årnäs is the name of at least two locations, in what is today southern Sweden, which are known from history and legend...
, Västergötland
Västergötland
', English exonym: West Gothland, is one of the 25 traditional non-administrative provinces of Sweden , situated in the southwest of Sweden. In older English literature one may also encounter the Latinized version Westrogothia....
in 1150. At the age of 5, he had an accident, and was believed to be saved thanks to his mother's prayers to Saint Bernard of Clairvaux
Bernard of Clairvaux
Bernard of Clairvaux, O.Cist was a French abbot and the primary builder of the reforming Cistercian order.After the death of his mother, Bernard sought admission into the Cistercian order. Three years later, he was sent to found a new abbey at an isolated clearing in a glen known as the Val...
. Since the boy was saved, his parents decided that in reward for the miracle
Miracle
A miracle often denotes an event attributed to divine intervention. Alternatively, it may be an event attributed to a miracle worker, saint, or religious leader. A miracle is sometimes thought of as a perceptible interruption of the laws of nature. Others suggest that a god may work with the laws...
, he was to be sent to a monastery
Monastery
Monastery denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer as well as the domestic quarters and workplace of monastics, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in community or alone .Monasteries may vary greatly in size – a small dwelling accommodating only...
. He spent the next twelve years of his life in the monasteries Varnhem
Varnhem
Varnhem is a locality situated in Skara Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden with 718 inhabitants in 2005.Varnhem is the location of the oldest known stone church in Sweden outside of Scania, erected in the 1040s at the latest...
in Sweden and Vitskøl in Denmark (Vitae Scholae in Latin).
He met brother Guilbert, a former Knight Templar
Knights Templar
The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon , commonly known as the Knights Templar, the Order of the Temple or simply as Templars, were among the most famous of the Western Christian military orders...
, who instructed him in the use of the sword and the art of medieval war
Medieval warfare
Medieval warfare is the warfare of the Middle Ages. In Europe, technological, cultural, and social developments had forced a dramatic transformation in the character of warfare from antiquity, changing military tactics and the role of cavalry and artillery...
in the Holy Land
Holy Land
The Holy Land is a term which in Judaism refers to the Kingdom of Israel as defined in the Tanakh. For Jews, the Land's identifiction of being Holy is defined in Judaism by its differentiation from other lands by virtue of the practice of Judaism often possible only in the Land of Israel...
s. The Prior
Priory
A priory is a house of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. Priories may be houses of mendicant friars or religious sisters , or monasteries of monks or nuns .The Benedictines and their offshoots , the Premonstratensians, and the...
of the convent, Father Henri, told Arn to witness for himself the outside world, and only after that he would be able to take the eternal vows of poverty, chastity and obedience
Vow of obedience
The Vow of Obedience in Catholicism concerns one of the three counsels of perfection. It forms part of the vows that Christian monks and nuns must make to enter the consecrated life, whether as a member of a religious institute living in community or as consecrated hermit...
. Arn did so, but fell into the terrible sin
Sin
In religion, sin is the violation or deviation of an eternal divine law or standard. The term sin may also refer to the state of having committed such a violation. Christians believe the moral code of conduct is decreed by God In religion, sin (also called peccancy) is the violation or deviation...
of having sexual intercourse
Sexual intercourse
Sexual intercourse, also known as copulation or coitus, commonly refers to the act in which a male's penis enters a female's vagina for the purposes of sexual pleasure or reproduction. The entities may be of opposite sexes, or they may be hermaphroditic, as is the case with snails...
with Cecelia, who was also in the nunery. Cecelia got pregnant and told her sister Katarina about what happened between her and Arn. Katarina became jealous and told the Head Mother that not only did Cecelia have sex with Arn, but lied that Arn had had carnal knowledge before marriage with her as well. According to the laws of the church, it was a great sin to have sexual intercourse with two women who had the same mother. He was then condemmed to spend 20 years in the Holy Land, as a Knight Templar, and Cecelia was kept in the nunery and her boy child taken away from her.
At the age of 27, Arn is already a veteran
Veteran
A veteran is a person who has had long service or experience in a particular occupation or field; " A veteran of ..."...
in the Crusader army, when he faces the strangest experience a Knight Templar can have. While pursuing a band of Saracen
Saracen
Saracen was a term used by the ancient Romans to refer to a people who lived in desert areas in and around the Roman province of Arabia, and who were distinguished from Arabs. In Europe during the Middle Ages the term was expanded to include Arabs, and then all who professed the religion of Islam...
thieves, he comes across the very enemy of all Christendom, Saladin
Saladin
Ṣalāḥ ad-Dīn Yūsuf ibn Ayyūb , better known in the Western world as Saladin, was an Arabized Kurdish Muslim, who became the first Sultan of Egypt and Syria, and founded the Ayyubid dynasty. He led Muslim and Arab opposition to the Franks and other European Crusaders in the Levant...
, and saves his life. This idea is apparently borrowed from The Talisman by Sir Walter Scott. After this, both become very close friends, but great enemies at the same time. After a series of unimportant battle
Battle
Generally, a battle is a conceptual component in the hierarchy of combat in warfare between two or more armed forces, or combatants. In a battle, each combatant will seek to defeat the others, with defeat determined by the conditions of a military campaign...
s, Saladin seizes the city
City
A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.For example, in the U.S...
and fortress of Gaza
Gaza
Gaza , also referred to as Gaza City, is a Palestinian city in the Gaza Strip, with a population of about 450,000, making it the largest city in the Palestinian territories.Inhabited since at least the 15th century BC,...
, where Arn served as commander
Commander
Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...
. Saladin spares Arn's life, while willing to get a bigger prize, the city of Jerusalem. Arn is given the order to march with all his knights, and they finally defeat Saladin's army at the Battle of Montgisard
Battle of Montgisard
The Battle of Montgisard was fought between the Ayyubids and the Kingdom of Jerusalem on November 25, 1177. The 16 year old King Baldwin IV, seriously afflicted by leprosy, led an out-numbered Christian force against the army of Saladin...
. When Arnaud de Toroge
Arnaud de Toroge
Arnold of Torroja was a Catalan knight and the ninth Grand Master of the Knights Templar from 1181 until his death in 1184.- Personal life :...
is named Grand Master of the Knights Templar, Arn is summoned to Jerusalem to become Master of the city.
In the Battle of Hattin
Battle of Hattin
The Battle of Hattin took place on Saturday, July 4, 1187, between the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem and the forces of the Ayyubid dynasty....
, Arn is severely wounded and spends several weeks at Saladin's hospital in Damascus
Damascus
Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...
, after that he accompanies him to Jerusalem, which is conquered (1187). In the very end of the second book, Richard the Lionheart comes to Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
with an army of crusaders. He captures Acre
Acre, Israel
Acre , is a city in the Western Galilee region of northern Israel at the northern extremity of Haifa Bay. Acre is one of the oldest continuously inhabited sites in the country....
from Saladin, and when about to buy off 5,700 prisoners from the Christian, Saladin and Arn were horrified see Richard having them slaughtered, even the children "as the mamluk
Mamluk
A Mamluk was a soldier of slave origin, who were predominantly Cumans/Kipchaks The "mamluk phenomenon", as David Ayalon dubbed the creation of the specific warrior...
s were riding, trying to save them, in tears." Arn then confides that Richard "only will be remembered as the slaughterer" and that he will never capture Jerusalem, thus confiding himself that he doesn't care if the city remains in Muslim hands. He embraces Saladin, and then starts traveling home to Sweden, where a state is about to be formed.
After returning to Sweden along with a group of people from the Holy Land (among them two Armenian
Armenians
Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....
craftsmen, two Englishmen specializing in crossbows and longbows, glass workers, felt
Felt
Felt is a non-woven cloth that is produced by matting, condensing and pressing woollen fibres. While some types of felt are very soft, some are tough enough to form construction materials. Felt can be of any colour, and made into any shape or size....
makers, copper smiths and two learned Saracen physicians), Arn has great plans for his childhood home, Arnäs and the estate which was to be his before he was forced to the Holy Land, Forsvik. He explains his idea of "building for peace" by constructing a modern castle at Arnäs and to create a manufacturing centre at Forsvik.
Arn starts training several young men and boys to become knights (or at least a competent cavalry force) at Forsvik.
When he returns to his family they are at first overwhelmed with a joy that soon cools when he voices his desire to marry Cecilia Algotsdotter. His family wishes to use him for a political marriage, but due to the intrigues of Cecilia and her friend the queen they are married either way, earning them the enmity of Birger Brosa. After a little time they have a daughter together and Forsvik grows rapidly.
However his newfound luck is shattered when King Sverker II attempts to kill the sons of the late King Knut
Canute I of Sweden
Canute I, Swedish: Knut Eriksson , was king over all of Sweden from 1173 to 1195...
. Commanding his force of cavalry, he defeats the king's soldiers at the Battle of Älgarås
Battle of Älgarås
The Battle of Älgarås took place at the royal estate of Älgarås in northernmost Västergötland in November 1205 between the House of Sverker and the House of Erik fighting for the Swedish crown. The brothers Jon, Joar, Knut and Erik Knutsson were staying at the estate when the Sverker clan attacked...
. He also takes command at the Battle of Lena
Battle of Lena
The Battle of Lena occurred on January 31, 1208, and probably took place near Kungslena , which is located in the Tidaholm Municipality in Västergötland, Sweden....
and emerges victorious.
Two years later, when King Sverker returns to once again with a Danish army and Arn commands the forces of King Erik
Eric X of Sweden
Eric "X" of Sweden, Swedish: Erik Knutsson; Old Norse: Eiríkr Knútsson was the King of Sweden between 1208 and 1216. Also known as Eric the Survivor when he became King, he was the only remaining son of King Canute I of Sweden and his queen of an undetermined name, who probably was Cecilia...
at the Battle of Gestilren
Battle of Gestilren
The Battle of Gestilren took place on July 17, 1210. The battle was fought between the exiled King of Sweden Sverker and the ruling King Eric. Sverker had been beaten in the previous Battle of Lena, but had returned with new forces. Sverker was killed in the battle...
. He takes a fatal wound while pushing forward to kill King Sverker, he succeeds in this and the battle is won. He dies a few days later, now aged 60, and is buried in Varnhem monastery.
Translations
The Knight Templar trilogy is translated to following languages:- Bulgarian (Рицaрят тaмплиeр: "Пътят към Йeрусaлим", "Рицaр нa Хрaмa", "Крaлствo в крaя нa пътя")
- Catalan (Trilogia de les Croades: El camí de Jerusalem, El cavaller del Temple and El retorn a casa)
- Croatian (Put u Jeruzalem, Vitez Templar, Kraljevstvo na kraju puta)
- Czech (Cesta do Jeruzaléma, Templářský rytíř, Království na konci cesty).
- Danish (Historien om Arn: Vejen til Jerusalem, Tempelridderen and Riget ved vejens ende, and besides that Arven efter Arn)
- Dutch (De weg naar Jeruzalem, De Tempelridder and De terugkeer)
- English (The Crusades Trilogy: The Road to Jerusalem, The Templar Knight, and Birth of the Kingdom)
- Estonian (Tee Jeruusalemma, Templirüütel and Riik tee lõpus)
- Finnish (Ristiretki-trilogia: Tie Jerusalemiin, Temppeliherra and Pohjoinen valtakunta and as fourth Arnin perintö)
- French (Le Chemin de Jérusalem - Trilogie d'Arn le templier - tome I, Le Chevalier du Temple - Trilogie d'Arn le templier - tome II, Le Royaume au bout du chemin - Trilogie d'Arn le templier - tome III, L'Héritage d'Arn le templier)
- German (Die Götaland-Trilogie: Die Frauen von Götaland, Die Büßerin von Gudhem and Die Krone von Götaland)
- Italian (Il Romanzo delle Crociate: Il Templare, Il Saladino, La Badessa)
- Norwegian (Arn-trilogien: Veien til Jerusalem, Tempelridderen and Riket ved veiens ende, and besides that Arven etter Arn)
- Polish (Krzyżowcy: Droga do Jerozolimy, Rycerz zakonu templariuszy, Królestwo na końcu drogi)
- Portuguese ( Trilogia Cruzadas , "A caminho de Jerusalem","O Cavaleiro Templário" e "O novo reino")
- Serbian (Vitez templar: Put za Jerusalim, Templar, and Kraljevstvo na kraju puta)
- Spanish (El camino a Jerusalén, El caballero templario and El reino al final del camino/Regreso al Norte)
See also
- The Road to JerusalemThe Road to JerusalemThe Road to Jerusalem is the first book in Jan Guillou's The Knight Templar book series. The book follows the fictional character of Arn Magnusson from his birth and until he sets off to Jerusalem....
(1998), ISBN 91-1-300565-0 the first book in the series - The Knight TemplarThe Knight TemplarThe Knight Templar is the second book in Jan Guillou's The Knight Templar book series. This book follows the fictional character of Arn Magnusson as a Knight Templar in the kingdom of Jerusalem...
(1999), ISBN 91-1-300733-5 the second book in the series - The Kingdom at the End of the RoadThe Kingdom at the End of the RoadThe Kingdom at the End of the Road is the third book in Jan Guillou's The Knight Templar book series. This book follows the fictional character of Arn Magnusson as he returns home to Sweden after 20 years as a Knight Templar....
(2000), ISBN 91-89426-02-9 the third book in the series - The Heritage of ArnThe Heritage of ArnThe Heritage of Arn is a follow-up to The Knight Templar by Jan Guillou about Birger jarl, the founder of Stockholm - fictionalized to be Arn Magnusson's grandson....
(2001), ISBN 91-642-0003-5 a follow-up about Birger jarlBirger jarl, or Birger Magnusson, was a Swedish statesman, Jarl of Sweden and a member of the House of Bjelbo, who played a pivotal role in the consolidation of Sweden. Birger also led the Second Swedish Crusade, which established Swedish rule in Finland. Additionally, he is traditionally attributed to have...
, the founder of Stockholm - fictionalized to be Arn's grandson