<P> In response to the Islamic conquests of the former Byzantine Empire , numerous Catholic military orders were set up following the First Crusade . The founding of such orders suited the Catholic church 's plan of channeling the devotion of the European nobility toward achieving the Church 's temporal goals , and it also complemented the Peace and Truce of God . The foundation of the Knights Templar in 1118 provided the first in a series of tightly organized military forces for the purpose of opposing Islamic conquests in the Holy Land and in the Iberian Peninsula -- see the Reconquista -- as well as Islamic invaders and pagan tribes in Eastern Europe which were perceived as threats to the Church 's supremacy . </P>
<P> In response to the Islamic conquests of the former Byzantine Empire , numerous Catholic military orders were set up following the First Crusade . The founding of such orders suited the Catholic church 's plan of channeling the devotion of the European nobility toward achieving the Church 's temporal goals , and it also complemented the Peace and Truce of God . The foundation of the Knights Templar in 1118 provided the first in a series of tightly organized military forces for the purpose of opposing Islamic conquests in the Holy Land and in the Iberian Peninsula -- see the Reconquista -- as well as Islamic invaders and pagan tribes in Eastern Europe which were perceived as threats to the Church 's supremacy . </P>
knights catholic military order linked to the crusades
knights catholic military order linked to the crusades
Knights Templar
Knights Templar