Philippe IV of France, also known as Philippe the Fair, has long envied
the wealth and power of the Knights Templar. To gain control of their
wealth he has jailed many of them, including the Grand Master, Jacques
de Molay. Tortured, Molay admitted to crimes he and the Knights Templar
had never committed. When he is burned at the stake, Molay curses
Phillipe, the Pope and Guillaume Nogaret, his torturer.
Meantime, two of Philippe's daughters-in-law are actively involved in
adulterous affairs. Isabella, Queen of England, and Phillipe's daughter
is well aware of these affairs and intends to let her father know of
them. As a result of of torturing the lovers of the princesses, they
were condemned to life imprisonment while the lovers were to be
executed.
Within days of the execution, Pope Clement is dead. Both Phillipe and
Nogaret wonder who is next. Not long after that, Nogaret is dead, too.
Will Phillipe die soon, too? Will his line be accursed to to the
thirteenth generation as all heard Molay state as he died in the fire?
Author Maurice Druon has written an excellent historical novel, which
had me engrossed. I'm looking forward to reading the sequels.
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