QUOTES
In the plain of Tormore, in the isle of Arran, are the remains of four circles, and by their sequestered situation, this seems to have been sacred ground. These circles were formed for religious purposes: Boetius relates, that Mainus, son of Fergus I, a restorer and cultivator of religion, after the Egyptian manner, (as he calls it) instituted several new and solemn ceremonies; and caused great stones to be placed in a circle: the largest was situated to the south, and served as an altar for the sacrifices to the immortal gods. Boetius is right in part of his account: the object of worship was the sun; and what confirms this, is the situation of the altar, pointed towards that luminary in his meridian glory.
*Taken from Pennant’s Voyage to the Hebrides
Where were you made a Mason?
In the body of a Lodge, just, perfect and regular.
And when?
When the Sun was at its Meridian.
As lodges in this country are usually held in the evening, how do you account for this, which at the first view appears to be a paradox?
The Sun being the Centre of our system, and the Earth constantly revolving on its axis, and Masonry being spread across the whole of its habitable surface, it necessarily follows that the Sun must always be at its Meridian with respect to Masonry.
*Taken from the York Rite Masonry first-degree exemplification, during an exchange between the Worshipful Master and newly initiated Mason.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
INTRODUCTION
In The Knights Templar in the New World (Inner Traditions, March 2004), I presented the fascinating story of the Scottish prince, Henry Sinclair, who, in 1398, almost 100 years before Columbus arrived in the New World, sailed to what is today Nova Scotia. Along with approximately 500 of his trusted knights, it was at Green Oaks, Nova Scotia, that he established a secret “Grail” settlement for the Templars fleeing persecution by the Roman Catholic Church.
In part, The Knights Templar in the New World is a personal story because my late great-uncle was Supreme Grand Master of the Knights Templar of Canada in the 1950’s; and, it was from him that I received the “secret” key that would eventually allow me to re-discover the site of the Templar settlement established by Sinclair and his followers in what they considered at the time to be the new Arcadia.
It was in Arcadia – later known as Acadia – that they sought to find a refuge for the Grail – the Holy Bloodline connecting the House of David to the Merovingian Dynasty through the descendents of Jesus and Mary Magdalene – a goal that was achieved until the British exiled the Acadians in 1755. Support for this story is found in an historical document called “The Zeno Narrative,” which was written in 1555 by an Antonio Zeno, the great nephew of the Venetian Admirals Nicolo and Antonio, who accompanied Sinclair on his journey to the New World.
One of the most fascinating aspects about Henry Sinclair was that at the time of the voyage he was hereditary Grand Master of the Scottish Knights Templar. He was also a direct descendent of the Grail Bloodline. This meant that he would be considered the ultimate guardian of the Templar treasure, which on one level was understood to be the “Holy Bloodline;” but on another level could be considered to be the ancient knowledge that allowed Sinclair, and those who sailed before him, to navigate the treacherous North Atlantic.
Many researchers/authors have speculated that the “treasure” is either an historical genealogical record of the Grail Family, a first-hand account of their life written by either Jesus or the Magdalene herself, or associated relics that can ultimately be tested against the DNA of known Grail Bloodline members. Many of these same people still believe that the Templar treasure lies below the enigmatic Oak Island, located on the south shore of Nova Scotia. But having deciphered the ancient Templar code of sacred geometry, it’s been determined that Oak Island is not the final resting place of this treasure. All signs now point to the fact that the Templar treasure still remains as a talisman of sorts, buried beneath the settlement ruins recently uncovered at Green Oaks, the mirror image of Oak Island.
Indeed, the intertwining of this compelling story, when coupled with the world’s current events, has captured the public’s imagination and has caused an insatiable quest for anything “grail-related.” With the recent release of Dan Brown’s novel, The Da Vinci Code, this desire has hit an all-time high. As well, we find that the recently released movie, National Treasure, has for the first time in a mainstream format presented the idea that the founding of the United States was based on Masonic principles, including the feminine “grail” veneration, and potentially financed through Templar treasure.
It is essential, though, to remember that the basic theory around which Brown’s book is centered is not new. Lincoln, Baigent and Leigh were probably the first to raise the issue in a modern context, through their 1983 publication of The Holy Blood, Holy Grail. With the advent of the Internet and the second millennium however, it appears that the time is now ripe for the general acceptance of an alternative world history.
Of course, not everyone is ready for such a dramatic shift in religious direction. The Vatican still clings to the basic tenets of the Bible, while the religious right in the United States is strengthening its evangelical beliefs through an ever-increasing influence on mainstream politics. In Europe, within the context of a European Union, the remaining Royal Houses appear to be vying for the ultimate “divine” position. All the while, in Great Britain, the House of Windsor is constantly bombarded by new stories of intrigue and even murder. Princess Diana’s direct connection to the Merovingian bloodline has now finally been revealed and, along with it, a veneration of almost mythic proportions.
In a manner almost designed to counter the popularity of The Da Vinci Code and its Goddess/Magdalene-oriented story, Mel Gibson’s production of The Passion of Christ has stirred the inner soul of both the believer and non-believer alike. Unfortunately, it has also tended to polarize the views and opinions of several religious groups to the point that common ground relating to the true spirit of Christ may again never be achieved – common ground that at one time had been established between the medieval Knights Templar and their sworn enemies.
On a more personal note, I have been somewhat overwhelmed by the response to The Knights Templar in the New World. Since its release, I’ve received hundreds of e-mails, letters and even large parcels of information from people all around the world, suggesting that they too possess a little piece of the vast puzzle. Inevitably, I find that all of the pieces lead to the one question that I am constantly challenged to answer: What was it that the Poor Knights of the Temple of Solomon actually discovered, which would first cause the Church to sanction all that they stood for and then, two centuries later, cause them to be pursued to the ends of the earth?
Through the encouragement of Bernard of Clairvaix, the Church had initially developed a position whereby the Knights Templar enjoyed unprecedented growth and prosperity, only to reverse that position to a point where it sanctioned the arrest, torture and murder of hundreds of knights. In my mind at least, the answer lies beyond the issue of the Holy Bloodline and their Templar guardians. What if the knights had discovered evidence of an ancient knowledge developed before the Great Flood – knowledge that is still preserved through present-day Masonic/Templar ritual?
This knowledge, among other things, relates to the ability to establish accurate latitudinal and longitudinal positions, long before it became an acceptable practice in the eighteenth century. Through the continuous observation of the sun, moon and stars and their relative positions, recorded by the numerous stone circles found around the world, certain “secret societies” were, in essence, able to map the world through the travels and settlement of those intrepid men who came to be known as the “ancient mariners.”
This knowledge thus provided those who were “in on the secret” the ability to enjoy a limitless supply of precious metals and other earthly materials, including the much sought-after copper and gold, as well as to enjoy friendship and trade with the indigenous people of the New World. Copper and gold were not the only materials to be mined by the Templars in the New World. It has now come to light that the Templars also enjoyed an unlimited source of rare earth minerals including titanium, which explains their overwhelming military strength due to superior weaponry during the first and second crusades.
It appears as though it was this strategic advantage over the Church that led to the ultimate downfall of the Templars, not their supposed position as guardian of the Holy Bloodline. The New World represented not only unlimited wealth but also an opportunity to establish a “New World Order,” free from the oppressive control of both church and state.
It was this rediscovered knowledge of the New World which also allowed Prince Henry Sinclair and his Knights Templar to re-establish secret “grail” settlements. It also allowed them to circumnavigate the world and to verify ancient maps then in their possession which were so accurate that they were confident that buried artifacts, manuscripts and/or relics could easily be retrieved centuries later by future initiates of the sacred knowledge – by initiates such as Verrazano, Jacques Cartier, Samuel du Champlain, Prince Henry the Navigator, and Francis Drake, amongst others.
This is the context of The Templar Meridians. Through an ever-expanding understanding of this secret Templar knowledge, an ancient longitudinal/latitudinal grid pattern across North and South America can be deciphered. Once having confirmed this ancient application of meridians/roselines, it is easy to understand the ever-increasing discovery of evidence of pre-Christian exploration throughout the New World by such diverse groups as the Celts, Phoenicians, and Egyptians.
This understanding also explains why visionaries such as George Washington and Thomas Jefferson sought to tap into this pattern of concealed “energy” through their design of Washington D.C. and Monticello. It also provides for a fascinating underlying reasoning as to Jefferson’s sponsorship of the Lewis and Clark expedition, in that the expedition’s secret purpose was to search out the final resting place of the grand initiate who “re-activated” the meridians across North America – the same Prince Henry Sinclair.
It is this understanding that also explains the many aspects of the compelling story of Rennes-le-Chateau and the priest, Berenger Sauniere, for Sauniere had obviously stumbled across the secret knowledge of the ancient roselines. Bits of this goddess-related knowledge had also been deciphered by the earliest settlers of Montreal, led by followers of the Order of St. Vincent - the Sulpicians. And, within the twentieth century, enlightened men such as Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau and Frank Lloyd Wright, the architect, captured the essence of the roselines and grail sanctuaries towards a path of almost legendary status among their peers.
All in all, The Templar Meridians proves to be a fascinating read into the knowledge, understanding, and wisdom of the medieval Knights Templar and their concept of a New World – starting with a New Jerusalem - located in New Scotland, Nova Scotia. It ends with the dramatic and tantalizing hunt to reveal the ultimate New World secret – the lost treasure of the Templars!
CHAPTER 1 - The 15th Century
Rosslyn Chapel – Holy Grail/Templar Treasure - Prince Henry Sinclair – Templar Settlement – Holy Bloodline – Green Oaks, Nova Scotia – Legend of Glooscap – Mi’kmaq - Movement Inland – Newport Tower – Westford Knight - Ancient Knowledge – St. Roseline – 8 (Infinity) Degrees of Separation – Titanium/Gold/Copper – Good King Rene D’Anjou – Rose Settlements – 1485, War of the Roses
Chapter 1 begins with a brief recounting of the purpose and voyage of Prince Henry Sinclair and his fellow Knights Templar across the North Atlantic to found a “rose” settlement at Green Oaks, Nova Scotia. Following in the footsteps of the Grand Master himself, we begin to understand the reasoning behind this daring and dramatic adventure, being the need to establish a refuge for the Holy Bloodline; as well as to re-activate a series of ancient longitudinal meridians/roselines across the New World through the depositing of the remaining “Templar Treasure.” This opening chapter also provides a more logical purpose to the Templar voyage, that being one of recovering the valuable natural resources of the New World – gold, copper and surprisingly, titanium. Here we have the underlying explanation as to why the Templars cloaked their re-discovery of the New World in layers of esoteric knowledge. It was a combination of all of these purposes, which first explains the Templars’ meteoric rise in power and influence and then, just as suddenly, their fall from grace. By the end of the century, whispers and clues as to the true source of the Templar wealth in the courts of Europe forced them to move inland, aided by their allies - the Mi’kmaq of the Algonquin Nation – to once again establish a hidden refuge.
CHAPTER 2 – The 16th Century
European Explorers – Secret Societies - Verrazano, 1524 – Cartier, 1538 – New France – Saguenay, Hochelaga – William St. Clair – Descellier’s Map - Zeno Narrative and Map, 1555 – Last of the Mohicans – Niagara Escarpment and Falls – Kirkwall Scroll – Memphremagog, Quebec – White River, Green Mountains, Vermont – Leonardo Da Vinci – Prince Henry the Navigator – Treaty of Tortellias – Brazil – Mayans – Quezetcoatal – Mary of Guise, 1542 – Rene’s grand-daughter – Grail Bloodline
Chapter 2 continues the story of pursuit, intrigue and deflection. It speaks of the earliest European explorers of the New World, men such as Verrazano and Cartier who sought the “royal” settlement contained within the legends and myths of the native Indians. But the mystery deepens because it appears that the earliest European explorers were “double agents” acting on behalf of those secret societies, which were privy to the true nature of the Grail. The whispers and clues continued with the completion of Rosslyn Chapel and the emergence of several maps of uncanny accuracy, including the Zeno and Descellier’s maps of 1555. Available to the true initiate only, these maps presented underlying port-o-lan(d) grids, which suggested that the ancient mariner possessed the ability to establish to a modern-day accuracy both longitudinal and latitudinal positions around the world. Here was the explanation behind Portugal’s and the Knights of Christ’s Golden Age of Exploration to South America and beyond, for Prince Henry the Navigator was in reality the Grand Master of Knights Templar and, as such, in possession of remnants of earlier Templar knowledge of previously established “rose” settlements around the world.
CHAPTER 3 – The 17th Century
The Sun King - Cardinal Richelieu - John Smith – Susquahanna – Chesapeake Bay – Virginia, 1628 – Samuel du Champlain – Sieur de Monts – Robertval – Etienne Brule – Sulpicians – Ursulines – Montreal, 1638 – Quebec City – Knights of Malta – Jesuit Relations – Ste. Marie among the Hurons – Kirke Brothers – The Company of 100 Associates – Nicholas Poussin – 1666, Paris Meridian - Joliet, Jesuit Missionary, 1675 – Chicago Portage – Mississippi River
Chapter 3 continues the pattern of court intrigue and deceit, with the infamous Cardinal Richelieu becoming one of the main “puppet masters” in the deadly game over ultimate control of Acadia and New France. Again, there is a veritable cast of double agents, with Samuel du Champlain playing a major role. The battle was over the lost colonies of Saguenay and Hochelaga, and the white Indians (Mohicans) who mysteriously disappeared following Cartier’s foray into the wilderness. It now appears that the Holy Bloodline and their Templar guardians had once again moved inland, just ahead of their enemies. Here we have an amazing game of chess being played by a number of religious orders, including the Sulpulcians, Ursulines, Jesuits, Knights of Malta and Knights Templar, with Quebec City and Montreal acting as the black and white castles. Not to be outdone, the puritanical English establish their position in the game with the founding of the Virginia Company. But how was it that it appeared that the Templars knew exactly where they were going? Were they following the pattern of roselines previously established around the world – meridians that traced a grid based upon earth’s natural energy pattern? It was the painter, Nicholas Poussin, who suggests through his most famous painting, Et en Arcadia Ego…, that this pattern was known to those who were “in on the secret.” Or maybe it was his patron, Cardinal Richelieu, who provided Poussin with the necessary background to so accurately represent New France as an underlying element to balance the battle between dark and light, church and state. Not surprisingly, Louis XIV kept Poussin’s painting in his private apartments until his death.
CHAPTER 4 – The 18th Century
Lake Champlain – French Indian Wars – Col. Sinclair – British General Jeffrey Amherst – 1717 Grand Lodge – 1745 Battle of Culloden – Jacobite Cause – French Masonry – Bonnie Prince Charlie – 1755 Expulsion of Acadians – 1759, Wolfe and Montcalm – Battle of the Plains of Abraham -– 1776 American Revolution Boston Philadelphia Washington – Satan’s Axis – Lafayette – L’Enfant – George Washington – Benjamin Franklin – Joseph Brant – Six Nations – Brant’s Block – 1798 Gother Mann – Oak Island – 1798 French Revolution – Napoleon and Josephine – Merovingian Bloodline – George III – Prince Silly Billy – Halifax – Alexander Keith – Templarism in Canada
Chapter 4 presents a significant swing in the balance of church versus state, with a century long battle for the control of North America. Underlying every major war of this and the next century fought on North American ground, there appears to be a behind-the-scenes manipulation by either French/Scottish Rite or English/York Rite Masonry. The prize is not only the New World and establishment of a New Jerusalem, but the control of the Templar Meridians and the energy that can be harnessed. The assumption is that there remains, because the rose settlements were eventually absorbed into the frontier, a series of buried “treasure” across North America positioned by Prince Henry Sinclair and his Templars as they progressed westerly. It was the “madness” of King George, which eventually allowed the United States to break free, aided by the Republic of France and the mysterious men behind the Jacobite cause. Many of the earliest founding fathers of the United States were Masons, as were the British officers who fought against them. It was L’Enfant who provided Washington with the plans for the capital, based on Masonic sacred geometry and the Templar Meridians. But it was the British and United Empire Loyalists who seem to have the strongest inkling as to where the remains of the rose settlements lay. And, one of the most prominent guardians of the secret was the Six Nations’ Mohawk Chief, Joseph Brant, who following his Masonic initiation in England was granted a block of land, 3,456 acres in size, where the northeast corner falls on the remains of one of the lost settlements.
CHAPTER 5 – The 19th Century
1802-04, Thomas Jefferson – Lewis and Clark Expedition – Missouri River – 1803, Louisiana Purchase – Napoleon – War of 1812 – Butler’s Rangers – Laura Secord – Col. John Fitzgibbon – Fort George – Indian Chief Tecumseh – 1817, Rio, Brazil, Templar Colony - 1855, Owl’s Head Mountain – Chicago, Oak Park – St. Paul/Minneapolis – St. Anthony – Mormons – Salt Lake City – John Smith – Merida, Mexico – 1898, Rennes-le-Chateau – Berniere Sauniere – Chapel of St. Sulpice, Paris Roseline
Chapter 5 explains the position of the Templar Meridians across North America, recognizing that etymology plays even to this day a role in identifying the roselines. Bisecting place names containing key words such as meridian, rose point, temple, green, oak, and even derivations of st. clair such as santa clara, once the reader understands the pattern of ancient knowledge, Prince Henry Sinclair’s movement inland can be traced with uncanny accuracy. This, in turn, explains a number of mysterious events to have taken place among the Lewis and Clark expedition and provides insight into both Jefferson’s sponsorship of the expedition and Napoleon’s support in the Louisiana Purchase. Speculation now appears certain that Lewis and Clark were searching for the final resting place of Prince Henry Sinclair and the lost Templar Treasure. Legend tells us that in fact it was the Masons who were responsible for Lewis’ untimely death, for he was going to expose the secret of the tomb, while Clark became Governor of the Missouri Territory and Superintendent of Indian Affairs because of his loyalty and remaining secrecy. And, like Oak Island before it, Rennes-le-Chateau remains as a ruse to the millions of followers of this story, as does Rosslyn Chapel. The non-initiate, including author Dan Brown, has failed to look beyond the western sunset, for the sun never sets in some part of the world. This is the clue that remains within Masonic ritual to this day.
CHAPTER 6 – The 20th Century
WW I and II – The Hapsburg’s – Oak Island - Franklin Delaney Roosevelt – Montauk Point, Philadelphia Project - Reginald Vanderbilt Harris – Frank Lloyd Wright – Oak Park – Taliesin West – Frederic Law Olmstead – Pierre Elliott Trudeau – Margaret Sinclair – House of Windsor – Princess Diana – Merovingian Dynasty - Prince William - Bill Clinton – Jacques De Molay Society - Hilary Rodham Clinton – Chicago – Skull and Bones
Chapter 6 speaks to “that-which-was-lost” as it applies to both the Templar Meridians and the innocence of the world prior to WW I. Here it becomes apparent that certain royal lines and secret societies, having an inkling of a lost ancient knowledge, have manipulated world events in search of the Templar energy and power that was lost. Not to dwell on the geopolitical aspects of the story, the reader will be amazed at the insight provided into those men and women who have had the ability to tap into the grid energy and to rise to international positions of power and structure. Frank Lloyd Wright and Pierre Elliott Trudeau are two of the finest examples of men who appeared to have the ability to harness the earth’s energy and to be productive well into their eighties. Trudeau’s home in Montreal is a fine example of incorporating an inner sanctuary into one’s life – sanctuary that for a person like Princess Diana was so longed-for but unattainable. Unfortunately, Diana’s public life overshadowed her Merovingian connections but it is now becoming apparent that hers was an arranged marriage because of the necessity to combine two royal bloodlines, presenting the opportunity for Prince William to make claim to any Templar Treasure, if discovered. Of course, within the New World context, there is a continuing political battle between the right and the left, which may culminate with Hilary Rodham Clinton running as the first female Presidential candidate for the United States in 2008, signifying a potential return to the matriarchal/goddess aspect of religion, hence a New World Order. (NOTE: This chapter may have to be massaged a great deal in order to appear acceptable to the general reader. The political aspects may have to be deflected in some manner?)
CHAPTER 7 – The 21st Century
Signs - Oakville – Rattlesnake Point – Appleby Line – Bayeaux Tapestries – Milton Outlier – Unicorn – Rose – Rosary – 400th Acadian Congress – Melanson – LeBlanc – Gallant – Colchester County – Alan Butler’s salt lines – Adam Creighton’s Celtic Cross – Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code – Mel Gibson’s The Passion of Christ – Mary Magdalene - Stone Monuments – Francine Bernier’s Montreal – Cornerstone
Chapter 7 returns to the notion that the world is in search of the goddess aspect for a more balanced lifestyle and tempering of current world events, in that the signs still exist in both nature and science. This is a critical chapter in that a series of signs are exposed, which lead to the unearthing of a significant rose settlement positioned just north of Oakville, Ontario. This, in turn, leads back to the notion that it was on the western edge of the Algonquin Nation that a series of rose settlements were established, to coincide with the 80-degree west longitude meridian. With the number 8 being the symbol for infinity, it’s easy to see that the Templar guardians of the Holy Bloodline believed that the blood succession would continue forever; or, until such time that the union of Mary Magdalene and Jesus Christ could generally be accepted throughout the world. Again, this brings us back to the question as to what physical evidence did the Templars possess, which would prove this union and continuance of the bloodline of the House of David? All signs lead to a Templar treasure consisting of a fifth gospel, genealogical records, bones and relics of the Grail family. It now makes complete sense that if Prince Henry Sinclair were invested with the supreme duty of re-activating a grid of natural energy across North America relating to Mother Earth and the Sun, veiled as the Goddess/God essence, then he would have deposited portions of this treasure at critical energy points (cornerstones), to consecrate the ground beneath his Temples of New Jerusalem.
CHAPTER 8 – Epilogue
Bear Cove – Green Oaks – Mineral Rights Claim – Titanium – Richard II – Cyprus – Treasure Trove – St. Anthony – Water – Manna – Laurence Gardner – The Grail Kings – Prince Michael Stuart – Montana – PHS’s Tomb - Oak Island Exploration Company – Templar Gold Explorations Ltd. – Niven Sinclair – Templar Treasure
Chapter 8 presents the conclusion to The Templar Meridians. Coming full circle this chapter will highlight what has been found at the Green Oaks site, in support of the theories put forth throughout the book. Not wanting to give anything away at this point in time, it is significant to say “that-which-was-lost” has now been found and, in many ways, the physical treasure is supportive of the position that the Knights Templar had attained in medieval times. It has been reputed that the Grand Masters of the Priory of Sion included such luminaries as Leonardo Da Vinci and Isaac Newton, men of such vision and wisdom, grounded in science yet students of the esoteric. These men had a passion for all things relating to time and space. The Templars had also found a way to elevate themselves to a higher dimension, not through an inter-dimensional travel like some have claimed but through the scientific manipulation of rare earth minerals, which they discovered in the New World. Known as alchemy to the uninitiated, the medieval Templars knew of titanium and its properties long before its rediscovery in the 1950’s. It was titanium, which allowed the medieval Templars to conquer the Middle East and it is titanium, which has allowed modern man to conquer outer space. In a fitting conclusion, the reader will come to realize that the Templars possessed ancient knowledge, based in science, which had originated from a time before the Great Flood and which had been allegorically preserved within the “pillars” of the Temple, being Freemasonry.
NOTES
INDEX
REFERENCES