Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Chivalry,
GHIVA . LET ,
THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR , OR KKIGHTHOOD 0 ^ THE TEMPLE OP SOLOMON .
AKI > THE INSTITUTIOlsrS , OR ORMBS , OF THE KNIGHTS OF ST . JOHN 01 " MALTA ; THE KNIGHTS OF THE TJ 3 MPLE OF SOLOMON J AND THE TEUTONIC KNIGHTS OF GERMANY . *
Early in the year 1217 a new body of Crusaders landed at Acre , led by the King of Hungary and the Dukes of Austria and Bavaria . This army , under the guidance of the Templars and Hospitallers , followed the course of the brook Kishon , and descended into the valley of the Jordan , pitching its tents on the banks of the sacred
river ; where the newly-arrived pilgrims remained two days , bathing in its limpid waters . The Templars urged the chiefs of the crusading host to attempt the siege of the important fortress on Mount Thabor ( the reputed scene of the transfiguration of our Lord ) , this fortress having , after the battle of Tiberias , fallen into the hands of the infidels . ;
The height of this interesting mountain has been variously described , but we may fairly state it to be about a mile high , as Mr . Buckingham was enabled to reach its top in half an hour . At the top is an oval plain of about a quarter of a mile in its greatest length , covered , to the west , with a bed of fertile soil , and
having at its eastern end a mass of ruins , seemingly the vestiges of churches , strong walls , and fortifications , all decidedly of some
antiquity , and a few , appearing to be the works of a very remote age . A large portion of a wall on the south side has its foundations firmly fixed on the solid rock . Prom the earliest times this mountain has been employed as a military post , for which it is admirably adapted . Prom the summit a most interesting and extensive prospect may be obtained ; Bishop Pococke says , " It is one of the finest hills I ever beheld , having a rich soil that produces excellent herbage ; and it is most beautifully adorned with groves and clumps of trees . "
The place was invested ; but the new troops , suffering from want of water and other annoyances , commenced a retrograde movement , contrary to the entreaties of the Knights , when a body of Moslem cavalry fell upon them , and immense loss was the consequence . The
* Con turned from page 160 VOL . IT . 0
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Chivalry,
GHIVA . LET ,
THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR , OR KKIGHTHOOD 0 ^ THE TEMPLE OP SOLOMON .
AKI > THE INSTITUTIOlsrS , OR ORMBS , OF THE KNIGHTS OF ST . JOHN 01 " MALTA ; THE KNIGHTS OF THE TJ 3 MPLE OF SOLOMON J AND THE TEUTONIC KNIGHTS OF GERMANY . *
Early in the year 1217 a new body of Crusaders landed at Acre , led by the King of Hungary and the Dukes of Austria and Bavaria . This army , under the guidance of the Templars and Hospitallers , followed the course of the brook Kishon , and descended into the valley of the Jordan , pitching its tents on the banks of the sacred
river ; where the newly-arrived pilgrims remained two days , bathing in its limpid waters . The Templars urged the chiefs of the crusading host to attempt the siege of the important fortress on Mount Thabor ( the reputed scene of the transfiguration of our Lord ) , this fortress having , after the battle of Tiberias , fallen into the hands of the infidels . ;
The height of this interesting mountain has been variously described , but we may fairly state it to be about a mile high , as Mr . Buckingham was enabled to reach its top in half an hour . At the top is an oval plain of about a quarter of a mile in its greatest length , covered , to the west , with a bed of fertile soil , and
having at its eastern end a mass of ruins , seemingly the vestiges of churches , strong walls , and fortifications , all decidedly of some
antiquity , and a few , appearing to be the works of a very remote age . A large portion of a wall on the south side has its foundations firmly fixed on the solid rock . Prom the earliest times this mountain has been employed as a military post , for which it is admirably adapted . Prom the summit a most interesting and extensive prospect may be obtained ; Bishop Pococke says , " It is one of the finest hills I ever beheld , having a rich soil that produces excellent herbage ; and it is most beautifully adorned with groves and clumps of trees . "
The place was invested ; but the new troops , suffering from want of water and other annoyances , commenced a retrograde movement , contrary to the entreaties of the Knights , when a body of Moslem cavalry fell upon them , and immense loss was the consequence . The
* Con turned from page 160 VOL . IT . 0