The Knights Templar was a group of mainly French Christian crusaders who fought various religious wars against the Saracen Muslims from 1118 until 1312, when Pope Clement V disbanded the Order, under pressure from King Philip IV of France.
During the Crusades the Knights Templar became very wealthy. King Philip sought to seize the money accrued by the Knights Templar and so had many of the Templars, including their final leader, Jacques de Molay, Grand master of the Knights Templar, burned at the stake.
Through their exposure to Islam at the time of the Crusades, the Knights Templar began to explore Islamic customs, the most significant being their adopted worship of a deity known as Baphomet, a derivation of Mahomet.