Robert IV of Sablé

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Robert IV de Sablé
Gérard de Ridefort
Succeeded byGilbert Horal
English Counselor
In office
1190–1193
MonarchRichard I of England
Personal details
Born1150
Arsuf, Palestine
Cause of deathKilled in action
SpouseClemence de Mayenne
Children
Parents
Military service
Allegiance Kingdom of England
Knights Templar
Battles/wars

Robert IV de Sablé (or de Sabloil; 1150 − 23 September 1193)

Grand Master of the Knights Templar from 1191 to 1192 and Lord of Cyprus from 1191 to 1192. He was known as the Grand Master of the Knights Templars and the Grand Master of the Holy and Valiant Order of Knights Templars.[4]

Personal life

Sablé was born to a respected military family in

River Sarthe valley, which he inherited in the 1160s.[5] He married Clemence de Mayenne (died before 1209).[6] He was succeeded in Anjou by his daughter Marguerite de Sablé, who by marriage passed the entire estate to William des Roches, also a knight of the Third Crusade. Robert died in the Holy Land on 23 September 1193. Although there are no exact records of his birth date, it is believed that he was relatively old at the time of his death compared to the average life expectancy of the 12th century.[7]

Military record

Angevin Civil War

In 1173, Sablé supported

Richard I would later be instrumental in his appointment as Grand Master.[5] He contributed money to French monastic houses in 1190 as a way of making amends.[5]

Third Crusade

According to the Itinerarium Regis Ricardi, Robert was one of the chosen leaders of the Crusading Fleet of Richard I that departed from Dartmouth in the spring of 1190. The fleet scattered in the sea of Bisquay a result of a storm and arrived at different times to the Portuguese port of Lisbon. One of these groups was involved in helping the Portuguese monarch Sancho I repel an Almohad attack against the city of Santarem, while another went on a rampage against the local Jews and Muslims in the Christian controlled city of Lisbon. Robert arrived as the Portuguese monarch captured the misbehaved crusaders and was forced to swear an oath to control his forces while in Portuguese territory.[8]

Despite only having a short tenure, Sablé's reign was filled with successful campaigning. Before his election as Grand Master, he led King Richard I's navy from England and Normandy to the Mediterranean, getting involved in the

fortresses and cities along the Levantine
coast in the Eastern Mediterranean, which had been lost previously.

The new coalition's biggest success was the Battle of Arsuf, on 7 September 1191. Saladin's Muslim forces appeared to have become far stronger than the Christians, and a decisive victory was desperately needed. Pooling all of the crusaders' strength, the Knights Hospitaller joined the ranks, plus many knights from Sablé's native Anjou, Maine, and Brittany. They met Saladin's troops on the dry plains and soon broke his ranks. Those who stayed to fight were killed, and the remaining Islamic troops were forced to retreat.

Acquisition of Cyprus

At the end of 1191, Richard the Lionheart agreed to sell

Guy de Lusignan, King of Jerusalem
, as he was without a kingdom.

Sablé did manage to establish a Chieftain House of the Order in

Saint-Jean d'Acre
, which remained for almost a century.

Delayed election

At the time of

Gerard de Ridefort's death, Sablé was not even a member of the Templar Order. However, the senior knights had become increasingly opposed to Masters fighting on the front line, and the capture and beheading of Grand Master Gerard de Ridefort became the final straw. They delayed elections for over a year so that the rules regarding active service of Grand Masters could be reviewed. During this hiatus, Sablé did join the order, just in time to be considered for election. When he was made Grand Master, he had been a Templar knight for less than a year. He died in 1193.[3]

In popular culture

Robert de Sablé is the secondary antagonist in the 2007 video game

Altaïr to kill Robert after eliminating his eight conspirators, which is depicted as taking place in 1191 at the battle of Arsuf.[11] Maria Thorpe, his stewardess, later became Altaïr's wife.[12]

References

  1. ISBN 978-1-4406-2328-8
    .
  2. ISBN 978-0-521-42041-9
    .
  3. ^
    ISBN 9780300189315
    .
  4. Scott, Walter (22 June 1825). The Talisman. Tales of the Crusaders. Archibald Constable
    .
  5. ^
    ISBN 9788838410208
    .
  6. ^ Power 2004, p. 508.
  7. Baluze, Etienne; Mollat, Guillaume (1914). Vitae paparum avenionensium : hoc est Historia pontificum romanorum qui in Gallia sederunt ab anno Christi MCCCV usque ad annum MCCCXCIV
    . Vol. 2. Paris: Letouzey et Ané. p. 1034.
  8. ^ Villegas-Aristizábal, "Revisión de la crónicas", p. 167, n. 91.
  9. ^ Nichols, Derek (27 September 2013). "History Behind the Game – Assassin's Creed Characters". VentureBeat. Retrieved 28 April 2018.
  10. ^ Gallagher, Jason M. (26 October 2017). "Assassin's Creed Origins and the Story So Far". Den of Geek. Retrieved 28 April 2018.
  11. ^ Delrio, Francesco (31 January 2018). "Assassin's Creed: Mito, Storia e Videogioco (Prima Parte)". Every Eye (in Italian). Retrieved 28 April 2018.
  12. Ziff Davis, LLC
    . 29 December 2011. Retrieved 10 June 2018.

Bibliography

External links
Religious titles
Preceded by
Gerard de Ridefort
Grand Master of the Knights Templar

1191–1193 		Succeeded by
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