The king and papal clergy
Forged then hatched their deadly plot
To plunder and deceive
Those in the Roussillon-languedoc
Cast your net you would not meet
Two better men by stealth
Their debted coffers groaning
To accrue new wealth
Sealed orders were opened by candlelight
Penniless aristocrats took the papal bull
On the thirteenth day they attacked
All was quiet the chapels were full
No intention or warning was declared
Nor any trust forsaken
Every vestige forcibly entered
Few if any prisoners taken
Philip knew the knights preceptorys
Were order kept and well moneyed
He gloated for their possessions
His accustomed lifestyle to be funded
Clement by his absence made distant
The signing of the order by association
His spiritual side he would keep intact
To not endanger his position
Though heavily outnumbered
The gallant knights fought well
The raiders were determined
This insurgent group to quell
Depository’s were entered ransacked
All that lay in was plundered
Philips men were merciless
Over hallowed ground they thundered
Into the guardians chambers
They clawed and hacked their way
As dying knights were finished
Where they fell and lay
At the height of the battle
An elite band was chosen
All sworn to die on oath
So secret was their mission
They rode out through the carnage
This was the worth of their measure
No earthly being would stop them
To seize or hold this treasure
Throughout the longest night
Exhausted all their stallion
The port now in site
They secreted aboard their galleon
Their comrades fought to the bitter end
For time they would have failed
To catch the wind and rising tide
Out of harbour less they sailed
A backward glance toward the shore
Faint distant the mission bell
Brothers in arms chained and shackled
False confessions they would tell
Black hearted judges sat court
In full pay of the king
The papacy washed its hands
Not wanting forgiveness to bring
They sentenced them en-mass
For such a hurry to make
Turning their backs against their eyes
As flesh was blistered at the stake
The ship now in full sail
Their time had saved the day
Beneath the planking in the hold
The future would have its say
Our masters were disgraced
Roasted over open flames
Those who hatched this deadly deed
Will one day be surely tamed
