The Knights Templar was said to have been founded in 1118 to protect pilgrims on their way to Jerusalem.

A myth says they somehow managed to gain possession of the Ark of the Covenant, which they hid for safekeeping.

Even though the Templars swore allegiance to the Pope, their beliefs were not orthodox.

They believed Jesus had conceived three children with Mary Magdalene, who moved to France after the crucifixion.

Their progeny supposedly married into royalty, allegedly leaving members of the French nobility with divine blood in their veins.

The Knights Templar eventually dedicated themselves to protecting the lives of these descendants of Jesus, the Merovingians.

But when they were not busy doing that, they managed to amass a financial and property empire and helped to start the first banking system.

By the beginning of the 14th century, the Knights Templar had become Europe's dominant religious order of chivalry. They had more than 7,000 members, held nearly 900 castles and controlled unimaginable wealth in land, gold and, it is said, the coveted Ark of the Covenant.

The society was put down in March 1312 on the orders of The Pope after being accused of heresy and other alleged crimes.

The church took possession of their assets, but there was no word on whether the Ark of the Covenant was discovered and taken to Rome.

Today, the Knights Templar is the name of a branch of Freemasonry.