The KT’s were allowed and protected from the inquisition in some countries. I’m curious what happened to those groups. If they didn’t disband, what happened to them? If they did, why?
Exactly right, in Portugal and Scotland, for example, the Knights Templar were not persecuted like they were in France. Thus these were two countries where they survived.
When the templars were suppressed elsewhere, the King Denis of Portugal got an exemption from the Pope and all lands etc were kept safe for the order. The name reverted to the original name of the order, the Order of Christ and the gift was in the hands of the king. This is the Portugeuse Order of Christ which is a state order.
The Pope only allowed this however, if he also was able to confer the Order of Christ. Thus there are two branches today of the Templars related to Portugal, “The Order of Christ” which is a Portuguese order and the highest order of the Vatican state, also called “The Order of Christ.” Only these two branches of the same order can claim to have any decent from the Templars.
Elsewhere, Templars that escaped persecution stayed underground in a secret organization they called the “Brotherhood.” It is a guess that the “Brotherhood” might have lived in what is modern day Switzerland or elsewhere.
Scotland was likely a haven for the Templars as the Scottish King at that time did not recognize the Pope. There is much written about the Templar’s ability to survive in Scotland where the Papel Bull suppressing the order was never read.
