Keightley opens with the rise of Islam and the schisms that bred the Ismaili sects, then tells the story of the Assassins and their grand masters in the mountain fortresses of Persia and Syria. He goes on to the Knights Templar, their wealth, their failures in the Holy Land and their suppression, and to the secret courts that sat in judgement in medieval Westphalia.
A classic of popular history from the author of The Fairy Mythology, still a lively guide to its shadowy subjects. Download the free EPUB.