Hram i loža

The book claims that the Knights Templar survived the destruction of the Order in 1312 and fled to Scotland, where they hid among the guilds of masons (freemasons). There they passed on their secret knowledge, esoteric rituals, and alleged “sacred treasures” (possibly documents or relics from the Temple in Jerusalem). From this fusion of Templar heritage and Scottish Masonic lodges came modern Freemasonry (speculative Masonry), founded in 1717 in London.

The authors trace the trail of:

• the excavation of the Templars under Solomon’s Temple (1119–1128),
• the accusations of heresy and the abolition of the Order by Philip IV. and Pope Clement V,
• the escape of the fleet from La Rochelle in 1307,
• the appearance of Templar symbols in Rosslyn Chapel (1450) in Scotland,
• the role of the Templar families (Sinclair, Bruce) in Scottish politics and the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314 (where they allegedly helped Robert the Bruce),
• to the founding of the Grand Lodge in London in 1717 and the spread of Freemasonry throughout Europe and America.

Baigent and Leigh argue that the American Founding Fathers (Washington, Franklin, Jefferson) were Freemasons of the Templar type and that they incorporated Templar-Masonic ideas about a "new world order" and spiritual freedom into the US Constitution and the symbolism of the dollar.