<P> The Knights Templar were the elite fighting force of their day, highly trained, well - equipped and highly motivated; one of the tenets of their religious order was that they were forbidden from retreating in battle, unless outnumbered three to one, and even then only by order of their commander, or if the Templar flag went down . Not all Knights Templar were warriors . The mission of most of the members was one of support--to acquire resources which could be used to fund and equip the small percentage of members who were fighting on the front lines . There were actually three classes within the orders . The highest class was the knight . When a candidate was sworn into the order, the initiation made the knight a monk . They wore white robes . The knights could hold no property and receive no private letters . He could not be married or betrothed and cannot have any vow in any other Order . He could not have debt more than he could pay, and no infirmities . The Templar priest class was similar to the modern day military chaplain . Wearing green robes, they conducted religious services, led prayers, and were assigned record keeping and letter writing . They always wore gloves, unless they were giving Holy Communion . The mounted men - at - arms represented the most common class, and they were called "brothers". They were usually assigned two horses each and held many positions, including guard, steward, squire or other support vocations . As the main support staff, they wore black or brown robes and were partially garbed in chain mail or plate mail . The armor was not as complete as the knights . Because of this infrastructure, the warriors were well - trained and very well armed . Even their horses were trained to fight in combat, fully armored . The combination of soldier and monk was also a powerful one, as to the Templar knights, martyrdom in battle was one of the most glorious ways to die . </P> <P> The Templars were also shrewd tacticians, following the dream of Saint Bernard who had declared that a small force, under the right conditions, could defeat a much larger enemy . One of the key battles in which this was demonstrated was in 1177, at the Battle of Montgisard . The famous Muslim military leader Saladin was attempting to push toward Jerusalem from the south, with a force of 26,000 soldiers . He had pinned the forces of Jerusalem's King Baldwin IV, about 500 knights and their supporters, near the coast, at Ascalon . Eighty Templar knights and their own entourage attempted to reinforce . They met Saladin's troops at Gaza, but were considered too small a force to be worth fighting, so Saladin turned his back on them and headed with his army towards Jerusalem . </P>

What was the purpose of the knights of the templar
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