William Tyler
Banking: Jews, Templars, and Medici
Summary
William Tyler delves into a wide-ranging discussion on the world of banking, beginning with how Jews came to be the bankers of Medieval Europe and moving on to the effect that the Knights Templar and Medici Bank had in shifting the banking world over time.
William Tyler
William Tyler has spent his entire professional life in adult education, beginning at Kingsgate College in 1969. He has lectured widely for many public bodies, including the University of Cambridge and the WEA, in addition to speaking to many clubs and societies. In 2009, William was awarded the MBE for services to adult education, and he has previously been a scholar in residence at the London Jewish Cultural Centre.
No, there are not. There are people that call themselves Templars but no, there aren’t. The organisation that still exists is the Knights Hospitaller Hospitaller, which in England is called the Knights of St. John. And they do charity work. They run a hospital for the blind in Jerusalem, for example. But not the Templars And there’s the thing about Templars. And Masons, entirely fabricated, no link. None whatsoever.
No, absolutely not. No. They would not have been allowed in. It’s a very religious order. You had to be a monk as well. So absolutely no chance. And there weren’t Jews anyhow that were involved in the Crusades. Why? Because they’re outside the feudal system. The feudal system recruits the soldiers. To fight in the holy land.
Well, we’re in a different world in the 19th century. Gold certainly was important. I can’t really answer that in a couple of sentences. Discovery of any valuable commodity is important. What was important about gold and silver on the Spanish main was we were in serious problems in Europe without the gold and silver. We were running out of mines for it.