234 THE KNIGHTS TEMPLARS
Clement's life was to be spent under the eye of the French.
His successors for three-quarters of a century were likewise
to be prisoners at Avignon—the so-called Babylonian
captivity.
The Pope had written to Jacques de Molay: " We desire
to consult you regarding a Crusade in co-operation with the
Kings of Armenia and Cyprus, because you are in the best
position to give us useful advice on the subj ect and, next to the
Court of Rome, you above all others must be interested in
the project ". Christendom had demanded that something
should be done to recover the Latin kingdom in the East, but,
though many plans had been made, all proved stillborn.
Clement was nevertheless hopeful of the issue of an expedi-
tion by Armenia and Cyprus, but de Molay submitted a
memorandum in which he criticised the proposed Crusade as
foredoomed to failure. He pointed out that the Armenians
were unreliable and that the King of Cyprus would be able to
provide only a small army. Cyprus should certainly be used
as a base, but the one chance of regaining the Holy Land was
by a great expedition from the West.
De Molay was also asked to consider the question of an
amalgamation between the Temple and the Hospital. This
was not a new proposal. St. Louis and the Popes Gregory X,
Nicholas IV, and Boniface VIII had tried to impose such a
combination, but the Grand Masters of both Orders had
always opposed a fusion. Jacques de Molay followed the
example of his predecessors and dismissed the idea of a com-
bination as highly undesirable. In a written statement he
recalled the earlier proposals and reminded Clement that
good and sufficient reasons had been given against an alliance
of the fighting monks. The Orders had, he declared, per-
formed valuable services as separate organisations, and to
compel them to combine would be a reflection upon their
work. The Orders were not only military: they were
spiritual and " it would be harsh and unfair to make a man