Olivier de Termes , born about 1200 with Terms, Aude and deceased the August 12th 1274 with Saint-Jean-in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem (current Israel), was one of the most famous knights of the 13th century, most active of the opponents to the Albigensian Crusade and a guard of the Cathares. It became then faithful of the king Louis IX and Catholic church in Languedoc and Holy Land where it died in the head of the cross armies.

Olivier acquired broad famous near his contemporaries and became familiar of several kings and popes thanks to his energy, his bravery and his control of the art of the seats and the guerilla of which it showed in his trade knight until his death.

A broken childhood

Olivier is born about 1200 in a rich person seigneuriale family, converted with the Catharisme, which dominates around the castle of Termes (Aude) an about sixty villages or hamlets. Its youth is dramatically marked by the beginning of the Albigensian crusade: in 1210, following the catch of the castle of Terms by Simon IV of Montfort, it loses his father and his goods, but could observe the techniques of seat and guerilla in which it will become the large specialist. It completes its education in Catalogne from where his/her mother is originating. It is there that it meets its future suzerains of which it will become one of the familiar ones: Jacques Ier king of Aragon, Raimond the Young person, count de Toulouse which accompanies in exile his/her father Raymond VI by Toulouse, and Raimond Trencavel Vicomte of Carcassonne. All the four are same generation, were victims of the crusade and are animated of a spirit of reconquest.

With the service of the southernmost princes

Olivier thus puts at the service these three lords and is distinguished in a great number of military operations: for the count of Toulouse it defends the village of Labécède-Lauragais besieged by the army of the king de France (1227); for the king d' Aragon Jacques I {{er}} it takes part in the conquest of Majorque on the Moors; for the count of Toulouse it on several occasions manages the town of Narbonne revolted against its bishop and the Inquisition (between 1234 and 1242); with Raimond Trencavel it raises the Corbières against the king and carries out the head office of Carcassonne (1240) etc rewards some it receives strongholds in Lauragais, Roussillon and with Majorque.

With the service of king de France

But after its suzerains made definitively peace with Louis IX, Olivier puts himself at the service of king de France as from 1245. During VIIe crusade, Olivier, to whom it king entrusted the load of Master of the principal rafters (that is to say chief of artillery), is distinguished by defending Damiette (Egypt, 1250) and by saving Joinville with Baniyas (Israel, 1253). Recognizing, holy Louis returns to Olivier his seigniory of Termenès. Returned to France in 1255, Olivier puts a term at the pacification of Languedoc by obtaining the rendering of the castle of Quéribus (1255), then goes up to the court where he plays a part of adviser near the king for the businesses concerning Languedoc, the Aragon and the Castille. Familiar also of Jacques Ier d' Aragon, Olivier is undoubtedly one of the craftsmen of the treated of Corbeil (1258) passed between the two kings and who fixed for four centuries the border between Aragon and France.

With the service of God

Starting from 1257 Olivier is worked by the safety of its heart and decides to put itself at the service of God. In a few years it liquidates its seigniory of which the castle of Aguilar which it had made build, to distribute of the considerable gifts to the abbey of Fontfroide and other religious establishments, and to finance a military Holy Land forwarding. It goes back there in 1264 to the head of a royal quota, then becomes in 1269 seneshal of the Royaume of Jerusalem, i.e. chief of the Holy Armies where it carries out an active fight against the Moslems. It takes part in the Eighth crusade by joining Louis IX with Tunis (1270) then sets out again out of Holy Land with the head of a new quota balanced by the pope and the king (1274). It dies there on August 12th, 1274. Perhaps Olivier, if it were not buried out of Holy Land, rests in Fontfroide, against the vault Saint-Bernard which it had made build.

While joining itself with the Catholic church and king de France, Olivier de Termes involved with him all his entourage, and undoubtedly largely facilitated some of the broad objectives of king de France and the Church: the integration of the Languedoc in France, the fight against the heresy cathare, the construction of a modern Church in Languedoc, and the fight against the Moslems

Sources

• Langlois (Gauthier). - Olivier de Termes, the cathare and the crusader (about 1200-1274), Toulouse: Privat editions, 2001,288 p. (Collection cathare Field).
• Olivier de Termes, the cathare and the crusader: small biography, forum and documents on the personal site of G. Langlois.