Grand Master of the Templar Order

This article is about the highest rank of the Templar Order. You may be looking for other uses of the title.

The emblem of the Templar Order

The title of Grand Master is one of the highest ranks of the Templar Order. Originally, it was the organization's supreme head, but evolution over the centuries led to this status being superseded by newly-created authorities such as the Guardians and the General of the Cross. Since the establishment of the Order's major branches, the title has designated the Order's Rite leaders, each corresponding to a specific geographic region, where they serve as the highest authority.

During the times of the Order of the Ancients, the rank was known under different names depending on the region, with the Persian branch of the Order using the title of Ra's Al-Af'a (English: Head of the Snake) to designate its leader, while the Anglo-Saxon branch used the title of Grand Maegester instead. The rank was also synonymous with that of "Father of Understanding", or simply "The Father". This term was adopted from the similarly-named title within the ruling triumvirate of Isu society, in which the Father of Understanding ruled alongside the Mother of Wisdom and the Sacred Voice.

Having previously borne more public faces, most Grand Masters were better known than their Assassin counterparts. However, as the Templars slipped into the shadows following their presumed public defeat in the 14th century, their leaders' identities eventually fell from the public consciousness.

By the 17th century, the Templars were no longer ruled by a single Grand Master or independent leaders but instead by two councils of the Order's most prestigious members, the Inner Sanctum and the Council of Elders. The Sanctum was in charge of creating a globalized plan for the Order, ensuring the Rites' members' cooperation, and preventing any corruption of the Templar ideals, while the Council maintained an advisory role meant to maintain the Order's integrity according to the Templar Code. While still in charge of their respective and autonomous Rites, the Grand Masters were nevertheless accountable to the Inner Sanctum and their inquisitor, the feared Black Crosses. Furthermore, the Inner Sanctum was in charge of promoting the Grand Masters, keeping their numbers under strict control.

While it was commonly assumed that all Templar leaders were drawn from the stock of Western nobility, due to the prominence of the front-organization that was the Knights Templar during the Middle Ages, the truth was that as the Order developed, diversified, and relocated, many different people of various ethnic backgrounds and cultural heritages had assumed the mantle of Grand Master throughout the Templars' longevity.

Structure

Origins

"The Order of Ancients argues for a hierarchy that flies in the face of God's purpose. They view men and woman as debased and corrupt, borne of evil intent. Yet they worship men they belive were their makers. Akin to a hammer loving the nail, they cannot see outside of their own hermetic system. They are not wrong to belive that there must be order in the world for peace to flourish. But they are wrong about the source of this order. Man was made in the image of God. God is the source of the universe's order. Therefore man need appeal only to God for guidance. "

―Alfred the Great in his commentary, 870s.

During the transition from the Order of the Ancients to the Templar Order, King Alfred of Wessex inherited the title of Grand Maegester from his older brother Æthelred I following the latter's death. As his ascension had been involuntary and he secretly despised the Ancients' veneration of the Isu, Alfred began planning the downfall of the Order using the pseudonym of "A Poor Fellow-Soldier of Christ", recruiting Wincestre's reeve Goodwin as his personal informant and using a hidden study in The Old Minster as a base of operations.

Alfred requesting Eivor's help to eliminate the Order in Wincestre

Once Alfred learned that the Hidden One Hytham ran his group's operations from within the Raven Clan's settlement of Ravensthorpe, he used Hytham's affiliation with Eivor Varinsdottir to make the latter unwittingly aid his schemes by eliminating the Order's agents in the cities of Lunden and Jorvik. When the Order'sPalatinus Fulke uncovered Alfred's "association" with the Poor Fellow-Soldier and tasked her fellow Ancients Selwyn, Hilda, and Ealhferth with ensuring the king was "burned to ash" for his betrayal, Alfred personally enlisted Eivor's aid to eliminate the Order members hunting him.

Following the Vikings' pyrrhic victory against his army at Cippanhamm, Alfred lived in exile as a commoner in the village of Athelnay in the west of Hamtunscire and sent a final letter to Hytham that invited Eivor to the village to discuss the Order and his true allegiance. Eivor accepted the invitation and was told of Alfred's identity as both the Poor Fellow-Soldier and the Order's Grand Maegest, while the king also elaborated on his motives for bringing down the Ancients.

Alfred's final meeting with Eivor

Eventually, Alfred returned from exile and rallied another army to defeat Guthrum's forces at the Battle of Edington. This led to the Treaty of Wedmore, which saw Guthrum's conversion to Christianity and departure from Wessex, and the official establishment of Danelaw in eastern and northern England. Circa 889, Alfred called on Eivor to meet him at the Old Minster in Wincestre one last time, where he disclosed to her that Guthrum had indeed surrendered and sworn a treaty. He then extended her an offer to serve him and Christ as a lord of Mercia and join his rapidly growing Order, but Eivor politely turned him down.

Purposes

As the first Grand Master, Alfred created the foundations for the future of the Templar Order, whose primary purpose was to be an universal order welcoming members from all walks of life, united by a common desire to seek the betterment of man in God's name. A central value was the establishment of a strict opposition to the Ancients' Isu paganism, which Alfred viewed as heretical, although he did agree with one aspect of the Ancients' belief system: their pursuit of world peace. This purpose would remain a central value of the Templar Order well into the 21st century, when the then-Black Cross Juhani Otso Berg began investigating the modern Templars' corruption, uncovered the existence of the Instruments of the First Will who sought to restore the Isu as humanity's rulers, and successfully purged them after collaborating with the Assassins. Much like Alfred, the Templars believed the Instruments' veneration of the Isu to be "blasphemy" against humanity.

Another purpose was Christian Monarchy under the Divine right of kings, as the central religious and political doctrine for the Order, using these purposes to building up his newly founded Order, giving out Lordship and treaties to gain members and secure territory across England both for the Order and in the name of God. Having succeeded with the Christianisation and lordship of Æthelstan (formerly Guthrum) as King of East Anglia but failed to convince Eivor. It is unknown if, to what what extent Æthelstan were aware of Alfred's Order after these treaties. However, the use of feudal monarchies, the church and nobility to control would remain a central value until the 18th century, the Age of Enlightenment and emergence of classical liberalism and Capitalism, supported by the Templar Order, alongside the major reform of the Templar Order by Grand Master François-Thomas Germain based on Jacques de Molay's Codex Pater Intellectus for this transition of society under the leadership of the Inner Sanctum. that also lasted to the 21st century and the foundation of Abstergo Industries, the modern primary front of the Templar Order.

Training

"It is a requirement when you are raised in the manner that I was. Perception is fundamental to the Order. It guides the feet when running and climbing. Informs the hands when striking and fighting. But most important, it transforms the senses. And we begin to know the world in a different way."

―Haytham Kenway discussing his training with Charles Lee, 1754.

Élise de la Serre training with Frederick Weatherall

The Templar Order requires that any member trained to become a Grand Master is prepared to make difficult decisions and confident in their own leadership abilities before being promoted. To uphold the Templar belief of killing for efficiency instead of emotional grounds, they are expected to be resourceful to further the Templars' ideals in pursuit of the greater good. The strongest minds among the Order are meant to bear the responsibility of the peoples' will for freedom and responsibility; therefore they themselves seek to take the mantle of leadership in society and expect the people to fall in line because, in their view, "mankind was built to serve". Additionally, both combat and stratagem are part of their training. The training itself is under another Grand Master, where it is a chosen Templar being trained, or it is a birthright in a Templar lineage that ruled a Rite. After the Inner Sanctum's foundation, promotions to Grand Master came under their control.

Robert thwarting Altaïr's assassination attempt

Even with their years training from either military ranks to official Templar training, many Grand Masters that have been capable of directly fighting various ranks of Assassins, are not capable to survive the fight and fewer have fought an Assassin and been able to escape. The most skilled of Grand Masters, capable of fighting an Assassin Mentor successfully is a rare skill, such as the defeat of the Mentor Achilles Davenport by Grand Master Haytham and only that was temporary as his own son, the Colonial Assassin Connor were able to defeat Haytham in combat years later. However, Haytham was also conflicted, leaving his journal for him and being emotionally compromised. The possession of various Pieces of Eden have only prolonged a Grand Masters fight against Assassins, giving them various powers to gain an advantage, albeit a temporary one as Assassins have defeated them. With some Grand Masters simply choosing to flee rather than attempting to fight directly and with defeat of many Grand Masters by combat, the asassination of a Grand Master is also rare and so was the feat of thwarting an assassination.

Authority

Main article: Inner Sanctum of the Templar Order

Main article: Templar Rite

"As a Master Templar, you have learned your lessons well, and have earned this opportunity. You are my eyes and ears in the New World now. Do not fail me, Lawrence."

―Reginald Birch in a letter to Lawrence Washington, 1738.

A Grand Master controls a specific geographic region and their Rite is named after it. Under their leadership was the ability to appoint a Lieutenant as their second-in-command and main advisor. While Master Templars have lead in Rites without a Grand Master, Master Templars also serve under the command of Grand Masters too, like Joffre of the Shanghai Rite, Shay Cormac and the Parisian Templar Pierre de Lancre. Despite holding the highest attainable rank within their Rite, a Grand Master is not all-powerful and is dependent on the support of their fellow Templars and other Rites. Nevertheless, their duties are essential to the proper functioning of the Templar Order as a whole, so Grand Masters may elect to have bodyguards to protect them at all times, as were the cases with Frederick Weatherall for the de la Serre family, and El Tiburón for Laureano de Torres y Ayala. With the Grand Master themselves being the ruling authority for their own Rite's plans, all members required their superior's approval to enact any changes. The subordinative Templar ranks answering to the entire leadership are Seneschals, Advisor, Commanders, Preceptors, Knights, Warriors, Clerics, and finally, the Disciples.

Officer Davidson confronted by Aveline while supporting the Colonial Rite

A Grand Master's power can extend beyond their own Rite, as their higher rank allows them to have influence over other Rites' members, including Master Templars. To extend their reach further without breaking their own duties, Grand Masters could appoint agents to investigate the Order's operations elsewhere, such as Grand Master Reginald Birch charging John Harrison with finding Isu sites and artifacts and Haytham Kenway ordering Shay Cormac to recover the Precursor box. Other tasks include collecting funds and backing either local rebels or established governments by providing needed manpower, arms, medical supplies, and food in exchange for a Rite's intelligence and support. If needed, sending a prominent Templar member to support specific campaigns can also be done.

However, this does not mean a Grand Master can neglect their own Rite's goals to actively participate in the duties of other Templars. A prominent example of this was the Italian Rite's Grand Master Rodrigo Borgia, who was so influential over the other European Templars that the Order became blinded by greed and personal ambition above the Templar principles; for this reason, modern Templars regard this era is as a "Dark Age of the Order". In stark contrast, Reginald Birch, despite his fanatical obsession with the Isu, did not neglect his duties as Grand Master in England, appointing Haytham Kenway to lead the search for the Grand Temple while he focused on the Rite's other goals.

Élise with Jennifer Scott, on a mission by the British Rite

The Grand Master would also occasionally meet with other Rites' Templars to discuss domestic and global politics, and the Order's own conditions, while also communicating through their various businesses and organizations such as Templar fleets, like the one commanded by Shay Cormac. An advantage of being Grand Master is a personal network that functions as their eyes and ears everywhere, and they get regular updates from agents, especially Templars directly under their command. Visiting Templars have to notify the Rite of their arrival in advance by using the local Templars within their own Rite that are associated with the Rite visited to send it and as quest, must participate in plans in the visited region in exchange for support, even as a Templar with the Grand Master position as a birthright.

Haytham inducting Charles Lee into the Order

Another responsibility of the Grand Master is the initiation of new Templar members, as well as the exile of those who have betrayed the Order, either directly or indirectly and even their execution for breaking Templar principles for personal gain and the killing of a Grand Master for revenge. The promotion, writing and eventual discovery of wanting peace with the Assassins would be treason and cause for execution be it a ruling Grand Master, one in training and the imprisoning of a Templar on suspicion of being allied with them. Even basic Templar curtesy for visiting Templars would be uplifted to execute these Templars for breaking Templar principles.

After the Inner Sanctum's founding, the Grand Masters' powers were kept under check by the Black Crosses, whose main objective was to keep the various Rites free of corruption. If a Grand Master was found guilty of breaking the Order's principles, the Black Cross held the authority to execute them on the spot. During an ongoing investigation, all Templars, including the Grand Master, were obliged to assist the Black Cross by providing them with any information or resources they demanded, but were otherwise forbidden from interfering with the investigation or even speaking of their interactions with the Black Cross. As of the 21st century, the Inner Sanctum also strictly regulates the number of Grand Masters worldwide, all of whom became answerable to Guardians and the General of the Cross.

Accession

"When our brother Templars see the old institutions crumble, they will adapt."

―François-Thomas Germain to Élise de la Serre and Arno Dorian, 1794.

A Templar aiming to become the Grand Master must quickly recruit members within the group before initiating a coup, and would ideally also contact other Rites to convince them that the action is necessary. A Grand Master being the ruling authority, but being excessively undermined and questioned by their subordinates threatens their own legitimacy, as would failing to maintain their support.

Cesare arguing with Rodrigo about power

During the Renaissance, the Italian Templar Cesare Borgia gathered supporters and assumed de facto leadership of the Rite from his father Rodrigo. With his cousin Juan providing funds, the French Army general Octavian de Valois offering military support, and his executioner Micheletto Corella ensuring that puppets and generals obeyed him, Cesare led the Templars to untold power over Italy, though this was all for personal ambition above Templar principles. When Rodrigo refused to fund Cesare's unauthorized campaigns following both Juan's and Octavian's assassinations, Cesare killed him in a blind rage and became the uncontested Grand Master.

François de la Serre killed in Germain's coup

In the lead up to the French Revolution, when the Templars were led by the Inner Sanctum, Grand Master François de la Serre was unaware that his entire inner circle except Chrétien Lafrenière had pledged allegiance to the recently-exiled François-Thomas Germain, who had successfully petitioned the American, Italian, and Spanish Rites for support following his banishment. After Germain had de la Serre assassinated in a coup and began purging all French Templars opposing him, Chrétien and François' daughter Élise<—who had been presumed the heir apparent—petitioned the Outer Temple under the Inner Sanctum for aid, but they only lent their sympathies, believing there was no need for intervention since the Rite ran smoothly under Germain's control after having successfully defeated the last organised effort to regain control of the Rite by Chrétien, whom managed to get support and weapons by the Austrian Rite. The other Rites eventually began sanctioning the de la Serre faction, following the campaigns by the Carroll family of the British Rite after their conflicts with Elise for the letters of Haytham Kenway, exposing its content on collaborating with the Assassins to end their war, a view the Carroll`s claimed would have had Haytham executed for treason. These same views were expressed in her own letters to Grand Master François and influenced him to meet the French Mentor Mirabeau, were they established a truce between both Orders in France.

Starrick meeting with Twopenny and the Earl of Cardigan

Conversely, should a competitor fail to attract sufficient backing, as happened to the 19th-century British Templar Cavanagh when he sought to overthrow Crawford Starrick with an Apple of Eden, they will only facilitate their own end, since Starrick soon learned of Cavanagh's intentions and ordered his death. This likewise applies to defending incumbents, as seen not just in the Renaissance with Rodrigo Borgia within the Roman Rite but again in the late 18th century with the Parisian Rite under the Inner Sanctum.

In the event of a Grand Master's untimely death, a successor may be appointed as a Rite's de facto leader until a new Grand Master is officially elected, as was the case during the Third Crusade when Basilisk assumed temporary leadership of the Knights Templar following Grand Master Gerard de Ridefort's death. The same is true in the case of Templar leaders who did not hold the title of Grand Master, such as James Wardrop succeeding Lawrence Washington as leader of the Templars in the Thirteen Colonies. There have also been several instances of a Grand Master being chosen by the Rite itself for their own qualities as leaders, such as Ahmet becoming Grand Master of the Byzantine Rite while the long-time Templar Manuel Palaiologos was demoted to his second-in-command, and Crawford Starrick's rise in the British Rite until he was appointed Grand Master. The transition between Grand Masters under the Inner Sanctum were controlled by preparing the future Grand Master Chiang Kai-shek for the position, meanwhile Stirling Fessenden became an official Grand Master because the Chinese Assassins had killed Grand Master Sun Yat-sen. During this transition, the Black Cross had discovered Chiang had betrayed them after securing the support of the Templar Order.

Reforms

"They become increasingly aware of our existence. We can no longer rely on the divine right of the aristocracy to maintain control. We need a new system, something much more subtle."

―An unidentified Templar about the Order's transition from feudal monarchies to capitalism.

King Philip IV's men arresting de Molay

The first major reform of the Templar Order was done by the French knight and Grand Master Hugues de Payens and his Templar colleague Bernard de Clairvaux in the 12th century. To secure an alliance with the Church, Bernard sent nine trusted men to the Holy Land in search of the Temple of Solomon. After the Templars returned nine years later, the Order was reformed when Payens and Bernard co-created the Latin Rule and gained the support of the Church. For their efforts to turn the Templar Order into a public organization, the organization was officially recognized as the Order of Knights Templars during the Council of Troyes in 1129. This marked the beginning of a Golden Age for the Order that lasted almost two centuries, during which the Templars influenced countless kings, popes, and men of science.

Germain and his guards during his Templar revolution

During another major reform, while being lead by the Inner Sanctum, the Templars already were supportive of the classical liberalism ideals that emerged during the Age of Enlightenment, in which intellectuals such as Isaac Newton, Baruch Spinoza, John Locke, and Francis Bacon represented a new emerging society of science and technology. After François-Thomas Germain joined the Parisian Rite and became Grand Master de la Serre's lieutenant, he discovered Jacques de Molay's Codex Pater Intellectus and advocated for abolishing the monarchy to create a capitalist society. However, de la Serre expelled Germain for espousing ideals from de Molay's controversial work deemed heresy, but was oblivious to Germain recruiting followers. The reformed Rite aimed to bring about de Molay's proposed changes for a society and with critical support from the Outer Temple, gradually redirected the entire Templar Order to adopt this policy under the leadership of the Inner Sanctum.

History

Order of the Ancients

Main article: Grand Maegester of the Order of the Ancients

Main article: Ra's Al-Af'a

Prior to the establishment of the Templar Order, the Order of the Ancients used various titles to denote the leaders of its different branches around the world. In 44 BCE, when the Hidden One Aya the Ancient Lucius Septimius if Gaius Julius Caesar was the King of the Order, Septimius corrected her, claiming that Caesar was the "Father of Understanding". Following the Hidden Ones' assassination of Caesar, his adoptive son Octavian succeeded him as leader of the Order.

In the 9th century, the Order's leader in the Abbasid Caliphate was called the Ra's Al-Af'a, or the "Head of the Snake". By the 860s, the position had been attained by the royal concubine Qabiha, whose Order eventually fell to the Hidden Ones based in Alamut while Qabiha herself was killed by the Master Assassin Roshan.

Alfred and Æthelred, Kings of Wessex and Grand Maegesters of the Order

In the case of the Order's Anglo-Saxon branch based in Great Britain, the organization was headed by a Grand Maegester, who was also known by the title of "The Father". During the 9th century, the position was held by members of the House of Wessex, beginning with King Æthelwulf. After his death, King Ælla of Northumbria, another high-ranking Order member, was expected to succeed him as Grand Maegester, but due to his own demise at the hands of the Great Heathen Army, the title passed down to Æthelwulf's son Æthelred I.

In 871, Æthelred died from wounds sustained during the Battle of Meretun, and his younger brother Alfred succeeded him as both King of Wessex and Grand Maegester of the Order. Unlike his father and brother, however, Alfred was against the Order's beliefs and secretly sought to bring about its collapse.

Working under the pseudonym of a "Poor Fellow-Soldier of Christ", Alfred manipulated the Viking Eivor Varinsdottir into helping him achieve his goal, rendering the Order in Great Britain extinct and the title of Grand Maegester obsolete by 878. Alfred subsequently set about rebuilding the Order into a new organization that more closely followed his Christian beliefs, and became its first Grand Master.

Middle Ages

The first publicly known Grand Master of the Templar Order was the French knight Hugues de Payens. When he and his colleague Bernard de Clairvaux realized they needed the protection of the Church for their endeavors, they transformed the Templars into the publicly recognized military and monastic Order of the Knights Templar, trusted with the protection of pilgrims to the Holy Land, with Hugues becoming its first Grand Master in 1129.

Robert de Sablé leading the Templars to Masyaf

After two years without a Grand Master following Gerard de Ridefort's death, Robert de Sablé joined the Templar Order and reigned as the Grand Master of the Knights Templar during the year 1191. During his reign, he sought a Piece of Eden, specifically an Apple of Eden, intending to use it to achieve the Order's goal of establishing a New World Order. After losing the Apple, he launched an attack on the Levantine Assassins' stronghold of Masyaf to recover it, but was defeated. Later on, during the Battle of Arsuf, he was killed by his rival, the Assassin Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad.

After Robert's death, Armand Bouchart took on the mantle of Grand Master as he and the Templars retreated to Cyprus. However, Altaïr pursued him and the two fought in the Templar Archive after the Assassin foiled the Grand Master's plans, resulting in Altaïr's victory and the Templars losing another leader.

During the early 14th century, the French Assassins influenced King Philip IV into conspiring against the Templars, who he branded as heretics. Hundreds of them were ordered arrested, with the last official Grand Master, Jacques de Molay, understanding that the Order would not survive as a public organization. With this, he allowed himself to be burned at the stake, saving the lives of his brethren and making his enemies believe that the Templars were finished, though in reality, the Order continued to exist underground.

Renaissance

Cesare Borgia and his father Rodrigo

In 1476, the Italian Rite came under the leadership of the Spanish-born Rodrigo Borgia, originally a cardinal under Pope Sixtus IV. Operating from Rome, Rodrigo's primary objective was to unite Italy under the Templar banner, however, the Italian Templars strayed far from the main Templar ideology and used the Order as a way to achieve and sustain power for themselves. Despite facing complications from the Italian Assassins, mainly Ezio Auditore, Rodrigo managed to bribe the other cardinals and was appointed Pope during the 1492 papal conclave convened after Pope Innocent III's death, taking on the name Alexander VI.

Rodrigo then secured the Church's power for the Templars, and from the Vatican, he oversaw the progress of the other Templars in Europe, including England and Spain. However, by 1500, Rodrigo's resolve had weakened, and control over the order fell to his son Cesare Borgia, who acted as the de facto Grand Master.

After Cesare killed his father in August 1503, he became the official Grand Master of the Order, though without his father's power in the church, he could not maintain the same influence in Europe that his father had. With Pope Julius II's ascension in December, he ordered Cesare's arrest and imprisonment in the Castillo de la Mota, but Cesare escaped two years later and fled to his Navarrese brother-in-law King John III in Spain. Ezio ultimately killed the Grand Master during Cesare's siege of Viana in 1507, destabilizing the Templars in Europe and causing them to temporarily withdraw.

Circa 1509, the Ottoman Prince Ahmet became the Byzantine Rite's Grand Master and sought to acquire the Masyaf Keys and open the library of Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad, believing the knowledge inside could lead the Order into a new era. However, Ezio also opposed his efforts with assistance from the Ottoman Assassins, successfully driving the Templars out of the Empire while Ahmet's brother Selim I killed personally killed him for betraying his country.

Colonial era

Laureano Torres explaining his plans with the Observatory

During the time of colonial expansion by the major European empires, the Cuban governor Laureano de Torres y Ayala assumed the role of the Caribbean Templars' Grand Master. Operating out of Havana, he sought the fabled Observatory in order to spy upon and thus bend the leaders of the European colonial empires to Templar will, ensuring peace through order. Before he could succeed in his goal, the pirate-turned-Assassin Edward Kenway killed him in 1722.

In Britain, the local Rite's Grand Master was Reginald Birch, an Englishman who used the pretext of business to cover his affiliations. He was responsible for the growth of Templar influence in the British colonies, sending over Haytham Kenway to lead them. Upon his arrival in the colonies, Haytham gathered his co-conspirators, who had been recruited and located by Birch, and became the first Grand Master of the newly-founded Colonial Rite.

Haytham Kenway leading the Colonial Templars

During the Seven Years' War, the Colonial Rite grew in power, acquiring such influence that they soon posed a serious threat to the Colonial Assassins under Achilles Davenport. At the time, the Assassins were more preoccupied with investigating Pieces of Eden and largely ignored the organization's new leadership, an error that proved fatal. Shortly after founding the Colonial Rite, Haytham led the rite in an assault against the Assassins. Aided by the Assassin turncoat Shay Cormac and led on the field by Haytham himself, the Templars removed key figures in the Brotherhood, greatly reducing the Assassins' presence. This cumulated in an attack on the Davenport Homestead in 1763, where the remaining Assassins were killed and Achilles was exiled on the condition that he never revive the Brotherhood, thus effectively exterminating the Colonial branch.

In 1781, the title of Grand Master was bestowed upon Charles Lee, following Haytham's death during the siege of Fort George at the hands of his son, the Assassin Connor. Lee, as the only Templar conspirator left from Haytham's rule, attempted to flee back to England by ship after his initial plan to kill Connor failed. He was unsuccessful however, and Connor assassinated him inside the tavern Last Drink in 1782.

In Europe, François de la Serre had risen to the position of Grand Master of the Parisian Rite. However, he was ultimately deposed in a coup orchestrated by François-Thomas Germain, who usurped the position following de la Serre's death. Germain's ascension was opposed by de la Serre's daughter Élise, who worked with her lover, the French Assassin Arno Dorian, to hunt the Grand Master and his allies, eventually succeeding in killing Germain in 1794.

Early modern era

Grand Master Crawford Starrick of the British Rite

By 1868, the British Rite was controlled by Crawford Starrick, who expanded the Templars' reach to every major corner of industrialized society, from the highest official to the lowest criminal. He was opposed by the few remaining Assassins in London, namely, Henry Green, and the Frye twins Jacob and Evie, who killed Starrick during his quest for a Shroud of Eden, freeing London from Templar influence.

In 1925, Assassins killed the Chinese Rite's Grand Master Sun Yat-sen. He was succeeded by Stirling Fessenden, who hoped to recruit Chiang Kai-shek into the Order and have him become the new Grand Master. However, Chiang ultimately rejected Fessenden's offer and ended his alliance with the Templars after they helped him gain control of Shanghai.

By 1927, Thaddeus Gift had become the Grand Master of the British Rite, although he was a corrupt leader who used the Templars' connections to embezzle money for his personal gain. In retaliation for breaking the Order's principles, Gift was later assassinated by the Black Cross Albert Bolden.

Contemporary era

In 1937, the "Founders" created Abstergo Industries, which from that point on served as the Templars' public front. Though its highest-ranking employees all held leadership in the Order, there were multiple Grand Masters who still maintained control over their operations. As of 2014, there are three known Grand Masters operating respectively in Cuba, Mexico, and the United States. During this period, the Grand Masters were no longer the Templars' highest rank, instead answerable to the Guardians, who in turn answered to the General of the Cross.

Known Grand Masters

Order of the Ancients

Fathers of Understanding

Main article: Father of Understanding

• 
  Gaius Julius Caesar
  Rome
  c. 47 BCE – 44 BCE

Ra's Al-Afa's

Main article: Ra's Al-Af'a

• 
  Qabiha
  Abbasid Caliphate
  c. 860s

Grand Maegesters

Main article: Grand Maegester of the Order of the Ancients

• 
  Æthelwulf, King of Wessex
  England
  until 858
• 
  Æthelred I, King of Wessex
  England
  c. 865 – 871
• 
  Alfred the Great
  England
  871 – c. 873

Order of the Knights Templar

• 
  Hugues de Payens
  French Rite / Levantine Rite
  Knights Templar
  1118 – 1136
• 
  Gerard de Ridefort
  Levantine Rite
  Knights Templar
  1185 – 1189
• 
  Robert de Sablé
  Levantine Rite
  Knights Templar
  1190 – 1191
• 
  Armand Bouchart
  Levantine Rite
  1191 – 1193
• 
  Philippe du Plessis
  Levantine Rite
  Knights Templar
  1201 – 1208
• 
  Jacques de Molay
  French Rite
  Knights Templar
  1292 – 1312
• 
  Rodrigo Borgia
  Roman Rite
  1476 – 1503
• 
  Cesare Borgia
  Roman Rite
  1500 – 1503 (de facto)
  1503 – 1507 (de jure)
• 
  Ahmet
  Byzantine Rite
  c. 1509 – 1512
• 
  Alexandre de Hautecourt
  French Rite
  c. 1609
• 
  Laureano de Torres y Ayala
  West Indies Rite
  c. 1673 – 1722
• 
  Reginald Birch
  British Rite
  c. 1735 – 1757
• 
  Haytham Kenway
  Colonial Rite
  1754 – 1781
• 
  Charles Lee
  Colonial Rite
  1781 – 1782
• 
  François de la Serre
  French Rite
  1768 – 1789
• 
  François-Thomas Germain
  French Rite (radical faction)
  1789 – 1794
• 
  William M. Tweed
  American Rite
  c. 1863
• 
  Crawford Starrick
  British Rite
  until 1868
• 
  Thaddeus Gift
  British Rite
  until 1927
• 
  Sun Yat-sen
  Chinese Rite
  until 1925
• 
  Stirling Fessenden
  Chinese Rite
  began 1925
• 
  Alan Rikkin
  until 2016
• 
  American Grand Master
  American Rite
  c. 2014
• 
  Caribbean Grand Master
  West Indies Rite
  c. 2014
• 
  Mexican Grand Master
  Mexican Rite
  c. 2014

Behind the scenes

Assassin's Creed material occasionally identifies Assassins, including Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad, Mario Auditore, Mirabeau and Mujir as Grand Masters of the Assassin Order.