Two Weeks After The Journal Leak - r/TheEternalSoldier
u/DeepStateDigger: Okay I need everyone to stop what they're doing.
I know. I always say that. But this time I really mean it.
You know how the timeline established that he was involved in the Crusades? Both sides, 1096 to sometime in the 1200s? Fighting with the Crusaders at Antioch, then switching to advise Muslim forces because he figured out the Crusades were wrong?
I've been digging in medieval archives for three weeks.
I found his alias.
Not just his alias.
I found his RANK.
[1.2 million upvotes in 52 minutes]
u/TinfoilTina: WHAT RANK
u/DeepStateDigger: I'm going in order. Sit down.
So the Knights Templar were founded in 1119. Military order, protect Christian pilgrims in the Holy Land, answerable directly to the Pope. Famous. Powerful. Officially dissolved in 1312 when the French king decided he wanted their money.
Except — and historians have known this for a long time — the dissolution didn't actually dissolve everything. There are documented successor organisations. The paper trail continues. It goes places.
That's not what I'm here about today.
I'm here about a specific record I found in a digitised archive from the Vatican Library. A membership and ranks document from the Templar Order, circa 1150 AD.
[Uploads scan of medieval manuscript with translation]
u/MedievalHistorian: OH MY GOD
u/CrusadesScholar: IS THAT
u/DeepStateDigger: YES. KEEP READING.
The document is a formal record of the Templar hierarchy as it existed in 1150. Standard stuff at the top — Grand Master, Seneschal, Marshal, the usual structure.
And then at the very bottom, below all the standard ranks, separated by a line, in different ink, clearly added specifically and deliberately:
Summus Magister Maximus — Petros of Antioch
That's it. One name. One rank. No further explanation.
Except that "Summus Magister Maximus" is not a real Templar rank. It has never appeared in any other Templar document in recorded history. It does not exist in the official hierarchy. No historian has ever been able to explain it.
Until now.
[2.3 million upvotes — NEW RECORD]
u/LatinScholar: "Summus Magister Maximus" literally translates to "Highest Greatest Master." It's the most aggressively superlative title you could possibly construct in Latin. Whoever named this rank was not being subtle.
u/MedievalHistorian: I HAVE A PHD IN MEDIEVAL MILITARY ORDERS. I HAVE PUBLISHED TWO BOOKS ON THE TEMPLARS. I HAVE SEEN THIS DOCUMENT. I THOUGHT IT WAS A SCRIBAL ERROR.
IT WAS NOT A SCRIBAL ERROR.
u/DeepStateDigger: It was not a scribal error. Keep reading.
So who is Petros of Antioch?
I looked.
There are seven references to "Petros of Antioch" in the digitised medieval archive. SEVEN. Across different documents, different authors, different decades.
Here's what they say:
REFERENCE 1 — Chronicle of the First Crusade, anonymous, circa 1100:
"Among those who fought at the Siege of Antioch was a Greek warrior called Petros, whose origin no man knew with certainty. He fought without standard or sigil, and when asked his allegiance said only 'to the people inside the walls.' His knowledge of siege warfare was unlike any we had encountered. Some said he had seen Antioch built. This seemed impossible. No one asked him directly."
u/CrusadesScholar: "SOME SAID HE HAD SEEN ANTIOCH BUILT"
Antioch was founded in 300 BC.
He had absolutely seen Antioch built.
u/TinfoilTina: "no one asked him directly" THEY KNEW. THEY ALL KNEW AND NOBODY ASKED.
REFERENCE 2 — Letter from Templar Grand Master Hugh de Payens to Pope Honorius II, 1128:
"There is among our number a man called Petros, a Greek, who joined us at Antioch and has not left. He will not take the standard oaths, as he says he has taken oaths to more things than he can now remember and one more seems imprudent. He won't be given the standard ranks, as we don't think they are appropriate to his situation. He has, however, agreed to be named within our records. We have created a designation for him. He seems amused by this. I am not entirely sure why."
u/DeepStateDigger: "HE HAS TAKEN OATHS TO MORE THINGS THAN HE CAN NOW REMEMBER"
He refused the Templar oath because HE HAD TAKEN TOO MANY OATHS ALREADY
u/HistoryNerd_PhD: "ONE MORE SEEMS IMPRUDENT"
2,500 years of accumulated oath commitments and he's drawing the line at the Templars on the grounds of practicality
u/LegalEagle_Esq: From a legal standpoint: this is the most reasonable position I have ever heard. He is absolutely right. Oath management is a real concern.
u/MedievalHistorian: I AM SITTING ON MY FLOOR. THE GRAND MASTER OF THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR WROTE TO THE POPE ABOUT THIS MAN AND SAID HE "SEEMS AMUSED." HE WAS AMUSED. OF COURSE HE WAS AMUSED.
REFERENCE 3 — Internal Templar dispatch, 1147:
"Petros of Antioch has departed our company. He says the Crusade has gone wrong and he will not continue with it. He says this with the manner of a man who has watched things go wrong many times and recognises the pattern early. When the Marshal asked how he could be certain, he said 'experience.' When asked how much experience, he did not answer. He left his Templar mantle folded on a chair. He took his sword."
u/DeepStateDigger: He FOLDED HIS MANTLE AND LEFT IT ON A CHAIR
He didn't dramatically quit. He didn't make a speech. He just folded his cloak, took his sword, and walked out.
u/PerseusProbably: The "experience" line.
"How can you be certain it's gone wrong?"
"Experience."
"How much experience?"
silence
He's been doing this response for 2,500 years and it never stops working.
u/CrusadesScholar: He recognised the Second Crusade was wrong and LEFT. He just LEFT. He folded his mantle like a reasonable person and walked out.
u/HistoricalContext: For those who don't know: the Second Crusade was, in fact, a disaster that achieved nothing and caused enormous suffering. He was correct. He is always correct. Nobody ever listens until it's too late.
REFERENCE 4 — Islamic chronicle, Damascus, circa 1150, translated:
"There came to our advisors a man who called himself Petros, formerly of the Frankish forces, who said he had decided they were wrong and wished to help reduce harm on all sides. He spoke Arabic without difficulty. He also spoke the dialect of the Abbasid court, which he said he had learned 'some time ago.' He gave tactical counsel that saved many lives. He did not accept payment. When asked why he helped, he said 'because someone has to.' He left after three months. We do not know where he went."
u/DeepStateDigger: HE SWITCHED SIDES.
He fought WITH the Crusaders at Antioch in 1096. Spent fifty years with the Templars. Then in 1150 he LEFT and went to advise the people the Crusaders were fighting.
Because he decided the Crusade was wrong.
Because "someone has to."
u/IslamicHistoryScholar: I study medieval Islamic history. This chronicle is real. I have cited it. The "foreign advisor" has been a historical mystery for 900 years.
IT WAS HIM.
u/MoralCompassCheck: "Because someone has to."
He has been saying this for 2,500 years. Thermopylae. Caesar. The Crusades. WWII. Always the same answer.
Because someone has to.
u/SomethingInMyEye: I'm fine. I'm completely fine.
REFERENCE 5 — Vatican administrative record, 1150:
"The rank of Summus Magister Maximus, created within the Templar Order for the individual known as Petros of Antioch, is hereby noted in the Vatican record. No further definition of this rank is provided as the recipient declined to have one written, stating that 'definitions have a way of becoming arguments.' The rank is noted as unique, permanent, and non-transferable. Should the individual ever require recognition within Church structures, this record will serve as documentation.
The individual was not present at the noting of this record. The Grand Master reports he was 'somewhere near Damascus.' The Grand Master reports this without visible surprise."
u/DeepStateDigger: THE VATICAN HAS HIS RANK ON FILE
THE RANK HE NEGOTIATED WITH THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR IS IN THE OFFICIAL VATICAN RECORD
u/CatholicScholar: I work for the Vatican Archives.
I know this document.
I have always assumed it was a clerical anomaly.
I need to make some phone calls.
u/LatinScholar: "Definitions have a way of becoming arguments."
He refused to have his rank defined because DEFINITIONS BECOME ARGUMENTS.
After 2,500 years of watching humans argue about definitions, he refused to create another one. This is the most battle-hardened administrative decision I have ever read.
u/LegalEagle_Esq: I cannot stress enough how correct he is. Definitions always become arguments. He has been alive long enough to know this and acted accordingly.
u/DeepStateDigger: THERE ARE TWO MORE REFERENCES. STAY WITH ME.
REFERENCE 6 — Letter from Templar Grand Master Everard des Barres to the Order's chapter, 1150:
"Regarding the matter of Petros of Antioch and his departure: the rank of Summus Magister Maximus remains on our records at his request, should he choose to invoke it. He said he probably would not need to but 'one never knows.' He said we should also understand that if he ever invoked it, it would be for something he found 'entertaining rather than urgent' and we should be prepared for that.
Several brothers asked if we should attempt to locate him and request his return.
I have decided we should not. Some things are not ours to request.
He will return if he chooses to. He always does."
u/DeepStateDigger: "ENTERTAINING RATHER THAN URGENT"
HE TOLD THEM IN 1150 THAT IF HE EVER INVOKED THE RANK IT WOULD BE FOR SOMETHING HE FOUND ENTERTAINING
u/TinfoilTina: AND THEN HE USED IT IN 1995 TO GET OUT OF A CUSTODY THING IN PARIS OVER A CROISSANT
u/HistoryNerd_PhD: 845 YEARS LATER HE USED THE RANK FOR EXACTLY WHAT HE SAID HE WOULD USE IT FOR
u/PerseusProbably: He told them. IN 1150. He said "entertaining rather than urgent." He planned this. He has been planning this specific joke and used it EIGHT HUNDRED AND FORTY FIVE YEARS LATER.
u/MedievalHistorian: I need to go outside. I need to stand in the fresh air and think about what I have learned today.
REFERENCE 7 — The final reference. This one is not from a medieval document.
This one is from a 2010 CIA internal memo, recently declassified, that I should not have access to but do.
The memo was written by an analyst reviewing historical records of organisations with ongoing surveillance flags.
It reads:
"Cross-referencing medieval Templar records with known subject aliases, we find a probable match between 'Petros of Antioch' (Templar records, 1096-1147) and the subject. The rank of Summus Magister Maximus appears to remain active within current Templar successor structures. Subject has been observed to reference this rank on at least two occasions in the past thirty years. Recommend flagging any Templar-adjacent organisations for monitoring.
Note: We attempted to contact the relevant organisations for confirmation. They said, and I am quoting directly, 'we don't discuss Petros.' This is being filed under 'confirmed.'"
u/DeepStateDigger: "WE DON'T DISCUSS PETROS."
THAT'S IT. THAT'S THE CONFIRMATION.
THE KNIGHTS TEMPLAR — OR WHOEVER THEY ARE NOW — STILL WON'T DISCUSS HIM.
900 YEARS LATER AND "WE DON'T DISCUSS PETROS" IS STILL THE OFFICIAL POSITION.
[4.1 million upvotes — DESTROYED ALL PREVIOUS RECORDS]
u/TinfoilTina: WE DON'T DISCUSS PETROS
u/HistoryNerd_PhD: WE DON'T DISCUSS PETROS
u/MedievalHistorian: I HAVE TWO PHDS AND I AM ON MY FLOOR AND WE DON'T DISCUSS PETROS
u/CrusadesScholar: He fought in the First Crusade. He spent 50 years with the Templars. He got a custom rank because existing ones were inappropriate. He told them in 1150 he'd use it for something entertaining. He used it 845 years later for a croissant incident. WE DON'T DISCUSS PETROS.
u/LatinScholar: The rank translates to "Highest Greatest Master." The most superlative possible title. Created for one specific person. Still active. Still on Vatican record. WE DON'T DISCUSS PETROS.
u/IslamicHistoryScholar: He fought for both sides. He saved lives on both sides. He left when the cause went wrong. He didn't explain himself. He said "because someone has to." WE DON'T DISCUSS PETROS.
The Specialist Reactions:
u/VaticanScholar: I have worked in the Vatican Archives for eleven years.
I am looking at the original of Reference 5 right now.
It is real. I have always known it was real. I filed it under "administrative anomaly — Templar dissolution records."
It is not an anomaly.
I need to call my supervisor.
My supervisor is going to need to call their supervisor.
This goes very high.
u/DeepStateDigger: HOW HIGHu/VaticanScholar: Very.u/DeepStateDigger: IS HIS HOLINESS GOING TO FIND OUTu/VaticanScholar: His Holiness already knows about the vault and the cup and the tablets.His Holiness is going to find out that the man he has coffee with is also on Vatican record as Summus Magister Maximus of the Knights Templar since 1150.I expect the next coffee meeting will be interesting.
u/CrusadesScholar_Retiring: I have spent thirty years studying the Crusades.
I have always known about the "foreign advisor" in the Islamic chronicle. I wrote a paper about him in 1998. My conclusion was "identity unknown, probably a mercenary of Greek origin."
He was not a mercenary.
He was a 1,600-year-old immortal soldier who decided the Crusaders were wrong and switched sides to reduce casualties on both fronts.
And then he got a rank from the opposing military order because they couldn't figure out what else to call him.
I am retiring.
Not immediately. But soon.
I have published everything I'm going to publish.
u/DeepStateDigger: Please don't retire. We need you.u/CrusadesScholar_Retiring: I will finish my current book.The current book is now going to have a very different conclusion.The conclusion is going to be: we were all wrong. He was there. He saw everything. He left when it went wrong. WE DON'T DISCUSS PETROS.
u/TemplarSuccessorWatcher: I study documented successor organisations of the Knights Templar. There are several, with varying claims to historical continuity.
I reached out to three of them today regarding "Petros of Antioch" and the rank of Summus Magister Maximus.
Response from Organisation 1: "We have no comment on this matter."
Response from Organisation 2: "This line of inquiry is closed."
Response from Organisation 3: They didn't respond. But someone accessed my research database forty minutes after I sent the inquiry. Professional access. Very clean. No trace except the timestamp.
All three responses are, in their own way, confirmations.
WE DON'T DISCUSS PETROS.
u/DeepStateDigger: THEY'RE WATCHING THE THREADu/TemplarSuccessorWatcher: Almost certainly.Hello, if you're reading this. Your records are extraordinary. Your founder's administrative instincts in 1150 were excellent. The "definitions become arguments" position was prescient and correct.We don't discuss Petros.u/TinfoilTina: i love this subreddit so much
The Master Thread Update:
u/DeepStateDigger: UPDATED: Everything We Know About Petros of Antioch
ALIAS: Petros of Antioch (used approximately 1096-1150) LOCATION: First Crusade, Siege of Antioch, 1096 ORGANISATION: Knights Templar, founded 1119 RANK: Summus Magister Maximus (unique, non-transferable, still active) CREATED BECAUSE: All existing ranks were "inappropriate to his situation" OATH STATUS: Declined standard oath — had taken too many already LEFT BECAUSE: Decided the Crusade was wrong. Folded his mantle. Took his sword. THEN: Switched sides. Advised Muslim forces. Saved lives. Left after three months. TOLD THEM IN 1150: He would use the rank for something "entertaining rather than urgent" USED IT IN 1995: Croissant incident. Paris. 845 years later. OFFICIAL TEMPLAR POSITION: "We don't discuss Petros." VATICAN STATUS: On record. Has been since 1150. They know. HOW HE REFERS TO THEM IN HIS PHONE: ⚔️🛡️ The Sword People
CONCLUSION: He has been the honorary supreme head of the Knights Templar for 875 years, used the title exactly once, for something he found funny, told them in advance he would do this, and they said "we don't discuss Petros."
[4.1 million upvotes]
DIA Analysis Center - Amanda Foster
Amanda read the thread three times.
Then she called Cartwright.
"Sir."
"I've seen it."
"The Templar rank."
"Yes."
"He's been Summus Magister Maximus since 1150."
"Apparently."
"He told them in advance he'd use it for something entertaining."
"He did."
"And then he used it in 1995 for the Paris croissant incident."
"Which," Cartwright said, "we did not know about until the chapter 27 journal entry, and which is now being connected to the Templar rank by four million Reddit users in real time."
"Sir, the Vatican scholar in the thread is saying this goes very high."
"I've already received a call from the Vatican liaison. His Holiness is apparently aware and has requested that his next coffee meeting with Perseus include a conversation about the 1150 record."
"What did Perseus say?"
"I haven't asked him yet. But I think we both know what he'll say."
Amanda looked at her screen. The upvote counter was still climbing.
"Sir," she said. "The Templars accessed a researcher's database forty minutes after they sent an inquiry."
"I know. Our people caught the same access. Very clean work. Professional."
"They're still operational."
"They have been for nine hundred years. This is not entirely a surprise." Cartwright paused. "Amanda. Add 'Templar successor organisations' to the monitoring list. Not as a threat. Just — awareness."
"Yes, sir." She made the note. "One more thing. The thread has a comment from someone called u/TemplarSuccessorWatcher saying all three organisations responded with no comment."
"I saw that."
"The third one didn't respond but accessed their database."
"I saw that too."
"Sir, do you think they're reading the thread?"
Cartwright was quiet for a moment.
"I think," he said, "that an organisation that has maintained operational continuity for nine hundred years and whose official position is 'we don't discuss Petros' is absolutely reading the thread."
"And?"
"And I think they're fine with it. They've protected that secret for nine centuries. One Reddit thread isn't going to change their position."
"We don't discuss Petros," Amanda said.
"We don't discuss Petros," Cartwright confirmed.
Perseus's Apartment — That Evening
Perseus was reading when his phone buzzed.
A text from a number he recognised as one of the Templar successor contact lines — they rotated every five years, but he always got the new one automatically, which was either touching or slightly alarming depending on how he thought about it.
The text said: The thread has 4.1 million upvotes. We wanted you to know we are maintaining our position.
Perseus texted back: Appreciated. How are the archives?
Intact. Secured. We moved the 1150 document to deeper storage this morning.
Good thinking.
The Vatican called.
I assumed they would.
His Holiness wants to discuss the record at your next coffee meeting.
Perseus considered this.
Tell him I'll bring the good biscuits, he typed back.
A pause.
He says he already has the Ethiopian roast ready.
Of course he does.
Perseus set the phone down and looked at the Reddit thread on his laptop. The comments were still coming in. Historians, archivists, a Vatican scholar having what appeared to be a professionally significant moment, someone who had retired and then immediately unretired because the book conclusion had changed.
He scrolled to the top.
u/DeepStateDigger's opening post. The manuscript scan. The seven references laid out in order.
They'd found all of it. The oath refusal. The "entertaining rather than urgent." The folded mantle. "We don't discuss Petros."
He closed the laptop.
Eight hundred and seventy-five years.
He'd told Everard in 1150 that he'd probably never need to use it but one never knew. Everard had nodded in the way of a man who had already learned, over twenty years of knowing Perseus, not to ask follow-up questions.
He'd been right that one never knew.
Paris, 1995. A Tuesday. A croissant. Three minutes faster than Echelon and no load-bearing walls damaged.
Worth it.
He picked up his book.
Outside, Reddit was still going.
Inside, it was quiet.
That was enough.