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"Ironic, isn't it. That I, your greatest enemy, kept you safe from harm. But now you've taken my life and, in the process, ended your own."
―Robert's last words to Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad, 1191.[src]-[m]

Robert de Sablé (c. 1150 – 1191) was the 11th Grand Master of the Knights Templar[1] from 1190 until his death, and a lieutenant in King Richard I's Crusader army.

Born into a powerful family, Robert was immersed in nobility from birth. He eventually became lord and ruler of the Sarthe region of Anjou, France. Subsequently, Robert entered the order of the Knights Templar and reigned as their Grand Master in 1191.

During the Third Crusade, Robert and the Knights Templar, alongside the rest of the Crusader army, laid siege to the city of Acre, which soon fell. Throughout August 1191, they also recaptured many fortresses and cities along the Palestinian coast, which had previously been lost.

Biography[]

Quest for the Apple of Eden[]

"I want this through this gate before sunrise! The sooner we possess it, the sooner we can turn our attention to those jackals at Masyaf."
―Robert, ordering his men to retrieve the Ark of the Covenant, 1191.[src]-[m]

In 1191, Robert and a group of soldiers entered Solomon's Temple beneath the Temple Mount within Jerusalem. Robert and his men were attempting to retrieve the Piece of Eden that was hidden there; however, just as Robert sent his men to climb up to the artifact, a group of Assassins consisting of Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad, Malik Al-Sayf, and Kadar Al-Sayf ambushed them.[2]

Altaïr approached Robert head-on and attempted to assassinate him, but Robert was able to thwart the Assassin's attack. Robert then threw Altaïr out of the room, causing a minor rockslide that blocked the entrance with rubble.[2] Following this, Robert and his guards engaged the remaining Assassins, killing Kadar, and severely wounding Malik's left arm.[3]

However, Malik was able to steal the artifact from the Templars, flee from the city, and return to his Mentor, Al Mualim. Robert, however, determined to regain the artifact, pursued the Assassin out of Jerusalem, and towards the Assassin fortress of Masyaf. Upon the arrival of the Templars, the Assassin Masun[4] and a village basket weaver defected,[5] opening the gates of the town for Robert and his Templar infantry, and allowing them to storm the village. As a result of this, many of Masyaf's civilians and numerous Assassins were killed.[3]

Siege of Masyaf Templars

Robert during the siege

Though the Assassins battled the invading Templars, they were eventually driven back into the safety of their fortress. Arriving at the fortress gates on horseback, Robert demanded that they return the artifact to him, saying that it was his property.[6]

However, Al Mualim refused to do so, stating that de Sable had no claim to the object. Robert rebuked him, claiming that he played a dangerous game and that the Templar forces could simply wait out the Assassins. The Mentor ignored this threat, and after the display of three Assassins leaping from the fortress' walls, he signaled Altaïr to activate a trap that caused several logs to tumble onto the Templar soldiers, killing many of them and scattering Robert's remaining men. With his forces severely diminished, Robert and the remaining Templars retreated from the town.[6]

Decline of power[]

"You have laid waste our plans: first the treasure, then our men. Control of the Holy Land slipped away. But then, he saw an opportunity; to reclaim what has been stolen, to turn your victories to our advantage."
―Maria Thorpe speaking to Altaïr about Robert's plans.[src]-[m]
AC1 Robert Decoy

Robert's decoy at the funeral

Robert managed to convince many Crusaders and Saracens to secretly defect to the Templars, promising them power in the "New World" they would create. Despite these promises, Altaïr, who had been demoted to the rank of novice for his failure at Solomon's Temple, was assigned to eliminate nine important Templars, including Robert, in order to regain his lost rank and honor.[7]

Over the course of around a month and a half, Altaïr was successful in killing eight of the Templars. Ultimately, he pursued Robert to Jerusalem, where the Grand Master was scheduled to attend the funeral of one of his former targets, Majd Addin.[7]

After realizing that he would be the next target, however, Robert assigned his lieutenant, Maria Thorpe, to disguise herself in his image and attend the funeral in his place, as a trap for Altaïr. Meanwhile, Robert left to join the battlefield at Arsuf alongside King Richard. Altaïr fell for the trap, though he was able to defeat Maria and learn of Robert's true whereabouts and intentions. Despite this, he spared Maria, as she was not his target, and rode for Arsuf, determined to take Robert's life.[8]

Battle of Arsuf and death[]

"Robert de Sablé is now all that stands between us and victory. It's his mouth that gives orders, his hand pays the gold. With him dies the knowledge of the Templar treasure."
―Al Mualim speaks of Robert.[src]-[m]

Robert stood by King Richard's side during the course of the Battle of Arsuf. There, he was able to convince Richard to ally himself with Saladin against a common enemy: the Assassins, as they had caused numerous deaths on both sides.[8]

BoA 8

Robert and King Richard at Arsuf

However, Altaïr fought his way through Arsuf against Crusaders and Saracens alike, eventually arriving at the Crusader camp, where he met Richard and Robert. Altaïr attempted to convince Richard that the men he killed were secretly Templars, and that Robert was going to rebel against Richard, though Robert defended himself by saying that the Assassins were master deceivers.[9]

Richard, unsure of who to believe, left God to decide who was speaking the truth, and had Altaïr duel against Robert and his Templar troops. Altaïr soon stood victorious against them, but he was left to face Robert himself. Robert proved to be a match for Altaïr, but he was nonetheless defeated, and as he died, Robert enlightened Altaïr to the fact that Al Mualim was secretly a Templar as well. He told him that Al Mualim wanted to have the Apple of Eden for himself, and that he had sent Altaïr to kill the nine targets in order to keep them from gaining possession of the artifact.[9]

Legacy[]

in 2016, Alan Rikkin owned a white flag bearing the Templar insignia in his office which de Sablé had personally flown during the Crusades.[10]

Personality and traits[]

AC1 Solomon's Temple Altair attacks Robert

Robert restraining Altaïr

Robert was a manipulative individual who was able to recruit various members to the Templar cause by offering them power in their proposed New World. At the same time, Robert gained King Richard's trust, despite secretly plotting his downfall. Nevertheless, Robert believed his goal of desiring peace for humanity through using the Piece of Eden was selfless and noble, even if it would cost the loss of global free will, and criticized his former ally Al Mualim for instead wanting to covetously hold onto the Apple's power rather than spread it among the masses.[7]

He was also an ingenious strategist, turning Al Mualim's plan to kill his supporters into a trap to destroy the Assassin Order. Robert was extremely strong, being able to restrain Altaïr—who himself possessed extreme physical strength—without much difficulty. He was also a supreme fighter as well, able to almost match Altaïr in battle, and he was also able to easily stop Altaïr from assassinating him with a Hidden Blade inside Solomon's Temple.[7]

However, due to his disregard for the clause in the Latin Rule to not consort with women, Robert was not held in high regard by all of his fellow Templars, among which was his own successor, Armand Bouchart.[11]

Behind the scenes[]

  • In Assassin's Creed, Robert looks more like a man in his early-30s, when historically, he was 10 years older at the time. Additionally, Robert died in 1193, and not during the Battle of Arsuf.
  • In history, Robert was referred to as Robert IV of Sablé. This owes of him being the lord of Anjou before becoming Grand Master of the Templar Order.
  • While Assassin's Creed: The Essential Guide gives the year of his ascension as Grand Master as 1190, the historical Robert was not elected to the position until 1191. This was owing to the untimely demise of Gerard de Ridefort at the Siege of Acre, which led to the Templars delaying the election while they debated the merits of selecting a Grand Master that would fight at the front lines.
  • Robert appeared to have one of the largest physical builds in Assassin's Creed, being a head taller than Altaïr and physically stronger.
  • Robert was briefly mentioned in Assassin's Creed: Revelations in the memory "The Mentor's Wake" and in Maria Thorpe's database file, where the year he was killed was shown to be at 1192 rather than 1191.[12]
  • Robert was one of four Templar Grand Masters depicted in Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag in a collection of modern-day portraits titled "Great Minds of History". In his portrait, he is seen wearing black, similar to his concept art from Assassin's Creed.
  • In the non-canonical mobile adaptation of Assassin's Creed, Robert de Sablé's name is spelled without the acute accent. He fights Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad on horseback, first throwing bombs behind him in an attempt to kill his pursuer, before dueling him atop their horses with twin swords. Like all horsemen in chase sequences from the game, his guards are of the Knights Hospitalier. In contrast to the canonical game, Altaïr retrieves the Apple of Eden from Robert's corpse after slaying him here.
  • Robert de Sablé, along with Jacques de Molay and Armand Bouchart, is one of the only three characters in the games that historically were Templars.

Gallery[]

Appearances[]

References[]

  1. Assassin's Creed: The Essential Guide
  2. 2.0 2.1 Assassin's CreedAcquisition
  3. 3.0 3.1 Assassin's CreedFailure
  4. Assassin's CreedEavesdropping (Masun)
  5. Assassin's CreedPickpocketing (Masun)
  6. 6.0 6.1 Assassin's CreedGlory
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Assassin's Creed
  8. 8.0 8.1 Assassin's CreedAssassination (Robert de Sablé)
  9. 9.0 9.1 Assassin's CreedAssassination II (Robert de Sablé)
  10. Assassin's Creed: The Official Movie Novelization – Chapter 8
  11. Assassin's Creed: BloodlinesIntercept (Limassol Cathedral Square)
  12. Assassin's Creed: RevelationsDatabase: Maria Thorpe

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