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The La Merika Theory[citation needed] is a theory proposed by __________ that America was discovered a century before Christopher Columbus by the Knights Templar,[1] and that the naming of the new world as "America" derives from La Merika or La Merica (The Star).[citation needed]

Evidence for the theory

The theory hinges on the fact that the name Nova Scotia is Latin for New Scotland. This is considered significant because adherents of the theory believe that some Templars escaped the suppression of their order by Philip the Fair (Philippe le Bel, 1307) by fleeing to Scotland[2].

The Knights Templar were publicly disbanded in the early 1300s, after the arrest in France of thousands of their members by the King of France[3].

The Theory suggests that Henry Sinclair traveled not only to Greenland but to present-day Nova Scotia, where he may have founded a settlement among the Micmac Indians, and perhaps as far south as present-day Massachusetts and Rhode Island. According to the theory, his expedition may have been responsible for the building of the Newport Tower and the carving of the Westford Knight[4] (supposedly a stone effigy of a knight bearing the arms of Clan Gunn upon his shield.


The theory that Henry Sinclair explored North America is based [citation needed] on three separate propositions:

  1. That letters and a map ascribed to the Zeno brothers and published in 1558 are authentic.
  2. That the voyage described in the letters, let by someone named Zichmni around the year 1398, actually reached North America.
  3. That 'Zichmni' is actually Henry Sinclair.

The Theory also hinges on the contention that there are stone carvings of American plants in Rosslyn Chapel in Scotland,[5] plants supposedly not seen by Europeans until Columbus. As the Chapel was completed in 1486 and Columbus made his first voyage in 1492. This is seen by Knight and Lomas as being compelling evidence for the theory [6].

Criticisms of this theory

One primary criticism [citation needed] of this theory is that if a Templar voyage reached the Americas, they did not, unlike Columbus, return with a historical record of their findings. Apart from the graveyards in Nova Scotia and the carvings in the Rosslyn Chapel, there is no physical evidence that could prove that Templars had explored the Americas. Advocates of the theory contend that it is possible that this lack of documentation can be explained by the strong motivation of the Sinclair voyagers to keep their activities secret[7]. Historians question this. They also question the authenticity of the Westford Knight, claiming that it is not clearly inscribed, and may be a hoax or a result of erosion that makes it appear to resemble a knight. [citation needed] Finally, the carvings in Rosslyn Chapel may not be of American plants at all, and according to one historian are nothing more than styalized carvings of wheat and strawberries.[8]

Sinclairs and the Templars

Historians Mark Oxbrow, Ian Robertson[9] Karen Ralls and Louise Yeoman [10] have made it clear that the Sinclair family had no connection with the Mediaeval Knights Templar. The Sinclair's testimony against the Knights at their 1309 trial is not consistent with any alleged support or membership. In "The Templars and the Grail" p.110 Karen Ralls (quoting "The Knights Templar in England" p.200-1) states that among some 50 who testified against the Templars were Henry and William Sinclair.

References

  1. ^ "The Lost Treasure of the Knights Templar: New Light on the Oak Island Mystery" by Steven Sora, Atlantis Rising Magazine #20, 1999
  2. ^ The Second Messiah: Templars, the Turin Shroud and the Great Secret of Freemasonry, by Christopher Knight and Robert Lomas, Fair Winds Press, August 1, 2001, ISBN 1931412766
  3. ^ The Second Messiah: Templars, the Turin Shroud and the Great Secret of Freemasonry, by Christopher Knight and Robert Lomas, Fair Winds Press, August 1, 2001, ISBN 1931412766'
  4. ^ Claims repeated in Atlantis Rising, (20)[1]
  5. ^ The Hiram Key, Fair winds Press, ISBN 1-59233-159-9, Knight and Lomas
  6. ^ Knight and Lomas The Hyram Key
  7. ^ In The Hiram Key many references are made to the entrusted secrets, which the authors claims were encoded in the architecture of the Sinclair's Rosslyn Chapel
  8. ^ Historian Mark Oxbrow, quoted in "The ship of dreams" by Diane MaClean, Scotsman.com, 13 May, 2005
  9. ^ "The Da Vinci Connection", Sunday Herald, 14 November 2004
  10. ^ "Historian attacks Rosslyn Chapel for 'cashing in on Da Vinci Code'", Scotsman.com, 03-May-06

Books

  • "From Jamestown to Texas: A History of Some Early Pioneers of Austin County the Colonial Capitol...", by Betty Smith Meischen, iUniverse, 2002, ISBN 0595242235 Google Books link to page 498
  • "Second Messiah: Templars, the Turin Shroud and the Great Secret of Freemasonry", by Christopher Knight and Robert Lomas, Fair Winds Press, August 1, 2001, ISBN 1931412766
  • "Prince Henry Sinclair: His Expedition to the New World in 1398", 1974 and 1995, by Frederick J. Pohl, Clarkson N. Potter, New York, ISBN 1551091224.

Web

See also

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