Guillaume de Sonnac

Guillaume de Sonnac (died 6 April 1250) was Grand Master of the Knights Templar from 1247 to 1250.

Sonnac was born to a noble family in the French region of Rouergue. No date of birth survives for the Grand Master. He was described by Matthew Paris as "a discreet and circumspect man, who was also skilled and experienced in the affairs of war".

De Sonnac was an established member of the order before his election as Grand Master. He was the Preceptor of Aquitaine in France for the Templars and arrived in the Holy Land around autumn of 1247, finding "the remnants of the Kingdom of Jerusalem in a precarious state. Grand Master Armand de Périgord had been taken prisoner at the Battle of La Forbie in 1244, and after negotiations for his release failed two years later, De Sonnac was proposed as a replacement. Before his first year in the East was out, he was the order's new leader.

De Sonnac's tenure was a particularly violent one. By 1247, the Christians had lost power bases in Tiberias, Mount Tabor, Belvoir and Ascalon. This prompted a fresh campaign from King Louis IX of France, who landed at Limassol, Cyprus on 17 September 1248. De Sonnac sailed from Acre to meet him and make preparations. Shortly after, the new Grand Master received an Emir from the Sultan, offering the crusaders a peace deal. De Sonnac related this to the French King, who ordered him to cease any negotiations without gaining Royal permission first. This ensured the new campaign would be concluded with violence, not diplomacy.

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