Knights Templar Cathedral

The Knights Templar Cathedral, also known as the Cathedrale de Payens, is one of the locations visited by JC Denton in Deus Ex. It is a sub-section of Paris, located in the 14th arrondissement.

Near the Cathedral is a metro station from which trains headed for the De Gaulle Airport, the Place-Charles-de-Gaulle (Etoile), rue Gambetta, Cours de la Madeleine, and Chatelet leave regularly.

Background
The Cathedral was built by the Knights Templar during the Middle Ages and functioned as their Paris headquarters. Cathedrale construction began in 1218 and completed before the end of the century, as part of a similar network of churches, cathedrals, and forts (or "commanderies" as they were called) throughout Britain, Europe, and the Holy Lands.

Just before the 1307 crackdown on the Templars ordered by French King Philip IV, the Templars had moved their gold to the Cathedral, where most of it has remained ever since. After that, the Cathedral fell into disrepair until it was bought in 1918 by a group of European entrepreneurs and renovated by them as a corporate retreat. The Nazis plundered a third of the Templars gold during WW2 and were preparing to move the rest to Berlin in 1944, but did not have enough time to do so.

In 2051, UNATCO and Interpol conducted a joint raid on the Cathedral, severely weakening the Knights Templar.

Deus Ex
In 2052, the Cathedral is occupied by Majestic 12 and JC accomplished two goals in the Cathedral: locating the gold stashed in the Cathedral, after which Morgan Everett sends Chad Dumier and an NSF platoon to recover it; and gaining access to a computer in order to transmit information on the cure to the Gray Death to Everett.

When JC arrives at the Cathedral, it's guarded by numerous MJ12 troopers, MJ12 commandos, and bots, as are the nearby streets. The doors to the Cathedral are closed. A key is in the Cathedral's library, which contains all four volumes of Richard Bagent's A History of the Knights Templar.

There are still some original Knights Templar employed personnel working at the Cathedral, although now they work for MJ12. They include a chef (who has to prepare breakfast for dozens of soldiers) who is willing to help JC find the basement where the gold is stored.

Trivia

 * The name "Cathedrale de Payens" appears to be based on Hugues de Payens or Payns ( c. 1070 – 24 May 1136) who was the co-founder and first Grand Master of the Knights Templar.
 * Morgan Everett recalls kneeling in the Cathedral's chapel for communion, alongside a Rockefeller and a Rothschild. The Rockefeller and Rothschild families are often accused of being members of the real-world Illuminati conspiracy.