Editing Holy Grail (section)

===Pseudohistory and conspiracy theories===
Since the 19th century, the Holy Grail has been linked to various conspiracy theories. In 1818, Austrian pseudohistorical writer [[Joseph von Hammer-Purgstall]] connected the Grail to contemporary myths surrounding the [[Knights Templar]] that cast the order as a secret society dedicated to mystical knowledge and relics. In Hammer-Purgstall's work, the Grail is not a physical relic, but a symbol of the secret knowledge that the Templars sought. There is no historical evidence linking the Templars to a search for the Grail, but subsequent writers have elaborated on the Templar theories.<ref>Wood 2012, p. 70, 73–74.</ref>

Starting in the early 20th century, writers, particularly in France, further connected the Templars and Grail to the Cathars. In 1906, French esoteric writer [[Joséphin Péladan]] identified the Cathar castle of Montségur with [[Munsalväsche]] or Montsalvat, the Grail castle in Wolfram's ''Parzival''. This identification has inspired a wider legend asserting that the Cathars possessed the Holy Grail.<ref>Wood 2012, p. 75–76.</ref> According to these stories, the Cathars guarded the Grail at Montségur, and smuggled it out when the castle fell in 1244.<ref>Wood 2012, p. 74–76.</ref>

[[File:Parsifal1933.jpg|thumb|The Grail depicted on a 1933 German stamp]]

Beginning in 1933, German writer [[Otto Rahn]] published a series of books tying the Grail, Templars, and Cathars to modern German nationalist mythology. According to Rahn, the Grail was a symbol of a pure Germanic religion repressed by Christianity. Rahn's books inspired interest in the Grail within [[Occultism in Nazism|Nazi occultist]] circles, and led to the SS chief [[Heinrich Himmler]]'s abortive sponsorship of Rahn's search for the Grail, as well as many subsequent conspiracy theories and fictional works about the Nazis searching for the Grail.<ref>Wood 2012, p. 76–77.</ref>

In the late 20th century, writers [[Michael Baigent]], [[Richard Leigh (author)|Richard Leigh]], and [[Henry Lincoln]] created one of the most widely known conspiracy theories about the Holy Grail. The theory first appeared on the [[BBC]] documentary series ''[[Chronicle (UK TV series)|Chronicle]]'' in the 1970s, and was elaborated upon in the bestselling 1982 book ''[[Holy Blood, Holy Grail]]''.<ref name=Wood77/> The theory combines myths about the Templars and Cathars with various other legends, and a prominent [[hoax]] about a secret order called the [[Priory of Sion]]. According to this theory, the Holy Grail is not a physical object, but a symbol of the [[bloodline of Jesus]]. The blood connection is based on the etymological reading of ''san greal'' (holy grail) as ''sang real'' (royal blood), which dates to the 15th century.<ref name=Wood77/> The narrative developed is that [[Jesus]] was not divine, and had children with [[Mary Magdalene]], who took the family to France where their descendants became the [[Merovingians|Merovingian]] dynasty. Supposedly, while the Catholic Church worked to destroy the dynasty, they were protected by the Priory of Sion and their associates, including the Templars, Cathars, and other secret societies.<ref>Wood 2012, p. 77–82.</ref> The book, its arguments, and its evidence have been widely dismissed by scholars as pseudohistorical, but it has had a vast influence on conspiracy and [[alternate history]] books. It has also inspired fiction, most notably [[Dan Brown]]'s 2003 novel ''[[The Da Vinci Code]]'' and its 2006 [[The Da Vinci Code (film)|film adaptation]].<ref>Wood 2012, p. 77, 81–82.</ref>