Black Templars

In Warhammer 40,000, the Black Templars are a Second Founding chapter derived from the Imperial Fists and their Primarch, Rogal Dorn. Their origin can be traced back to the Imperial Fists’ defence of Terra. Since this time, the Black Templars have been on the greatest and longest crusade the Imperium has ever known to prove their loyalty to the Emperor.

The Defence of Terra
The conclusive battle of the Horus Heresy is considered to be Warmaster Horus's attack on the Emperor's Palace. During this time, the Primarch of the Imperial Fists, Rogal Dorn chose Sigismund to fulfil the role of Emperor's Champion.

Brother Sigismund was given the best armour and weapons, swearing a holy duty to seek out and destroy the foul champions of Chaos. He did so, challenging over two dozen of the enemy leaders to single combat, and banishing them back into the Immaterium.

At the end of the Horus Heresy, each of the Space Marine Legions was broken down into thousand strong organizations known as Chapters, as part of a plan to spread the power of the Imperial armed forces so that one man could not bring to bear the influence Warmaster Horus did. Rogal Dorn, as Primarch of the Legion responsible for the defence of the Emperor’s homeworld, Terra, refused to have his Legion broken down.

The Second Founding
Eventually, with the threat of civil war about to tear the remaining Space Marine Legions apart, Rogal Dorn relented, and allowed his legion to take part in the Second Founding. The Imperial Fists were broken down into three chapters; one retaining the name and heraldry, one taking up the name Crimson Fists, and the third becoming the Black Templars, with Sigismund as their leader.

Sigismund took with him the most zealous of the Imperial Fist brethren, those that shared his fervour took on the black and white panoply of Sigismund’s armour, and embarked on a crusade to prove their loyalty to the Emperor. Promoted to the rank of High Marshal, Sigismund swore an oath “to prove his loyalty, never resting in the prosecution of his duties against the enemies of the Emperor.” It is an oath that every succeeding High Marshal has renewed, resulting in the longest Space Marine crusade in the history of the Imperium. It has smashed through the stars for over 10,000 years and came to the fore during the Wars for Armageddon.

Organization
The Black Templars have no home world, instead opting to live in their Crusade fleets. They do establish Chapter Keeps on every world they conquer or reclaim, to both provide a training base for new recruits and to act as staging posts for Crusade fleets.

Each Chapter Fleet is overseen by a Marshal, while the High Marshal (currently High Marshal Helbrecht) travels between Crusades on his personal starship, the battle barge Eternal Crusader. There are usually at least three Crusades operating at any one time, although at one stage there were 14 known to the Imperium, each Crusade ranging in size from a hundred Marines and their support to half a standard Chapter. It is said that only the Black Templars have any idea of their full numbers, but it is estimated that they number around six thousand Marines; larger than some of the original Legions. Such a force with one goal in mind would be unstoppable. The size of the Black Templars has resulted in close scrutiny by the Inquisition, and only the Chapter's history of fierce loyalty to the Emperor has spared them from further examination or being forced to disband.

The larger Crusades are broken down into Fighting Companies, each led by a Sword Brethren member possessing the honorific ‘Castellan’. Individual squads tend to form and disband on an ad-hoc basis, most fighting together out of familiarity and