Fortunately we know quite a lot about Ferencz, particularly from 
          his own writings. Two apparently unrelated facets of his life are 
          outlined below. The common thread between them was his strong 
          Christian faith and a personal philosophy which had deep roots in 
          mysticism. 
              Healer and Magnetopath. Ferencz lived on his properties until 
          1836. During that time he became aware that he possessed the gift of 
          healing. He began to study, in theory and practice, what he referred 
          to as the "remarkable effects of magnetism", to which he attributed 
          his gift. He soon became well known for some extraordinary cures in 
          quite desperate cases. 
              In 1841 he took over and directed a "clinique magnetique" for 
          eighty patients in Dresden. In 1858 he went to Paris where he stayed 
          for twelve years. Although unlicensed to practise medicine, he 
          achieved real miracles with the help of magnetism, which gained him 
          the title "doctor of the incurables". At that time he published his 
          "Manuel de la Magnetotherapie". It was a sensation and the Jury of 
          Magnetism awarded him its medal for it. He was widely regarded as the 
          most powerful "magnetiseur" of his time. 
              He wrote in French under the name Comte F. Szapary or Comte 
          Francois Szapary. It has been said that it was because his mother 
          Johanna spoke no Hungarian that Ferencz was never fluent in that 
          language and communicated largely in French and German. He wrote nine 
          books in all, most of them in French; a number were translated into 
          German. The book which best summarises his views is his last, 
          "Testament Philosophique, Religieux et Social" published in Lausanne 
          in 1870. A first edition is in the Library of Congress in Washington 
          DC. 
              Templar. Ferencz was the last Keeper of the Relics for the ancient 
          Order of the Templars. The order had been dissolved by the King of 
          France in 1314 and its grandmaster, Jacques de Molay, burnt at the 
          stake. It seems the remaining members of the order went underground 
          and it survives clandestinely through the centuries. It is said to 
          have possessed very ancient relics and documents, among which was the 
          "Livre d'Or" containing the names of the grandmasters signed in their 
          own blood. The order resurfaced in 1804 as the Sacred and Military 
          Order of the Temple of Jerusalem; it seems that Napoleon showed some 
          sympathy for its wish to be rehabilitated. The last grandmaster, whose 
          name was signed with his blood in the "Livre d'Or", was Sir Sidney 
          Smith, the English Ambassador at the Congress of Vienna in 1815. He 
          entered the conference hall wearing the Grand Cross of the Order of 
          the Templars as his sole decoration. When Czar Alexander asked him 
          about this decoration, which he did not know, Sir Sidney was said to 
          have answered: "Your Majesty, this is the cross of the most ancient 
          order in existence. If it would please you, I would give it up for 
          you, and your Majesty would herewith become the grandmaster of all 
          Christendom." The Czar did not accept. 
              In 1816 the Order of the Templars held its last general meeting 
          under the chairmanship of the Comte de Chabrian, and decided to offer 
          to the King of Hannover the honour of becoming its grandmaster. 
          Ferencz Szapary, as the keeper of the relics, was asked to take these 
          and the "Livre d'Or" to the king. The king accepted with alacrity and 
          his name was entered in the "Livre d'Or". However, his solemn 
          installation was prevented by the Freemasons, whose grandmaster he 
          also was. It was then decided to close the order's Temple and to place 
          its documents in the Imperial Archives. Ferencz himself placed them 
          there. 
 

Source: Leo van de Pas