William Cooper & the mystery of Rennes-le-Château

 

William Cooper, better known as “Bill Cooper”, was an almost legendary figure in the late 1980s and early 1990s. He achieved notoriety by claiming to have seen secret documents regarding the John F. Kennedy assassination, as well as knowledge on the existence and earthly presence of extra-terrestrial beings. This resulted in a highly controversial book, Behold A Pale Horse.
In the ensuing years, Cooper disappeared into the background, though in recent years, made headline news once again when he was killed by American law enforcement agents, in a mini-version of the Waco disaster.

Cooper was a larger than life character, with an interest in Rennes-le-Château. He is specifically well remembered for the following quote:

“I am amazed at the authors of Holy Blood, Holy Grail and the information that they have unearthed. Most of all I am amazed at their inability to put the puzzle together. The treasure hidden in France is not the treasure of the Temple of Jerusalem. It is the Holy Grail itself, the robe of Jesus, the last remaining pieces of the Cross of Crucifixion, and, according to my sources, someone’s bones. I can tell you that the reality of the bones will shake the world to its very foundations if I have been told the truth. The relics are hidden in France. I know the location and so do the authors of Holy Blood, Holy Grail, but they do not know that they know – or do they?”
(Behold A Pale Horse, p. 76)

Intriguing allegations, suggesting that the “treasure of Rennes-le-Château” is a collection of treasures, including the Holy Grail, but apparently an even more important one – someone’s bones. In light of speculation of the nature of the Perillos deposit, the question needs to be asked whether these are the bones of Jesus. Reading between the lines, Cooper seems to suggest they are not – having already referred to Jesus, but then going to the extent of not identifying whose bones it are. Perhaps, of course, Cooper felt it would be too controversial to state it were Jesus’ bones – but note that Cooper in his book and in lectures made much more controversial statements than that! And hence we find that either Cooper is spinning a tall tale just for the sake of it, or instead actually was too afraid to be identified as the person who identified whose bones it were. The latter possibility – still assuming there is some factual basis to the story – seems likely, as Cooper stated that the “reality of the bones will shake the world to its very foundations” and in an un-Cooper-like moment, adds “if I have been told the truth”. Cooper identifies the information as not being his own, a difference which is also important to note as normally, Cooper considered his own information always to be true – even though it often was erroneous.
Finally, Cooper states he knew the location, and so did Baigent, Leigh and Lincoln – but they might not be fully aware of it. An important allegation, and Cooper apparently was never asked for details, or if so, declined to give further information.

As Cooper is now deceased, only the authors of Holy Blood, Holy Grail remain – possibly, as Cooper himself stated. We therefore asked Henry Lincoln whether he knew of William Cooper and of his statement. Lincoln reported he did not. We consequently informed him of what Cooper had said, and answered that the answer to the possibility was “no”.

However, Cooper was not the only one who reported on Rennes-le-Château in a most intriguing manner. Another such person was Michael Bentine, a former British Intelligence agent, who warned a research group that research into Rennes-le-Château was “getting them into dangerous territory”. Did he know more? And if so, what?
Unfortunately, knowledge came after the events: it is impossible to answer as Bentine is now dead. But it is interesting that one of Bentine’s friends after his death became extremely interested in the Rennes-le-Château mystery himself – and specifically made close acquaintance with Henry Lincoln, perhaps in an effort to find out the answer to the question posed by Cooper in his book.

What is it all about? An earth-shattering secret is exactly the type of secret that seems to be hinted at by a secret society known as the “A.A.”, and which seems to have a direct relationship with Rennes-le-Château – or to be more precise: with Bérenger Saunière. For a more detailed background, we refer to The Secret Vault, where Saunière’s secret life is analysed in detail, as well as his possible involvement with the A.A.
In the case of the model, we know that knowledge of the model survived – we can even speculate that the model was specifically constructed so that Saunière could pass on certain knowledge to others within a certain organisation, or group. Were it members of that organisation, possibly spied upon by the intelligence agencies of the various countries, that confided in Bentine and Cooper, hinting towards a possible revelation that could shake the world? These remain open questions…

But if the interpretation of Cooper’s paragraph is correct, it suggests that the bones to be discovered “somewhere in France” are not Jesus’s, but even more “terrifying”. What bigger enigma than the fact that the Resurrection did not occur could there be in store? Could it have anything to do with the number 666? Of course, it is all idle speculation, but could hint at something, provided the various hints are coherent…