 La Rochelle was for the Templars their largest base on the Atlantic Ocean, and where they stationed their main fleet.From La Rochelle, they were able to act as intermediaries in trade between England and the Mediterranean.A popular thread of conspiracy theory originating with Holy Blood, Holy Grail has it that the Templars used a fleet of 18 ships which had brought Jacques de Molay from Cyprus to La Rochelle to escape arrest in France.