I found this explanation on the web:
"By 1200, after the split with the ordre de Sion, the Templars had
found a new European based home in the same area that had nurtured the
Merovingian bloodline, Godfroi's bid to become King of Jerusalem and
thereafter, re-establish the House of David as rulers of the Hold
Land. The place was known as the Languedoc, and was the base for the
Cathars of Southern France. There, the Templars sought refuge."
From:
http://www.halexandria.org/dward220.htm