The history of the Hospitallers. Knightly orders
I became interested in the history of the Order of the Hospitallers when I was going to vacation on the island of Rhodes. These knights were based on the island for several centuries and were known as the Rhodes knights. But now the Order of the Hospitallers is better known as the Order of Malta.
Initially, it united monks, who, at the same time, were also warriors - knights. This knightly order, which is considered the oldest, was founded during the first crusade in 1113. In that year, Pope Paschal II issued the papal bull.
The symbol of the members of the order is a white eight-pointed cross.
Interior decoration of the Maltese Chapel (Saint Petersburg)
The initial task of the Hospitaller Order was to receive pilgrims in the holy land. The order provided pilgrims with lodging and medical care. The Latin word "gospital" is translated as "guest". In 1107, King Baldwin I of Jerusalem allocated land in Jerusalem to the Ionian Order (as the order was also called).
At first, the Order of the Hospitallers did not engage in military operations, but over time, the monks began to guard the pilgrims. To do this, they built fortified posts and hospitals throughout Europe.
However, Christians in the Middle East did not dominate for long. In 1187 Saladin invades the Kingdom of Jerusalem and captures Jerusalem. When Jerusalem fell, the Hospitallers moved their headquarters to Akra.
The Knights of the Order of the Hospitallers left Acre in 1291, first they moved to the island of Cyprus, then in 1307 to, which they conquered from Byzantium.
In Rhodes, the knightly order reached its zenith. Here, in the palace of the Grand Master, the leadership of the Order of the Hospitallers was located: the Master, the Prior and the administration of the Order.
The administration of the Order of Saint John consisted of eight Bailiffs: the Chief Commander (in charge of the general property), the Marshal (the chief of the military headquarters), the Chief Hospitaller (in charge of the hospitals), Drapier (in charge of supplying the armed forces), the Chief Admiral (in charge of the fleet), Turcopolier (in charge of mercenaries), Chief Chancellor (managed the office), Chief Bailiff (responsible in Rhodes for protecting the defense of the castle of St. Peter). Each of the leaders managed branches in Europe.
All members of the Order were divided into three main classes: knights, priests, and battle sergeants. Later, the fourth grade appeared - sisters.
Knights, depending on their origin, were divided into: full-fledged knights, obedient, loyal and graceful. Of course, in order to occupy a high position in the order, it was necessary to come from a good family, but with talent and perseverance, the knight could make a career.
Street of the Knights of Rhodes After the Order of the Hospitallers left the Holy Land and settled in Rhodes, it became not just a military, but a naval order. It was thanks to the presence of the navy that the Order of St. John outlived all the others. The Hospitallers raided Muslim ports and ships, seized rich booty, among which were hostages. Now it would be called piracy.
In 1480, the Turks made an attempt to capture Rhodes, then the knights fought back. However, in 1522 the Ottoman Empire took over the island.
The terms of delivery were very soft. The Sultan promised that the Catholic faith would be preserved on the island, churches would not be desecrated, and the Order would be able to leave the island with all their ships, relics, weapons and riches.
The knights, left homeless, began to wander, and the Grand Master negotiated with the European monarchs about the place of deployment.
In the end, the Order agreed to the island of Malta, which was granted to them by King Charles V of Sicily on March 24, 1530.
The conditions of ownership were an annual tribute in the form of 1 falcon (paid accurately until 1798), not the use of the harbor of Malta by the Order's ships in conflict with Sicily, and the recognition of vassal dependence on the king of Spain. Although in fact it was assumed that the order's fleet would fight the Algerian pirates.
picture from the site: http://ru-malta.livejournal.com/193546.html The Hospitallers were also involved in the "ebony" trade, that is, they exported slaves from Africa to America.
Gradually, the Order of Malta became increasingly dependent on the emperor and the Pope. In 1628, the Pope decree that in the period between the death of one grandmaster and the election of another, the Order will be ruled directly by the Pope. This made it possible for the Vatican to radically influence the election of a new grandmaster.
Through its representatives, the Vatican gradually took away the property of the Order. The order is in decline.
When the Mediterranean states created their own naval forces in the 17th and 18th centuries, the Maltese was no longer needed. In the end, Napoleon conquered Malta and the order lost its sovereignty.
By the end of the eighteenth century, the Russian navy had become the main threat to the Ottoman navy. This led to the rapprochement of the Order of Malta with the Russian Tsar. In 1797, Paul I organized a new main priority on the territory of the Russian Empire and prepared a cruise of ships in defense of the Order of Malta.
However, after his murder in the Mikhailovsky (Engineering) Castle on the night of March 13, 1801, the Order of Malta leaves Russia.
On February 9, 1803, the Pope appointed Giovanni-Battista Tommasi as Grandmaster of the Order, who temporarily placed the Order's residence first in Catania, then in Messina on the island of Sicily.
At the end of the Napoleonic wars, Malta was finally recognized as the possession of the British crown by the Paris Agreement of the victorious powers on March 30, 1814
After the death of Tomassi in 1805, the Order dragged out a miserable existence. In the Residence of the Order, there are no more than thirty people with the title of knight and a small number of attendants. After leaving Malta, the Order no longer has any military force and will never have. The head of the order is approved by the Pope and carries the title of lieutenant of the master. The Order does not even have the opportunity to invite to the elections the members of the Order living in the priors. Actually, the Order exists only nominally.
In 1831, the residence of the Order Moves to Rome, to the building of the Grand Priory of the Order in Rome, Palazzo Malta on Aventine Hill, and then to the building of the former residence of the Ambassador of the Order to the Holy See, Palazzo Malta on the Via Condotti. via Condotti) near Piazza di Spagna.
In 1910, the Order organizes a field hospital that will save many lives during the Italo-Libyan war of 1912. The order hospital ship "Regina Margarita" will take out more than 12 thousand wounded from the area of hostilities.
During the First World War in Germany, Austria, France, there was a whole network of field hospitals of the Order.
In the post-war period, the Order continued to engage and is still engaged in humanitarian and medical activities, mainly in countries professing Catholicism.
Today the Order has about 10 thousand members and ranks second in number among Catholic organizations after the Order of the Jesuits (a purely monastic religious non-military organization).
Currently, the Order includes 6 Main Priors (Rome, Venice, Sicily, Austria, Czech Republic, England) and 54 national commanders, one of which is also in Russia.
Hospitallers or Ioannites (also known as the Jerusalem, Rhodes and Maltese Sovereign Military Landmark Order of St. John, also known as the Order of St. John, as Knights of Malta or Knights of Malta des Hospital Ordiers; fr. Ord.
Founded in 1080 in Jerusalem as an Amalfi hospital, a Christian organization dedicated to caring for the poor, sick, or injured pilgrims in the Holy Land.
Grand Master Guillaume de Villaret defends the walls of Acre, Galilee, 1291. art. Dominique Louis Papeti (1815-1849) Versailles
After the Christian capture of Jerusalem in 1099 during the First Crusade, the organization turned into a religious-military order with its own charter. The order was entrusted with the mission of caring for and protecting the Holy Land. Following the seizure of the Holy Land by the Muslims, the order continued its activities in Rhodes, of which it was the ruler, and then acted from Malta, which was in vassal control of the Spanish Viceroy of Sicily.
Name and Status
The Jerusalem, Rhodes and Maltese orders of St. John are mistakenly called the Order of St. John of Jerusalem. This is not true: the Order itself is called Jerusalem, but not Saint John. Among the saints there are, for example, the following: John the Baptist is the Forerunner of the Lord, John the Theologian is the Lord's apostle and Evangelist, the author of the Gospel, the Apocalypse and the three Epistles of the Apostles, John Elaymon (the Merciful) is the Patriarch of Alexandria, but there is no such saint as John of Jerusalem. The patron saint and patron of the Order is John the Baptist.
Regarding the name "Order of the Hospitallers", it should be borne in mind that this name is considered slang or familiar. The official name of the Order does not contain the word "des hospitaliers". The official name of the Order is the L'Ordre hospitalier, and by no means the Order of the Hospitallers.
Initially, the main task of the Military Hospitable Order of Saint John was to protect pilgrims on pilgrimage to the Holy Land. At the present time, when military tasks have receded into the background, the Order is actively involved in humanitarian and charitable activities. Thus, in the new historical conditions, the name "Hospitable Order" acquires a new, special meaning.
From the point of view of international law, the Order of Malta is not a state, but a state-like entity. Sometimes it is viewed as a dwarf enclave state, the smallest state in the world (on the territory of Rome, but independent from Italy), sometimes as an extraterritorial state entity, sometimes just as a knightly order. Meanwhile, in international law, the sovereignty of the Order is considered at the level of diplomatic relations (diplomatic missions), but not as the sovereignty of the state.
In 600, Pope Gregory the Great sent Abbot Probus to Jerusalem to build a hospital to treat and care for Christian pilgrims in the Holy Land. In 800, Charlemagne expanded the hospital and also established a library with it. Two centuries later, in 1005, Caliph Al-Hakim destroyed the hospital and about three thousand other buildings in Jerusalem. In 1023, the Egyptian caliph Ali Al-Zaire allowed Italian merchants from Amalfi and Salerno to rebuild a hospital in Jerusalem. The hospital, built on the site where the monastery of St. John the Baptist was located, received pilgrims who visited Christian shrines. It was served by the Benedictines.
Grand Master and high-ranking Hospitallers in the 14th century
The monastic order of the Hospitallers was founded immediately after the First Crusade by Gerard the Blessed, whose role as founder was confirmed by the papal bull bestowed by Pope Paschal II in 1113. Throughout the entire Kingdom of Jerusalem and beyond, Gerard acquired land and property for his order. His successor, Raymond de Puy, established the first important hospital for the Hospitallers near the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem. Initially, the organization took care of the pilgrims in Jerusalem, but soon the order began to provide the pilgrims with an armed escort, which quickly grew into a significant force. The Order of the Hospitallers and the Order of the Knights of the Templars, founded in 1119, have become the most powerful Christian organizations in the region. In battles with Muslims, the order showed its distinctive features, its soldiers were dressed in black tunics with white crosses.
By the middle of the 12th century, the order was divided into warrior brothers and healer brothers who cared for the sick. He still remained a religious order and enjoyed a number of privileges bestowed on him by the papal throne. For example, the order did not obey anyone except the Pope, did not pay tithes and had the right to own their own spiritual buildings. Many significant Christian fortifications in the Holy Land were built by the Templars and Hospitallers. During the heyday of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, the Hospitallers owned 7 large fortresses and 140 other settlements in the region. The two largest pillars of their power in the Kingdom of Jerusalem and the Principality of Antioch were Krak des Chevaliers and Margates. The possessions of the order were divided into priories, priories into bailiwiks, which in turn were divided into komturstva. Frederick Barbarossa, Holy Roman Emperor, entrusted his safety to the Knights of St. John in a charter of privileges bestowed on the order in 1185.
Cypriot and Rhodes Knights
Islam, which was gaining strength, eventually forced the Hospitallers to leave Jerusalem. After the fall of the Kingdom of Jerusalem (Jerusalem fell in 1187), the Hospitallers were driven back to the County of Tripoli, and after the fall of Acre in 1291, the order found refuge in the Kingdom of Cyprus.
Realizing the involvement of the Hospitallers in the politics of the Kingdom of Cyprus, the Grand Master of the Order, Guillaume de Villaret, decided to establish his own temporary residence. The choice fell on Rhodes. His successor, Fulc de Villaret, put the plan into action. On August 15, 1309, after more than two years of fighting, the island of Rhodes surrendered to the Hospitallers. In addition, the Hospitallers gained control over a number of neighboring islands, as well as the ports of Anatolia, Bodrum and Kastelorizo.
After the abolition of the Knights Templar in 1312, a significant part of their possessions was transferred to the Hospitallers. The possessions were divided into eight languages (Aragon, Averne, Castile, England, France, Germany and Provence). Each language was ruled by a prior, and if the language had more than one prior, then by a great prior. In Rhodes, as well as in recent years in Malta, the knights of each language were led by a bailiff. The Great Prior of England at that time was Philip Thaim, who also acquired possessions for the language of England from 1330 to 1358.
In Rhodes, the Hospitallers, then also called the Knights of Rhodes, were forced to become an even more militarized force, constantly fighting mainly with North African pirates. In the 15th century, they repelled two invasions. The first, led by the Egyptian sultan, in 1444, and the second, led by the Turkish Sultan Mehmed II, in 1480, who, after the capture of Constantinople, made the Hospitallers his main target.
In the video: Rhodes, a knight's castle and a hospital.
In 1494, the Hospitallers founded a fortress on the island of Halicarnassus (today Bodrum). To fortify the Bodrum fortress, they used the stones of the partially destroyed Mausoleum of Mavsol, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world.
In 1522, an unprecedented number of soldiers landed on the island. 400 ships under the command of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent delivered 200,000 soldiers. The hospitallers, under the command of Grand Master Philippe Villaret de l'Ile-Adam, could oppose this force with only 7,000 soldiers, as well as fortifications. After the end of the siege, which lasted 6 months, the surviving Hospitallers were allowed to retreat to Sicily.
Knights of Malta
After seven years of wandering around Europe, the Hospitallers settled in Malta in 1530, after the Spanish king Charles V, being also king of Sicily, gave the Hospitallers permanent fiefdoms of Malta, Gozo and the North African port of Tripoli. The annual payment for this service was to be one Maltese falcon, sent on All Saints' Day to the royal representative, the Viceroy of Sicily (this historical fact is used as a set-up in Dashil Hammett's famous book "The Maltese Falcon").
The legend of the falcon, in turn, echoes the ancient Egyptian myth of the god Horus (Horus, Horus), who was depicted as a man with a falcon's head. Which suggests that the Order of the Hospitallers (the Order of Malta) already then fell into the orbit of influence of 22 Hierophants and became an instrument in the hands of the Occult. * (Note by Salvadora).
Great Siege of Malta
The Hospitallers continued their fight against the Muslims, especially against the North African pirates. Despite the fact that they had only a few ships at their disposal, they very quickly incurred the ire of the Ottomans, who were unhappy with the relocation of the order. In 1565, Suleiman I sent an army of 40,000 to siege Malta and expel 700 knights and 8,000 soldiers from its territory.
At first, the battle was as unfortunate for the Hospitallers as the battle on Rhodes: most of the city was destroyed, about half of the knights were killed. By August 18, the position of the besieged had become practically hopeless. Dwindling in numbers every day, they soon became unable to hold the extended fortification line. However, when the council offered to leave Borgo and Senglia and retreat to Fort Saint Angel, Grand Master Jean Parisot de la Valette rejected the offer.
The Viceroy of Sicily sent no help. Apparently, the orders of the Spanish King Philip II to the Viceroy of Sicily were so vaguely outlined that he did not dare to take responsibility and help the Hospitallers to the detriment of his own defense. An incorrect decision could lead to defeat, and therefore, to expose the Ottoman threat to Sicily and Naples. The Viceroy left his son with la Vallette, and he could hardly be indifferent to the fate of the fortress. Whatever the reason for the delay, the Viceroy continued to hesitate until the fate of the battle was practically decided by the efforts of the deprived Hospitallers, and even then it was only the indignation of his own officers that forced him to move to help.
Another powerful attack followed on 23 August. According to the testimony of the besieged, this was the last serious effort. With great difficulty, even the wounded had to take part, the attack was repulsed. The position of the besieged, however, did not look hopeless. With the exception of Fort Saint Elmo, the Hospitaller's fortifications were still intact. Working day and night, the garrison managed to close the gaps in the fortifications, after which the capture of Malta seemed an increasingly impossible task. Due to the terrible heat and the cramped barracks, many Turkish soldiers were sick. Food and ammunition ran out, the Turkish soldiers became increasingly discouraged by the futility of their attacks and the losses incurred. A serious blow was the death of an experienced commander, privateer and admiral of the Ottoman fleet Dragut, which followed on June 23, 1565. Turkish commanders Pial Pasha and Mustafa Pasha were too careless. They had a huge fleet, which they used only once successfully. They also neglected communications with the African coast and made no attempt to track down and prevent the transfer of reinforcements from Sicily.
On September 1, the Turks made a last attempt, but the morale of the Ottoman troops had already fallen, and to the great joy of the besieged, who saw the way to salvation, the attempt was in vain. The puzzled and hesitant Ottomans learned of the arrival of reinforcements from Sicily to the bay of Millia. On September 8, not knowing that the reinforcements were very small, the Turks lifted the siege and retreated. The great siege of Malta must have been the last battle in which an army of knights won a decisive victory.
After the retreat of the Ottomans, only 600 people remained in the ranks of the Hospitallers. According to the most reliable estimate, the Turkish army then numbered 40,000, of whom, in the end, only 15,000 returned to Constantinople. The siege is vividly depicted in the frescoes by Matteo Perez d'Aleccio in the Hall of Saint Michael and Saint George, also known as the Throne Room, which is located in the castle of the Grand Master in Valletta. The four original oil sketches by Matteo d'Aleccio between 1576 and 1581 can be seen in the Square Room of the Queen's Palace in Greenwich, London. After the siege, a new city was built - today it bears the name Valetta, in memory of the great master who defended it.
In 1607, the Grand Master of the Hospitallers was granted the title of Reichsfürst (Prince of the Holy Roman Empire, despite the fact that the territory of the order was always located south of the territory of the Holy Roman Empire). In 1630, the Grand Master was conferred an ecclesiastical dignity equivalent to that of a cardinal, and the unique mixed title of His Most Eminent Highness, reflecting both qualities and thus recognizing him as the real Prince of the Church.
Conquest of the Mediterranean
After the Malta Hospitallers regained their strength, they found that there was no longer any reason for the order to exist. The purpose for which the order was created, namely the promotion of the crusades to the Holy Land, was now unattainable, both due to economic and military weakness, and because of its geographical location. Diminishing payments from European sponsors, unwilling to support the costly and “unnecessary” organization any longer, prompted the Hospitallers to turn their attention to the growing pirate threat in the Mediterranean, mostly from the Ottoman-sponsored North African pirates.
Towards the end of the 16th century, the Hospitallers, inspired by their invincibility, inspired by the successful defense of their island in 1565 and the joint victory of Christian forces over the Ottoman fleet at the Battle of Lepanto in 1571, set themselves new challenges, namely the protection of Christian merchants trading with the Levant. , as well as the freeing of Christian slaves, who were both the main trade item of the North African pirates and the backbone of their fleet. The activities of the Hospitallers were called Corso.
However, the order continued to suffer from a lack of funds. By taking control of the Mediterranean, the order assumed the duties traditionally performed by the maritime city-state of Venice. However, the financial difficulties of the Hospitallers did not end there. The exchange rate of the local currency, the Escudo, which was adopted at the end of the 16th century, fell steadily, which meant for the Hospitallers a reduction in the profits received from merchant trading posts.
The agricultural difficulties caused by the sterility of the island occupied by the Order forced many Hospitallers to disregard their sense of duty and start plundering Muslim ships. More and more ships were plundered by them, the proceeds of which allowed many Hospitallers to lead an idle and rich life. The profit also allowed them to take local women as wives, to be hired in the French and Spanish navies in search of adventure, experience and, oddly enough, money.
All of the above conflicted with their monastic vows of poverty and chastity, which they swore to observe before joining the order. The changing attitude of the Hospitallers was multiplied by the effects of the Reformation and Counter-Reformation, as well as by the lack of stability experienced by the Catholic Church.
The consequences of these events strongly affected the order in the late 16th and early 17th centuries, when the decline in religious sentiment of many Europeans called into question the need for a religious army, and as a result, the need for regular monetary contributions for the maintenance of the order. The fact that during the accession to the throne of the Protestant Queen Elizabeth I, the Catholic order insisted on the re-entry of England as a member state, earlier, under Henry VIII, which was not allowed, along with monasteries, eloquently testified to the new religious tolerance for the order. Even the German language, equally Protestant and Catholic, was in the possession of the order.
During the 14th and 16th centuries, the order experienced a tangible moral decline, as was eloquently evidenced by the choice of many knights who preferred to plunder as part of foreign fleets, of which the French were especially popular. This choice directly contradicted the vows of the Hospitallers. During the service of one of the European powers, there was a high probability of clashing in battle with another Christian army, which, in fact, happened in a series of Franco-Spanish clashes of that period.
The greatest paradox is that for many years France remained on friendly terms with the Ottoman Empire, the greatest enemy of the Hospitallers. By signing numerous trade treaties and agreeing to an informal (but ultimately effective) ceasefire between the two states, the Hospitallers thus questioned the raison d'être of their own existence.
The fact that the Hospitallers associated themselves with the allies of their sworn enemies demonstrates their moral ambivalence and the new commercial nature of relations in the Mediterranean. Service in a foreign navy, in particular in the French, gave the Hospitallers the opportunity to serve the church and especially the French king. The Knights could increase their chances of promotion, both in the navy that hired them and in the navy of Malta. Could earn higher salaries, ease the boredom of frequent sailing, join high priority short-term trips with large caravans for patronage, and indulge in traditional harbor brawls. The French received a mobile and experienced fleet in their person, which made it possible to keep the vassals in check and protect France from the Spanish threat. The change in position of the Hospitallers was aptly noted by Paul Lacroix:
“Flamboyant with wealth, burdened with the privileges that gave it virtually complete sovereignty, the order was eventually so demoralized by excesses and indolence that it completely lost the understanding of what it was created for, and devoted itself to the desire for profit and the pursuit of pleasure. The greed for profit soon went beyond all possible boundaries. The knights behaved as if they were out of the reach of the crowned persons, they robbed and looted, not caring about who owned the property: pagans or Christians. "
As the Hospitallers' fame and wealth grew, European states began to treat the order with more respect, at the same time, showing less and less desire to finance an organization known for its ability to make large sums of money on the high seas. Thus, a closed vicious circle increased the number of raids, and therefore reduced subsidies received from European states. Soon, the island's balance of payments became completely dependent on conquest.
Meanwhile, the European states had absolutely no time for the Hospitallers. The Thirty Years' War forced them to concentrate all their forces on the continent. In February 1641, an unknown person sent a letter from Valletta to the most trusted ally and benefactor of the Hospitallers, King Louis XIV of France, informing about the problems of the order:
“Italy supplies us with few; Bohemia and Germany are practically nothing, and England and the Netherlands have not provided any help at all for a long time. Your Majesty, only in your kingdom and in Spain do we still have something that supports us. "
It is important to note that the Maltese authorities in every possible way avoided mentioning the fact that they receive significant income from exercising control over the seas. The authorities of Malta quickly appreciated the importance of the corsair for the island's economy and encouraged it in every possible way. Despite the oath of poverty, ordinary knights allowed themselves to retain a part of the loot, which consisted of prize money and cargo confiscated on a captured ship. In addition, they were allowed to use the proceeds to equip their own Galleys. To compete with the North African pirates, the island's authorities also turned a blind eye to the slave market that existed in Valletta.
A lot of controversy was caused by the insistence of the Hospitallers on the observance of the law of whists. The whist law allowed the order to board any ship suspected of transporting Turkish goods, as well as to confiscate its cargo with subsequent resale in Valletta. Often the ship's crew was its most valuable cargo. Naturally, many states declared themselves victims of the Hospitallers' excessive desire to confiscate any cargo remotely related to the Turks. To address the growing problem, the Maltese authorities created a court, the Consigilio del Mer (maritime council), in which captains who believed they were mistakenly injured could appeal their case, often successfully. The practice of using a privateer license, and therefore state support for privateering, which existed for many years, was strictly regulated. The island authorities tried to call to account the unscrupulous Hospitallers in the choice of means in order to calm the European powers and a few benefactors. And yet, these actions did not bring much benefit. The Naval Council archive contains numerous complaints of Maltese piracy in the region since 1700. Ultimately, the excessive softness of the Mediterranean powers led to the collapse of the Hospitallers during this period of their history. After evolving from a military outpost to another small trade-oriented state in Europe, their role was taken over by the North Sea trade states, also versed in piracy.
Knights in Malta
Having preferred Malta, the Hospitallers stayed on the island for 268 years, transforming what they called "a solid rock of sandstone" into a flourishing island with powerful defenses and the capital Valletta, known among the great European powers as Superbissima (Very proud).
In 1301, the order was reorganized into seven languages in order of precedence: Provence, Auvergne, France, Spain, Italy, England and Germany. In 1462, the language of Spain was divided into Castile-Portugal and Aragon-Navarra. The language of England temporarily ceased to exist after the territories of the Order were confiscated by Henry VIII in 1540. In 1782, England was re-established as Anglo-Bavarian, incorporating the Bavarian and Polish priories. At the end of the 19th century, the structure of languages was replaced by a system of national associations.
It is not surprising that the construction of hospitals was one of the first projects carried out in Malta, where French soon supplanted the official Italian (despite the fact that the indigenous people continued to speak among themselves in Maltese). In addition, the Hospitallers built fortresses, watchtowers and, of course, churches on the island. The capture of Malta signaled the order's resumption of naval activity.
The growth and strengthening of Valletta, named after the great master la Valletta, began in 1566. The city soon became the home port of one of the most powerful Mediterranean fleets. The hospitals on the island also increased in size. The main hospital, reputed to be one of the best in the world, could accommodate about 500 patients. At the forefront of medicine, the Maltese Hospital included the School of Anatomy, Surgery and Pharmacy. Valletta was renowned as a center of culture and art. In 1577, the construction of the Church of St. John the Baptist was completed, decorated with works by Caravaggio and other authors.
In Europe, most of the order's hospitals and chapels survived the reformation, but not in Protestant countries. Meanwhile, in 1716, a public library was established in Malta. Seven years later, the University was founded, followed by the School of Mathematics and the School of Natural Sciences. The discontent of some Maltese people who saw the order as a privileged class grew despite the improvements. Among the discontented were even some representatives of the Maltese nobility who were not accepted into the order.
In Rhodes, the Hospitallers were quartered in inns (fr. Auberges). The inns have also been divided into languages. A similar structure survived on Birgu Island from 1530 to 1571, and then, starting in 1571, migrated to Valletta. The affiliation of the inns to Birgu is largely uncertain. Valletta still has an inn in the Castile-Leon language, built in 1574 and restored by the Grand Master de Vilaine. Today this building houses the office of the Prime Minister. The inn of the Italian language (restored in 1683 by the Grand Master of Garaff, today it is the post office), the Aragon language (built in 1571, today the Ministry of Economy), the Bavarian language (formerly the Carnerio Palace, bought in 1784 for the newly formed language) , the Provence language (today it is the National Museum of Archeology). The Auvergne inn was destroyed during the Second World War, after which a courthouse was built in its place. The inn of the French language was also destroyed during the Second World War.
In 1604, each language received a chapel in the Cathedral of St. John, after which the coats of arms of the languages adorned the walls and ceiling of the cathedral.
- Provence: Archangel Michael, coat of arms of Jerusalem
- Auvergne: Saint Sebastian, Blue Dolphin
- France: conversion of Saint Paul, coat of arms of France
- Castile and Leon: Saint James the Small, two quarters of the coat of arms of Castile and two quarters of Leon
- Aragon: St. George the Victorious, the language chapel is dedicated to the Virgin (Per pale Aragon and Navarre)
- Italy: Saint Catherine, curved blue ITALIA lettering
- England: Flagellation of Christ, coat of arms not found; in Rhodes, the language had an English coat of arms (two quarters of the coat of arms of France and two quarters of England)
- Germany: Epiphany, Black two-headed eagle.
Unrest in Europe
The consequence of the growth of Protestantism and French egalitarianism in Europe was the loss of many European possessions by the order, however, the order continued to exist in Malta. The property of the English branch was confiscated in 1540. In 1577, the Brandenburg bailiwick became Lutheran, but continued to pay dues to the order, until this department was turned in 1812 by the king of Prussia into an honorary order. The Order of Malta (Johanniter Orden) was reinstated as the Prussian Knights Hospitaller Order in 1852.
Many of the Knights of Malta were in the ranks of the Navy of the Russian Empire, as well as in the ranks of the revolutionary French fleet. De Poincy, appointed governor of the French colony on the island of Saint Kitts in 1639, adorned the uniform of his retinue with the symbols of the order, since by that time he was already a prominent knight of the Order of St. John. In 1651, the Hospitallers purchased from the Company of the American Isles St. Kitts, St. Martin, and St. Barthelemy. The presence of the order in the Caribbean was overshadowed by the death of de Poincy in 1660, who also acquired the island of Santa Cruz as a personal property and handed it over to the Knights of St. John. In 1665, the order sold its holdings in the Caribbean to the French West Indies Company, thus ending its presence in the region.
The Decree of the French National Assembly Abolishing the Feudal System (1789) abolished the order in France. V. Tithes of any kind, as well as duties that were performed instead of them, under whatever name they were known or collected (even when the parties came to a mutual agreement), owned by a secular or professional organization, owned by landowners or beneficiaries, members of associations (including the Order of Malta and other religious and military orders), as well as those intended for the maintenance of churches, those obtained from the sale of church lands and entrusted to secular people and those replaced by the corresponding part, are abolished. The French revolutionary government confiscated the values and lands of the Order in France in 1792.
Loss of Malta
The Hospitaller Fortress in Malta was captured by Napoleon in 1798 during an expedition to Egypt. Napoleon resorted to cunning. He asked for permission to enter Valletta Bay to resupply his ships, and once inside, turned against the host. Grand Master Ferdinand von Hompesch zu Boleim failed to foresee Napoleon's intentions and prepare for the impending danger, he also failed to provide effective leadership, on the contrary, he readily surrendered to Napoleon, explaining his actions by the fact that the order's charter forbade the Hospitallers to fight Christians.
The Hospitallers were dispersed, but the order, although noticeably reduced in size, continued to exist, negotiating with European governments to return to its former power. The Russian Emperor Paul I, provided most of the Hospitallers with asylum in St. Petersburg.
This act marked the beginning of the existence of the Order of the Hospitallers in the Russian tradition, and also contributed to the recognition of the Maltese awards for military merit along with the Imperial. The fugitive hospitallers in St. Petersburg elected Paul I the Grand Master of the Order. He became a rival to the Grand Master von Hompesch, but von Hompesch's abdication made Paul I the only Grand Master.
While holding the post of Grand Master, Paul I created, in addition to the already existing Roman Catholic Grand Priory, the Russian Grand Priory, which included no less than 118 Komturstvo, thereby lowering the significance of the rest of the order and opening it up to all Christians. The election of Paul I as Grand Master, however, was never approved by the Roman Catholic Church. Thus, Paul I was a Grand Master de facto rather than de jure.
By the early 19th century, the order was greatly weakened by the loss of priories in Europe. The order received only 10% of the income from traditional sources in Europe, the remaining 90% of the income until 1810, the order received from the Russian great priory. This situation was partially reflected in the management of the order, which, in the period from 1805 to 1879, was ruled by lieutenants instead of grand masters, until Pope Leo XIII restored the post of grand master. The restoration of the position of Grand Master signaled the revival of the order as a humanitarian and religious organization. Medical practice, the order's original occupation, again became the main concern of the Hospitallers. Medical and charitable activities undertaken by the order on a small scale during the First World War were significantly intensified and increased in volumes during the Second World War. During the Second World War, the order was administered by the Grand Master Fra Ludovico Chigi dea Rovere Albani (Grand Master from 1931 to 1951).
The Sovereign Military Order of Malta has recently established a diplomatic mission in Malta. The mission was founded after the order signed an agreement with the Maltese government granting the order the exclusive right to use the Fort of Saint Angel for a period of 99 years. Today, following the restoration of the Order, the Fort is hosting historical reenactments as well as cultural events dedicated to the Order of Malta. The Honorary Order of Saint John has been in Malta since the late 19th century.
Revival in Britain under the Name of the Honorary Order of Saint John of Jerusalem
The possessions of the order in England were confiscated by Henry VIII because of his dispute with the Pope about the dissolution of his marriage with Catherine of Aragon. The dispute led to the liquidation of the monasteries and, as a result, to the confiscation of the property of the Hospitallers. Despite the fact that the activity of the order was not formally terminated, the confiscation of property led to the termination of the activity of the language of England. The few Hospitallers from Scotland continued to maintain contact with the French language. In 1831, the French Hospitallers on behalf of the Order in Italy, as they claimed (they probably did not have such powers), founded the British Order. In time it became known as the Most Glorious Order of St. John of Jerusalem in the British Kingdom. In 1888, the order received a royal privilege from Queen Victoria and spread throughout the United Kingdom, as well as the British Commonwealth and the United States of America. It was recognized as a Sovereign Military Order of Malta only in 1963. The most famous activities of the order are those associated with the Hospital of St. John, as well as the Hospital of the Eye of St. John in Jerusalem.
Restoration of the Order in Continental Europe
The consequence of the reformation was that most of the German chapters of the order declared their unwavering commitment to the order, while recognizing the Protestant ideology. Under the name of the Brandenburg Bailiwick of the Noble Order of the Hospital of St. John of Jerusalem (Balley Brandenburg des Ritterlichen Ordens Sankt Johannis vom Spital zu Jerusalem), the order continues to exist today, increasingly moving away from the parent Catholic order.
From Germany, the order went to several other countries, namely Hungary, the Netherlands and Sweden, but this branch was already Protestant. Branches in these countries are also autonomous today. All three branches are in alliance with the British Order as well as the Sovereign Military Order of Malta. The union is called the Union of the Orders of St. John of Jerusalem.
Wannabe Orders
After the Second World War, taking advantage of the absence of state orders in the Italian Republic, some Italian declared himself a prince of Poland and the Grand Prior of the fictitious Grand Priory of Podolia, sold Maltese crosses until he was sued for fraud. Another rogue claimed to be the Grand Prior of the Holy Trinity of Villeneuve, but quickly backtracked after a police visit. The organization, however, resurfaced in the United States in 1975, where it still continues to operate.
The huge entrance fees collected by the American Association for the Sovereign Military Order of Malta in the early 1950s tempted another man named Charles Pichel to create in 1956 his own Sovereign Order of St. John of Jerusalem, Knights of the Hospitallers. Pichel avoided the complications associated with the imitation of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta by inventing a mythical foundation story for his organization. He argued that the organization he headed was founded in 1908 as part of the Russian tradition of the Order of the Hospitallers. A false statement, however, it has misled many, including some scientists. In fact, the founding of his organization had nothing to do with the Russian tradition of the Order of the Hospitallers. The fact is that the Order of Pichel attracted many Russian nobles into its ranks, which gave some credibility to its claims.
The founding of this organization led to the creation of many other bogus orders. Two branches of the Pichelovsky order managed, allegedly, to secure the patronage of the last king of Yugoslavia, Peter II, and the king of Romania, Mihai. The aforementioned order was based in California, where it gained a large following under the leadership of Robert Formals. For several years, and with the support of historical organizations such as the Augustinian Society, he claimed to be a Polish prince from the Sangushko clan.
Grand Masters of the Order
The Order of Malta, or the Order of the Hospitallers, has as many equivalent names, such as:
- Sovereign Military Hospitable Order of Saint John, Jerusalem, Rhodes and Malta (official full name);
- Order of Malta;
- Hospitaller Order;
- Order of the Johannites;
The order grew out of a religious and charitable brotherhood, which was created around 1048-1050 at the hospital (hospitable house) of St. John the Merciful in Jerusalem. The official date of the creation of the Order should be considered February 15, 1113, when Pope Paschal II accepted John's hospital under the patronage of the Holy See. At the same time, John the Baptist became the heavenly patron of the Order.
The final formation of the Order took place in 1120, when after the death of Blessed Gerard, the founder of the Order, Raymond de Puy was elected rector. He turned the brotherhood into a military monastic order and was named master (chief, mentor) of the Order of St. John. Master Hugo de Revel in 1267 received the title of "Grand Master" from Pope Clement IV.
Knightly Orders in history are quite an interesting phenomenon. On the one hand, the stories about them are shrouded in romanticism and mysticism, and on the other - various kinds of atrocities and barbarism. It is known that from 1100 to 1300 12 spiritual orders of chivalry were formed in Europe, but three orders turned out to be the most viable and well-known. This is the Order of the Knights Templar, Hospitaller and the Teutonic Order. In this article, we will consider them in more detail and try to fill in the gaps in this topic.
Order of the Knights Templar
Officially, this order was called "The Secret Chivalry of Christ and the Temple of Solomon", but in Europe it was better known as the Order of the Knights of the Temple. His residence was in Jerusalem, on the site where, according to legend, the temple of King Solomon was located (tample - temple (French). The knights themselves were called templars. The creation of the order was proclaimed in 1118-1119 by nine French knights, led by Hugo de Paynes of Champagne For nine years these nine knights remained silent, they are not mentioned by any chronicler of that time, but in 1127 they returned to France and declared themselves. And in 1128 the Church Council in Troyes (Champagne) officially recognized the order.
On the seal of the Templars, two knights were depicted galloping on one horse, which was supposed to speak of poverty and brotherhood. The symbol of the order was a white cloak with a red eight-pointed cross.
The goal of its members was "to take care of the roads and paths whenever possible, and especially about the protection of the pilgrims." The charter prohibited any secular entertainment, laughter, singing, etc. The knights had to take three vows: chastity, poverty and obedience. The discipline was harsh: "Everyone does not follow their own will at all, but cares more about obeying the ordering." The Order becomes an independent military unit, subordinate only to the Grand Master (he was immediately proclaimed de Paynes) and the Pope.
From the very beginning of their activity, the Templars gained great popularity in Europe. Despite and at the same time thanks to the vow of poverty, the order begins to accumulate great wealth. Each newcomer donated his fortune to the order. The order received large possessions as a gift from the French king, the English king, and noble lords. In 1130, the Templars already have possessions in France, England, Scotland, Flanders, Spain, Portugal, and by 1140 - in Italy, Austria, Germany, Hungary and the Holy Land. In addition, the templars not only guarded the pilgrims, but also considered it their direct duty to attack and plunder trade caravans.
Templars by the XII century. became the owners of unheard-of riches and owned not only land, but also shipyards, ports, and had a powerful fleet. They lent money to impoverished monarchs and thus could influence state affairs. By the way, it was the Templars who were the first to introduce accounting documents and bank checks.
The Knights of the Temple encouraged the development of science, and it is not surprising that many technical advances (for example, the compass) ended up in their hands in the first place. Skilled knight surgeons healed the wounded - this was one of the duties of the order.
In the XI century. The Templars, as "the bravest and most experienced people in military affairs," were granted the Gaza fortress in the Holy Land. But arrogance did a lot of harm to the "soldiers of Christ" and was one of the reasons for the defeat of Christians in Palestine. In 1191, the collapsed walls of the last fortress defended by the Templars, Saint-Jean-d'Acr, buried not only the Templars and their Grand Master, but also the glory of the order as an invincible army. The Templars moved from Palestine, first to Cyprus, and then finally to Europe. Huge land holdings, powerful financial resources and the presence of knights of the order among high dignitaries forced the governments of Europe to reckon with the Templars and often resort to their help as arbitrators.
In the 13th century, when the Pope announced a crusade against the heretics - Cathars and Albigensians, the Templars, the mainstay of the Catholic Church, almost openly came out on their side.
In their pride, the Templars imagined themselves to be omnipotent. In 1252, King Henry III of England, outraged by their behavior, threatened the Templars with confiscation of their land holdings. To which the Grand Master replied: “As long as you do justice, you will rule. If you violate our rights, you are unlikely to remain king. " And it was not a simple threat. The Order could do it! Knights Templars were many influential people in the kingdom, and the will of the overlord was less sacred than the oath of allegiance to the order.
In the XIV century. King Philip IV of France the Handsome decided to get rid of the obstinate order, which, for lack of business in the East, began to interfere, and very actively, in the state affairs of Europe. Philip did not want to be in the place of Henry of England at all. In addition, the king had to solve his financial problems: he owed the Templars a lot of money, but he did not want to give it back at all.
Philip went for a trick. He asked to be accepted into the order. But the Grand Master Jean de Malet politely but firmly refused him, realizing that the king wants to take his place in the future. Then the Pope (who was put on the throne by Philip) invited the Knights Templar to unite with the eternal rivals - the Hospitallers. In this case, the independence of the order would have been lost. But the master again refused.
Then in 1307 Philip the Fair ordered the secret arrest of all the Templars in the kingdom. They were accused of heresy, of serving the devil and of witchcraft. (This was prompted by the mysterious rites of initiation into members of the order and the subsequent preservation of the secrets of its deeds.)
The investigation lasted seven years. Under torture, the Templars confessed everything, but during a public trial they recanted their testimony. On March 18, 1314, the Grand Master de Male and the Prior of Normandy were burned over a low fire. Before his death, the Grand Master cursed the King and the Pope: “Pope Clement! King Philip! In less than a year, I will call you to the judgment of God! " The curse came true: the Pope died two weeks later, and the king - in the fall. Most likely they were poisoned by the temples, skilled in the manufacture of poisons.
Although Philip the Fair did not manage to organize the persecution of the Templars throughout Europe, the former power of the Templars was undermined. The remnants of this order were never able to unite, although its symbols continued to be used. Christopher Columbus discovered America under the Templar flag: a white cloth with a red eight-pointed cross.
The official name is "Order of the Horsemen of the Hospital of St. John of Jerusalem" (gospitalis - guest (lat.); Originally the word "hospital" meant "hospitable home"). In 1070, a hospital for pilgrims to holy places was founded in Palestine by the merchant Mauro of Amalfi. Gradually, a brotherhood was formed there to care for the sick and wounded. It grew stronger, increased, began to exert a rather strong influence, and in 1113 it was officially recognized by the Pope as a spiritual knightly order.
The knights took three vows: poverty, chastity and obedience. An eight-pointed white cross became the symbol of the order. It was originally placed on the left shoulder of a black robe. The mantle had very narrow sleeves, which symbolized the monk's lack of freedom. Later, the knights began to wear a red robe with a cross sewn on the chest. The order had three categories: knights, chaplains, and serving brethren. In 1155, the order was headed by the Grand Master, by whom Raymond de Puy was proclaimed. The general chapter was assembled to make the most important decisions. The members of the chapter gave the Grand Master a purse with eight denarii, which was supposed to symbolize the refusal of the knights from wealth.
Initially, the main task of the order was caring for the sick and wounded. The main hospital in Palestine housed about 2,000 beds. The knights distributed gratuitous aid to the poor, arranged for them three times a week free meals. The Hospitallers had a shelter for foundlings and nursing infants. For all the sick and wounded there were the same conditions: clothing and food of the same quality, regardless of origin. From the middle of the XII century. the main duty of the knights becomes the war with the infidels and the protection of the pilgrims. The order already has possessions in Palestine and southern France. Like the Templars, the Johannites begin to gain great influence in Europe.
At the end of the 12th century, when Christians were driven out of Palestine, the Johannites settled in Cyprus. But this position did not suit the knights. And in 1307 the Grand Master Falcon de Villaret led the Johannites to storm the island of Rhodes. The local population, fearing to lose their independence, fiercely resisted. However, two years later, the knights finally fortified themselves on the island and created strong defensive structures there. Now the Hospitallers, or, as they came to be called, the "Knights of Rhodes", became an outpost of Christians in the East. In 1453 Constantinople fell - Asia Minor and Greece were completely in the hands of the Turks. The knights were expecting an attack on the Oszhres. It did not hesitate to follow. In 1480 the Turks attacked the island of Rhodes. The knights held out and repulsed the attack. The Johannites simply "plagued the Sultan's eyes" with their presence at its very shores, interfering with the management of the Mediterranean Sea. Finally, the patience of the Turks was exhausted. In 1522 Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent vowed to expel Christians from his dominions. The island of Rhodes was besieged by a 200,000-strong army on 700 ships. The Johannites held out for three months before the Grand Master of Villiers de Lille Adan surrendered his sword to the Sultan. The Sultan, respecting the courage of the opponents, dismissed the knights and even helped them with the evacuation.
The Johannites had almost no land in Europe. And so the defenders of Christianity arrived on the shores of Europe, which they had defended for so long. The Holy Roman Emperor Charles V offered the Hospitallers a residence in the Maltese archipelago. From now on, the Knights Hospitallers began to be called the Order of the Knights of Malta. The Maltese continued their struggle with the Turks and sea pirates, since the order had its own fleet. In the 60s. XVI century Grand Master Jean de la Vallette, having at his disposal 600 knights and 7 thousand soldiers, repulsed an attack by a 35-thousand-strong army of selected janissaries. The siege lasted four months: the knights lost 240 cavaliers and 5 thousand soldiers, but fought back.
In 1798 Bonaparte, setting off with an army to Egypt, took the island of Malta by storm and expelled the Knights of Malta from there. Once again, the Johannites were homeless. This time they found shelter in Russia, whose emperor, Paul I, they proclaimed as a token of gratitude the Grand Master. In 1800, the island of Malta was captured by the British, who were not going to return it to the Knights of Malta.
After the assassination of Paul I by the conspirators, the Johannites did not have a Grand Master and a permanent headquarters. Finally, in 1871, Jean-Baptiste Ceschia-Santa Croce was proclaimed Grand Master.
Already from 1262, in order to join the Order of the Hospitallers, it was necessary to have a noble birth. Subsequently, there were two categories of those entering the order - knights by birthright (cavalieri di giustizzia) and by vocation (cavalieri di grazzia). The latter category includes people who do not have to present evidence of noble birth. It was enough for them to prove that their father and grandfather were not slaves and artisans. Monarchs who proved their loyalty to Christianity were also admitted to the order. Women could also be members of the Order of Malta. Grand masters were chosen only from knights of noble birth. The Grand Master was almost the sovereign sovereign of Fr. Malta. The symbols of his power were the crown, the "dagger of faith" - the sword and the seal. From the Pope, the Grand Master received the title of "guardian of the Jerus-Lim court" and "guardian of the armies of Christ." The order itself was called the Sovereign Order of St. John of Jerusalem ".
The knights had certain responsibilities before the order - they could not leave the barracks without the permission of the Grand Master, spent a total of 5 years in the convention (hostel, more precisely - the barracks of the knights) on about. Malta. The knights had to sail on the ships of the order for at least 2.5 years - this duty was called "caravan".
By the middle of the XIX century. The Order of Malta turns from a military into a spiritual and charitable corporation, which it remains to this day. The residence of the Knights of Malta is now in Rome.
The Cross of the Order of Malta has served since the 18th century. one of the highest awards in Italy, Austria, Prussia, Spain and Russia. Under Paul I, it was called the cross of St. John of Jerusalem.
In the XII century. in Jerusalem there was a hospital (hospice) for German-speaking pilgrims. He became the forerunner of the Teutonic Order. Initially, the Teutons occupied a subordinate position in relation to the Hospitaller Order. But then in 1199 the Pope approved the charter of the order, and Henry Walpot was proclaimed Grand Master. However, it was only in 1221 that all the privileges that other, senior orders of the Templars and Johannites had, extended to the Teutons.
The knights of the order took vows of chastity, obedience and poverty. Unlike other orders, whose knights were of different "languages" (nationalities), the Teutonic Order was mainly composed of German knights.
The symbols of the order were a white cloak and a simple black cross.
The Teutons very quickly abandoned their duties of protecting pilgrims and treating the wounded in Palestine. Any attempts by the Teutons to interfere in the affairs of the powerful Holy Roman Empire were thwarted. Fragmented Germany did not give an opportunity to unfold, as the Templars in France and England did. Therefore, the Order began to engage in "good activities" - to carry the word of Christ to the eastern lands with fire and sword, leaving others to fight for the tomb of the Lord. The lands that the knights conquered became their possession under the supreme power of the order. In 1198, the knights became the main striking force of the crusade against the Livs and conquered the Baltic States, at the beginning of the thirteenth century. founding the city of Riga. This is how the state of the Teutonic Order was formed. Further, in 1243 the knights conquered the Prussians and took the northern lands from the Polish state.
There was another German order - the Livonian one. In 1237 the Teutonic Order united with him and decided to move to conquer the northern Russian lands, expanding their borders and strengthening their influence. In 1240 the order's allies, the Swedes, suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of Prince Alexander Yaroslavich on the Neva. And in 1242
the same fate befell the Teutons - about 500 knights perished, and 50 were taken prisoner. The plan to annex Russian territory to the lands of the Teutonic Order suffered complete failure.
The Teutonic Great Masters were constantly afraid of the unification of Russia and by any means tried to prevent this. However, on their way was a powerful and dangerous enemy - the Polish-Lithuanian state. In 1409, war broke out between him and the Teutonic Order. The combined forces defeated the Teutonic Knights at the Battle of Grunwald in 1410. But the Order's misfortunes did not end there. The Grand Master of the Order, like the Maltese, was a sovereign sovereign. In 1511, it was Albert Hohenzollern, who, being a "good Catholic", did not support the Reformation, which was fighting against the Catholic Church. And in 1525 he proclaimed himself the secular sovereign of Prussia and Brandenburg and deprived the order of both possessions and privileges. After such a blow, the Teutons no longer recovered, and the order continued to drag out a miserable existence.
In the XX century. German fascists extolled the former merits of the order and its ideology. They also used the symbolism of the Teutons. Remember, the iron cross (black cross on a white background) is an important award of the Third Reich. However, the members of the order themselves were persecuted, apparently as not justifying their trust. The Teutonic Order exists in Germany to this day.
History is an unreliable science, and therefore you should not take everything read below at face value. It should be understood that since the events of the last century cause numerous controversies and suggest different versions of what is happening, then it is not at all possible to establish historical reliability in the presentation of the events of a thousand years ago, at least using those tools and sources that are available to “mere mortals”.
At the same time, this is what creates an aura of mythical legend around the history with a centuries-old exposure, which makes the study of ancient history an incredibly entertaining process. And first of all, this applies to all kinds of sects, society, cults and other organizations, the details of whose activities were not widely publicized. And among others, religious orders of knighthood, subordinate directly to the Holy See, are of particular interest.
One of these orders is the Hospitallers, they are also the Johnites, the organization of which still exists today, bearing the name of the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St. John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and Malta. Or simply - the Order of Malta.
It is worth noting that the Order did not originate in Malta, and it has a mediocre relationship to the modern Republic of Malta, but the Knights Hospitallers reached their highest military glory when their main base was in Malta, the modern capital of which, the city of Valletta, was named in honor of Jean Parisot de la Valletta, Master of the Order and founder of the city. It was under his leadership that the knights withstood the battle, later called the Great Siege of Malta. However, first things first.
At the beginning of the 6th century, when Jerusalem was still in the possession of the Byzantine Empire, at the initiative of Pope Gregory the Great, a hospital was organized in this largest pilgrimage site for Christian pilgrims, where they could receive medical treatment and rest. Two centuries later, the hospital will receive "investments" from Charlemagne, and two centuries later it will be thoroughly destroyed by the "Egyptian" caliph Al-Hakim, who fought wars with Christian Byzantium.
However, already in 1023, Caliph Ali Al-Zaire allowed the restoration of a Christian hospital in Jerusalem, entrusting this business to merchants from the wealthy Italian community of Amalfi. The hospital was located on the site of the former monastery of St. John the Baptist and continued its activities. Initially, monks from the Order of St. Benedict "worked" in it. But, immediately after the end of the First Crusade, as a result of which Jerusalem fell into the possession of the Christian army, a monastic Order of the Hospitallers, also known as the Johannites, was founded on the basis of the hospital - by the name of John the Baptist, the heavenly patron of the Order.
The founder of the Order, Gerard the Blessed, began to actively buy up land and found the Order's hospitals-representations in the cities of Asia Minor, which was continued by his follower, Raymond de Puy, by establishing a hospital hospital near the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem. However, the organization quickly acquired the characteristics of a paramilitary formation, beginning not only to take care of Christian pilgrims, but also to provide them with an armed escort, and eventually to take part in hostilities between Christians and Muslims.
By the middle of the XII century, the Johannites were finally divided into brothers-soldiers and brothers-doctors. The Order enjoyed substantial rights, reporting directly to the Pope. At that time, within the Christian possessions in Asia Minor, the Hospitallers owned 7 large fortresses and 140 other settlements.
But, the heyday was not long. In less than two centuries, Christians lost all the conquered lands - the last major stronghold of the crusaders, the city of Akra, was taken by the troops of the young Mamluk sultan al-Ashraf Khalil in 1291. The surviving knights were forced to leave the Holy Land.
Remaining a very significant military force and not wanting to take part in the internal politics of the Kingdom of Cyprus, which sheltered the Johannites, the knights captured the island of Rhodes, which formally belonged to Genoa, but a Byzantine garrison was stationed on it. Moreover, the knights bought the island from the Genoese, but the Byzantines, who were supported by the local population, resisted the Hospitallers for several more years. In 1309, Rhodes finally submitted to the knights and became their main base until 1522.
In 1312, the Order of the Templars was liquidated, the wealth of which was divided by the French king and the Pope, and the lands, for the most part, passed into the possession of the Johannites. Eight langs (administrative units) were formed on the basis of these possessions, but the main activities of the Order continued in the Mediterranean Sea.
For two centuries, the Rhodes knights, having turned, for the most part, into a militarized structure, with varying success fought African pirates and thwarted attempts to organize naval invasions of Europe by the Arabs and Ottomans. In 1453, Constantinople fell. The Johannites remained the only combat-ready force, on a regular basis opposing the ever-growing power of the Muslim world.
The end of the stay of the Hospitallers on Rhodes was put by Suleiman the Magnificent, who organized a military campaign against the Order. In 1522, after a six-month siege, in conditions of the total numerical superiority of the Ottomans, Rhodes was captured. The benevolent sultan allowed the surviving knights to leave the island.
Siege of Rhodes
In 1530, King Charles V of Spain gave the island of Malta into the possession of the Hospitallers. The knights continued their activities and in 1565 the already aged Suleiman again organized a campaign against the order of the Johannites. However, the knights held out in the heroic defense of Malta, and the Turkish army, for a number of reasons, was eventually forced to retreat, having suffered heavy losses.
Siege of Malta
Victory in this confrontation, known today as the Great Siege of Malta, spread the good news throughout Europe, which at that time was in horror with the Ottoman Empire, whose troops were recently besieging Vienna. Almost immediately after the victory of the Maltese, the city of Valletta was founded. Thanks to the generous donations from the European sovereigns, which flowed after the glorious victory, Valletta very quickly grew into a beautiful modern city.
Here you can see that Valletta became the first European city built according to a pre-developed master plan in accordance with the norms and rules of architecture. The work was supervised by the Italian architect Francesco Laparelli. The city was equipped with a sewerage system, and the street layout was developed taking into account the flow of the sea breeze, which penetrated freely everywhere, purifying the air and contributing to the air conditioning effect.
Valletta's plan
Valletta was home to one of the best hospitals of that time, where not only treatment was carried out, but also research in the fields of anatomy, surgery and pharmacy. At the beginning of the 18th century, a public library appeared in Malta, and after that - the University, the Schools of Mathematics and Natural Sciences.
One of the main architectural monuments of Valletta is the Church of St. John the Baptist, decorated with works by Caravaggio and many other prominent authors.
The Department of Urban Planning, created together with Valletta herself, still operates, strictly regulating everything related to development, so that modern Valletta has preserved many elements of historical buildings, which are carefully restored and maintained, attracting many tourists to the island every year.
But the Hospitallers, having won their main battle, gradually began to degenerate. The main goals of their organization, for which it was created, were unattainable - they could not take care of the pilgrims to the Holy Land. The monastic foundations on which the charter of the Order was based, due to material well-being, began to be violated everywhere. Well, gradually discontinued donations forced the Maltese to earn money by controlling sea traffic in the Mediterranean.
Over time, privateering and sometimes outright piracy began to be practiced, especially in relation to Arab ships. The so-called. "Whist" right - the power to board any ship suspected of transporting Turkish goods, with the subsequent confiscation of these goods, which were resold in Valletta, where, on the quiet, the slave market operated quite calmly.
The moral decay of most of the Order led to the inglorious surrender of Malta in 1798 to the troops of Napoleon, who, through a simple trick, took Valletta and dispersed the Order. In other matters, not all members of the Order finally fell morally, resigned to such an inglorious end, and the organization, although it ended up in exile, continued to exist. For some time they were sheltered in St. Petersburg by Paul I, who was eventually awarded the title of Grand Master. However, after the assassination of the emperor, the activities of the Order in the Russian Empire were quickly curtailed.
The order was inexorably impoverished and declining, without a permanent base. So, for most of the 19th century, the Order did not even have grand masters, and lieutenants were engaged in management. In 1879, Pope Leo XIII reinstated the position of Grand Master, which was evidence of a partial revival of the Order. Medical, humanitarian and religious activities have become the main areas of work of the renewed organization.
During the 20th century, members of the Order helped the civilian population during the world wars, but their activities were not large-scale, which, however, did not prevent them from establishing themselves by the end of the century as a sovereign state, like the Vatican. And although disputes over the legal status of the Order of Malta continue, its diplomatic contacts still give the right to speak of it as a dwarf, but still a state.
Today, the leadership of the Italian Republic treats the Order of Malta as a sovereign state on its territory and recognizes the extraterritoriality of its residence in Rome. And since 1998, the Government of Malta handed over the Fort Sant'Angelo to the Order for a period of 99 years. It was this fort that once played a decisive role in the Great Siege of Malta.
As a result, the Order of Malta cannot be called a secret organization. At first sight. Because if you take a closer look, it will become obvious that nothing is known for certain about the type of activity of the members of the order, of whom there are about 13.5 thousand (not counting the whole army of volunteers and doctors), as well as about the reasons why every third country in the world maintains official diplomatic relations with this organization.
One can only assume that the occult mysteries practiced in all knightly orders, despite all their external "religiosity", did not disappear anywhere - their adepts carefully passed on secret knowledge from generation to generation, diligently protecting them from the wicked representatives of the human race, even if who were members of the same order. Well, the wisdom and knowledge accumulated over a centuries-old, almost a thousand-year history is the very tool that allows such a small organization, on the scale of the whole world, to make even the strongest of this world reckon with their opinions.
We praise our names
But the paucity of quibbles will become apparent,
When to raise your cross to the ramen
We won't be ready these days.
For us Christ, full of love,
He died in the ground that was given to the Turks.
Fill the fields with a stream of enemy blood
Or our honor is forever ashamed!
Conan de Bethuis. Translated by E. Vasilieva
Usually, Western European knights defeated Muslims on the battlefield, and not only when they fought bravely and decisively - these were the qualities for which chivalry was always famous - but they also acted in an organized way. But it was just the organization that the knights often lacked. The reason was that every knight-feudal lord was little dependent on anyone, since his peasants were engaged in subsistence farming, and society itself was distinguished by non-economic forms of coercion to labor. Moreover, with personal prowess, he could easily surpass both the duke and the count, or even the king himself! Suger, abbot of Saint-Denis, in his treatise "The Life of Louis VI, nicknamed Tolstoy", spoke in detail about how in 1111 he planned to punish Hugh du Puizet, since he was engaged in robbery, and laid siege to his castle in Bose. Although the king's army suffered heavy losses, he nevertheless took the castle of Hugo, but he acted very gently with Hugo himself: he only sent him into exile, although he could have hanged him. Then Hugo returned, declared that he had repented, and Louis VI forgave him. Then Hugo rebuilt the keep and ... took up robbery and other atrocities, so the king was simply forced to go on a campaign against his obstinate vassal again. And again Hugo's donjon was burned, and Hugo himself was punished, and then, when he repented once again, they again pardoned! But then he repeated all the same for the third time, and it was then that the king got angry in earnest: he burned his keep, and sent Hugo himself to the Holy Land to atone for his sins before God. From there he never returned, and only after that the inhabitants of Bose were able to breathe easy.
Crusader warrior 1163 - 1200 Fresco on the wall of the chapel of Cressac-Saint-Genis (Charente). The most famous are the frescoes painted on the north wall. The upper row of images tells about the battle with the Saracens, which took place in 1163 at the foot of the castle Krak des Chevaliers, when the emir Nureddin, who besieged the castle, was completely defeated by a sudden attack of the Frankish cavalry.
Many other knights were distinguished by the same, if not great, arbitrariness in that era. And it would be fine in peacetime! No, and on the battlefield they behaved in the same inappropriate way! And if some proud knight rushed to the enemy camp before the others in order to rob it first, or ran away from the enemy when it was required to stand firmly in one place and fight the enemy, the king could well lose even the most successful battle that began!
Making the knights distinguished by discipline is what many military leaders dreamed of, but no one could achieve this for many years. Everything changed when the "expeditions" to the East began. There, having become closely acquainted with a completely different oriental culture for them, the leaders of the West decided that the church itself could become the "basis" of knightly discipline. And for this you just need to ... make monks out of the knights and hint at the same time that in this way they will come closer to the coveted salvation!
Knights-crusaders of Palestine: from left to right - knight-crusader of the Order of the Holy Sepulcher of Jerusalem (founded in 1099); hospitaller; Templar, Knight of the Order of St. Jacob Kampostelsky, Teutonic Knight of the Order of St. Mary of Teutonic.
So, the spiritual-knightly orders of the knights-crusaders, created in distant Palestine, appeared. But only they were copied from very similar "organizations" among Muslims! After all, it was there, in the East, at the end of the 11th - beginning of the 12th centuries, that such military-religious orders as Rahkhasyya, Shukhainiyya, Khaliliya and Nubuviyya appeared, some of which in 1182 the Caliph an-Nasir united into one large and single spiritual order for all Muslims. knightly order of Futuvwa. The members of this order had a purely knightly rite, when the entrant was girded with a sword, after which the candidate drank the "sacred" salt water from a special bowl, put on special trousers and even, like in Europe, received a blow with the flat side of the sword or hand on the shoulder. That is, chivalry itself, as such, came to Europe from the East, which, by the way, is said in the poem of Firdousi "Shahname"!
Although, who was the first and from whom to borrow the very idea of a spiritual-knightly order is also, in general, unknown - or rather, this is a very controversial issue! Indeed, long before these events in the lands of Africa, namely in Ethiopia, there already existed ... the ancient Christian order of St. Anthony, and historians quite rightly consider him the oldest among all other orders of chivalry in the whole world.
The cross was a popular figure on old knightly coats of arms.
It is believed to have been founded by the Negus, the ruler of Ethiopia, who was known in the West as "Presbyter John" after St. Anthony either in 357 or 358 rested in the Lord. Then very many of his followers decided to leave for the desert, where they took the vows of the monastic life of St. Basil and created a monastery “named after and heritage of St. Anthony ". The order itself was founded in 370 AD, although even a later date in comparison with all other orders will still be "early".
Staircase to the cave of St. Anthony the Great. Perhaps salvation can be found here ...
Orders with the same name were later found in Italy, France and Spain, and were branches of the order, whose headquarters were in Constantinople. It is interesting that the Ethiopian order has survived to this day. The head of the order is its grandmaster and at the same time the President of the Royal Council of Ethiopia. Well, very rarely, new members are accepted, and as for the vows, yes, they are completely chivalrous. The badge of the order has two degrees - the Grand Knight's Cross and the Companion Cross. He has the right to indicate in their official title the initials KGCA (Knight Grand Cross - Knight Grand Cross) and CA (Companion of the Order of St. Anthony - Companion of the Order of St. Anthony).
Crosses of the Order of St. Anthony.
Both insignia of the order look like a golden Ethiopian cross, covered with blue enamel, and on top they are also crowned with the imperial crown of Ethiopia. But the pectoral star is the cross of the order, does not have a crown, and is superimposed on an eight-pointed silver star. The sash is traditionally sewn from moire silk, has a bow at the hip, and its color is black with blue stripes on the edges.
The clothes of the knights of the order were black and blue robes, on the chest of which a blue three-pointed cross was embroidered. The older knights were distinguished by double crosses of the same color. The headquarters of the order were located on the island of Meroe (in Sudan), and throughout Ethiopia, the order owned both women's and numerous men's monasteries. The order was simply incredibly rich: its annual income was at least two million gold. Thus, the idea of such orders was first born not in the East, and, as you can see, not in Europe, but in ... sultry Christian Ethiopia!
Well, the palm in the creation of the very first order in Palestine belonged to the Johannites or Hospitallers. Usually, non-specialists associate its foundation with the first crusade, although the real order is slightly different. It all began when Emperor Constantine came to Jerusalem to find here (and he found it!) The Life-giving Cross of the Lord, well, the very one on which Jesus Christ was crucified. Then, many other holy places were found in the city, which were mentioned in the Gospel, and temples were immediately erected in these places.
It is clear that any Christian would be very pleased to visit all these places, to receive grace from God and hope for the salvation of his sinful soul. But the path to the Holy Land for the pilgrims was filled with dangers. And when someone got there, they often took monastic vows and stayed to continue to do good to other pilgrims at the same monastery hospitals. In 638, Jerusalem was conquered by the Arabs, but for all this "activity" the conditions remained practically unchanged.
And when, in the 10th century, Jerusalem turned into a world center of Christian piety, a pious merchant was found - yes, there were then such, by the name of Constantine di Panteleone, originally from the Italian trading republic of Amalfi, who in 1048 asked permission from the Egyptian sultan to build in the city of another shelter for sick pilgrims. It was called the Jerusalem Hospital of St. John, and the emblem of the hospital was the white eight-pointed Amalfi cross. That is why his ministers began to be called Johnites, or hospitallers (from lat. Hospitalis - "hospitable").
Battle of Agra. Miniature from the manuscript of Guillaume de Tire "History of Outremer", XIV century. (National Library of France).
For 50 years, the Hospitallers lived quite peacefully - they went for the sick and prayed, but then Jerusalem was besieged by the crusaders. According to legend, Christians, like all other residents of the city, were "put on the walls." And then the cunning Johannites began to throw on the heads of the Christian knights not stones, but fresh bread! The authorities immediately accused the Johannites of treason, but a miracle happened: right in front of the judges, this bread turned to stone, which proved their innocence, so they were acquitted! When Jerusalem fell on July 15, 1099, Duke Gottfried of Bouillon rewarded the brave monks, and some of his knights even became members of their brotherhood in order to protect the pilgrims on their way to the holy city. First, the status of the order was confirmed by the ruler of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, Baudouin I in 1104, and nine years later, Pope Paschal II confirmed his decision with his bull. And this charter of Baudouin I and the papal bull have survived to this day and are in the National Library of the Island of Malta in the city of La Valletta.
Louis VII and King Baudouin III of Jerusalem (left) fight the Saracens (right). Miniature from the manuscript of Guillaume de Tire "History of Outremer", XIV century. (National Library of France).
The military brothers of the order were not mentioned in the documents until 1200, when they were divided into warrior brothers (blessed to wear and use), healer brothers and chaplain brothers who performed the necessary religious rites in the order. Only the Pope and the Grand Master of the Order obeyed the war brothers. At the same time, they owned land, churches and cemeteries. They were exempted from taxes, and it was found that even the bishops, and those, had no right to excommunicate them!
Modern hospitallers-reenactors.
It received its name the Jerusalem Order of the Knights Hospitaller of St. John in 1120 under the first master, Raymond Dupuis. Along with the usual monastic attire, the knights wore a black cloak, on the left shoulder of which a white eight-pointed cross was sewn. On the march, they wore a surcoat, usually scarlet, with a white linen cross on the chest with flared ends. They symbolized the following: the four ends of the cross are the four Christian virtues, and the eight corners are the eight good qualities of a true believer. And, of course, the cross on a bloody background symbolized knightly fortitude and loyalty to the Lord. The banner of the order was a rectangular red cloth with a white cross.
Fort in Larnaca, Cyprus. There were crusaders here too.
In 1291, the order left Palestine and moved to the island of Cyprus, and 20 years later settled on the island of Rhodes, where it remained until 1523, when the Turks drove it out of there. 42 years later, the knights of the order moved to Malta and began to be called "Knights of Malta". Well, the hospitals founded by the order in various European countries were at that time real centers of medicine.
A still from the film "Suvorov" (1940). The mantle with the Maltese cross is clearly visible on Emperor Paul. Well, he loved the romance of chivalry, what to do ... In the film we see that during the meeting of Suvorov with Paul, Paul I is wearing the mantle of the Master of the Order of Malta. It is safe to say that what we see does not match the story. Paul I was indeed proclaimed Grand Master of the Order of Malta, but only on December 6, 1798, that is, more than ten months after this audience.
In 1798, Malta fell under the rule of Napoleon, which caused a massive dispersal of its members around the world. Emperor Paul I invited the "Knights of Malta" to Russia and indulged them in every possible way, but after his death they had to leave Russia for Rome. Today the order has a complex name, which sounds like this: Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St. John of Jerusalem, Rhodes and Malta. Note that in battles with Muslims in Palestine, the Hospitallers competed with the Templars all the time, which is why they were put away from each other. For example, the Johannites in the rearguard, and the Templars in the vanguard, and in between all the other troops.
Bellapais Abbey, North Cyprus. Founded by the Hospitallers, but now there is an Orthodox Greek church.
And this is how she looks today inside.
Well, this is the dungeon of the abbey. When it's hot outside, a pleasant coolness reigns here.
Of course, the Hospitallers were not only warriors and healers, but also excellent builders, so many they built various abbeys, churches and cathedrals. In this they also competed with the Templars. Having moved to Cyprus, they built many religious structures there that have survived to this day.
Cathedral of St. Nicholas, converted by Muslims into a mosque.
From the back, St. Nicholas Cathedral looks no less impressive than from the façade.