History of the Knights Hospitaller
The origin of the Hospital of St. John in Jerusalem is shrouded in mystery. No one seems to know for sure when it was established. Theories range from the late Roman Empire to some time in the eleventh century. What we can say for certain is that when the crusaders captured Jerusalem in 1099, the hospital had been in operation for decades at least, perhaps centuries, caring for the sick and poor, Christian, Muslim, and Jew alike. It was ruled by a monk who was known as the Blessed Gerard who offered the Hospital’s services to the crusaders.
The hospital was operated under the Benedictine rule, but was able to free itself from their influence and establish themselves as a separate order. In 1113, Pope Paschal II issued a papal bull confirming the foundation of the Order of the Hospitallers. Gerard’s successor, Raymond du Puy was responsible for establishing the Military wing of the order in response to the creation of the Military Order of the Temple of Solomon, or the Knights Templar. The Military Order of the Hospitallers quickly grew into a major force in the Holy Land and, along with the Templars, provided the bulk of the forces for the defense of the Kingdom of Jerusalem garrisoning several fortresses on the frontiers of the kingdom. By 1168, they had become so powerful that they were capable of making and breaking treaties with neighboring rulers without the consent of the king of Jerusalem. They were even responsible for forcing King Amalric into a premature invasion of Egypt for which they provided 500 brother knights and sergeants and 500 turcopoles or Syrian mercenaries.
A bitter rivalry developed between the Hospitallers and Templars, once almost breaking out into a civil war. The two orders hated each other so much that they could only be convinced to go into battle side by side under the most dire of circumstances, such as the Battle of Hattin. But neither was hated more than by Saladin. After Hattin, Saladin paid 50 gold pieces each for every member of the two orders whom his followers had captured. He then had them all executed.
After the loss of Jerusalem, and the hospital, the few remaining Hospitallers retreated to their frontier fortresses to wait for another crusade to retake the city. That came two years later when Kings Richard and Phillip arrived and laid siege to the city of Acre, an important port for reaching Jerusalem. The Hospitallers joined the siege, and after two years, the Christian forces captured the city. The Order established a new hospital and headquarters in Acre. The crusading army moved on toward Jerusalem but did not attack. Weary of the Crusade, Richard agreed on a deal for Saladin to keep the city as long as he allowed Christian pilgrims to visit it. However, the crusaders managed to capture a few other cities in Palestine.
The Hospitallers, headquartered in Acre, continued to care for the sick and poor and give shelter to pilgrims, while defending the tiny outposts of Christendom from their fortresses in Syria and Palestine until the crusaders were finally evicted from the Holy Land in 1291.
After a brief interlude on the island of Cypress, the Order decided to find a new headquarters in the eastern Mediterranean. They chose Rhodes, an island off the southeastern coast of Turkey owned by the Byzantine Empire. After a four year siege, Rhodes fell to the Hospitallers in 1310. They held it until 1522 when it was conquered by the Turks. In 1530, Emperor Charles V gave them the island of Malta, near Italy. The Hospitallers ruled Malta until 1798 when it was seized by Napoleon.
The Order of St. John still exists today. No longer a military order, it has returned to its original purpose of caring for the sick and injured.
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