The battlefield is now the world. The Order’s activities range from centres for the treatment and rehabilitation of lepers in Africa, South America and Polynesia, to ambulance units in Ireland and Germany, hospitals and research clinics (including one in the Palazzo di Malta itself) and field units which are flown to any disaster area. All the more remarkable in the second half of the twentieth century is the fact that all this is personal, and privately financed. In Biafra the French branch of the Knights has organised a special settlement for children, after having air-lifted in thousands of tons of foodstuffs in 1968. In the Lebanon, an anti-diabetic clinic is maintained, in Malta a blood bank, and in the Philippines, Colombia, Abyssinia and Equador, volunteers work on the prevention and treatment of leprosy. Even at the height of its earlier fame it is impossible that the Order could have been so widely recognised. It maintains diplomatic relations with over thirty-eight states, ranging from Europe to South America, to Asia and to Africa, as well as a number of official delegations in other countries.
Today’s work in hospitals and clinics, in disaster areas, and on Far Eastern battlefields, may seem a far call from Grand Master Roger des Moulins falling under a shower of arrows at Sephoria in 1187, from L’Isle Adam embarking from Rhodes in 1522, or La Valette in the breach at Malta in 1565. Yet it is in essence nearer to the aims of its founder Brother Gerard than at any time in the intervening centuries. The Order has been wrongly called anachronistic. It is in fact traditional—so traditional that it is back where it started in 1099. The wheel has come full circle. After its apparent dissolution at the hands of Napoleon in 1788, the Sovereign Military Order of St John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta, is more vigorous than ever before. The Phoenix has risen from the ashes.
Appendix I
THE ORDER SINCE THE LOSS OF MALTA
The complex politics following upon the expulsion of the Order of St John from Malta in 1798 merit a little more detailed analysis than has been given to them in the main body of the text. So too, but for quite different reasons, does the remarkable efflorescence of the Order in recent years. The latter is one of the more singular phenomena in the whole history of this remarkable organisation. For close on 900 years the Order has been both a shield and a sword to Christendom. It is easy enough to find high drama in the desert campaigns, the sieges, and the innumerable naval battles in the Order’s history, but it is important to remember that the kernel of the Order has always been its hospitaller work.
The whole arena of politics involving the Order, from the loss of Malta up to the mid-twentieth century, has been most adequately dealt with in the Histoire politique de l’Ordre souverain de Saint-Jean de Jérusalem (Ordre de Malta) de 1789 á 1955, by Le comte Michel de Pierredon (Paris, 1963).
Certainly the most interesting episode during this period is that in which the Emperor Paul I of Russia attempted to secure Malta in order to further Russian ambitions in the Mediterranean—principally directed against the Ottoman Turks. The occupation of Malta by the French and the dispossession of the Order seemed to have forestalled any further Russian ambitions in this direction. The previous rapprochement or treaty of amity between Grand Master Emmanuel de Rohan and Paul I, in which a new grand priory—the Grand Priory of Russia—had been established nevertheless still gave the Emperor a legitimate interest in the Order. This had been reinforced in 1782 when the Anglo-Bavaro-Polish Langue had been formed, George III of England ratifying the re-establishment of the English Langue in 1785.
After the partition of Poland, during the reign of the emperor’s mother Catherine II, the Polish Langue came under Russian control. In 1797 this whole curious portmanteau was renamed the Anglo-Bavaro-Russian Langue. The proclamation by Grand Master Ferdinand von Hompesch in the same year, making the Emperor Paul a Protector of the Order, meant that, even after the Napoleonic conquest of the island of Malta, the emperor could still lay claim to Malta—if only he could get himself made the Grand Master. This was effected in 1798 when the Grand Priory of Russia, possibly with the connivance of a number of French emigre Knights, declared the Grand Master von Hompesch deposed.
In the November of the same year Paul I was proclaimed Grand Master of The Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta. The whole episode is summed up in a portrait of Paul I by Borovikovsky (a copy of which hangs in the Palazzo di Malta in Rome) showing Paul dressed as Emperor of Russia and Grand Master of Malta. There could never be any doubt that the whole transaction was completely illegal—for one tiling Paul was not even a Catholic. However, as has been seen, the Maltese uprising against the French, coupled with the English intervention in the affairs of the island, caused the miscarriage of all Paul’s Mediterranean policy. The whole of this curious and fascinating episode in the Order’s history is succinctly dealt with in The Order of Malta and the Russian Empire (Rome, 1969), by Frà Olgerd de Sherbowitz-Wetzor and Frà Cyril Toumanoff.
Although much ink has been spilled over the question of the Order’s sovereignty following the loss of Malta, the general consensus of opinion would seem to be that the fact the Order continued diplomatic relations with other States (including Napoleon’s Empire), and that these relations were never interrupted in the case of the Court of Vienna, proves a continued sovereignty from the period of its residence in Rhodes right up to the present day. Certainly it does, from the Palazzo di Malta in Rome, maintain at this moment diplomatic relations with thirty-eight sovereign States—a considerable advance even upon the days of its greatest material grandeur in the eighteenth century.
After the rule of Lieutenants from 1805 to 1879 (referred to in the text) the restoration of the Grand Mastership by Pope Leo XIII in 1879 was the beginning of the renewed life of the Order in Europe. The seventy-fourth Grand Master was Frà John-Baptiste Ceschi á Santa Croce. He died in 1905 and was succeeded first by Grand Master Thun-Hohenstein (1905-31) and then by Grand Master Chigi della Rovere Albani in 1931. It was during the reign of this distinguished Italian nobleman that the Order ran into considerable difficulties regarding its position with the Holy See—a powerful cardinal of the Sacred College being ambitious to secure control of the Order. The whole affair was, in effect, although on a smaller and more discreet level, somewhat reminiscent of the attack launched against the Templars by Pope Clement V in the fourteenth century. But the Knights of St John were to prove, as they had done on great occasions in the past, that they were well capable of withstanding a siege—whether politico-ecclesiastical or military. The whole story has been admirably and wittily told by Roger Peyrefitte in Chevaliers de Malte (English trans. Knights of Malta, London, 1960). It ended with the position of the Order being clarified and confirmed, and in 1961 Pope John XXIII approved the new Constitutional Charter of the Order. On May 8th, 1962, after an interregnum during which the Order had been governed by Lieutenants, the seventy-seventh and present Prince and Grand Master, Frà Angelo de Mojana di Cologna, was elected.
The subsequent activities of the Order of St John, which have been briefly outlined in the last chapter of this book, represent an astonishing renaissance. They are indeed more than what is implied by the word, for they are not so much a re-birth as the birth of a completely new international concept of hospitaller and charitable activities. The Annuaire of 1972, issued by the Palazzo di Malta, gives detailed information on the present governmental structure and organisation of the Order as well as particulars about the various Grand Priories and the National Associations and Diplomatic Representatives throughout the world. An excellent outline of the Order’s history and of its present government, together with a list of its hospitaller and charitable activities, is contained in A Modern Crusade (Palazzo di Malta, Via Condotti, Rome).
Appendix II
LIST OF THE GRAND MASTERS OF THE ORDER
1. Bx. Frà Gérard, founder - 3 sept. 1120
2. Bx. Frà Raymond de Puy - 1120-1158/60
3. Frà Auger de Balben - 1158/60-1162/3
4. Frà Arnaud de Co
mps - 1162/3
5. Frà Gilbert d’Assailly - 1163-1169/70
6. Frà Gaston de Murols - c. 1170-c. 1172
7. Frà Joubert - c. 1172-1177
8. Frà Roger des Moulins - 1177-1187
9. Frà Ermengard d’Asp - 1188-c. 1190
10. Frà Gamier de Naplous - 1189/90-1192
11. Frà Geoffroy de Donjon - 189/90-1192
12. Frà Alphonse de Portugal - 1202-1206
13. Frà Geoffroy Le Rat - 1206-1207
14. Frà Garin de Montaigu - 1207-1227/8
15. Frà Bertrand de Thessy - 1228-C. 1231
16. Frà Guérin - c. 1231-1236
17. Frà Bertrand de Comps - 1236-1239/40
18. Frà Pierre de Vieille-Bride - 1239/40-1242
19. Frà Guillaume de Chateauneuf - 1242-1258
20. Frà Hugues de Revel - 1258-1277
21. Frà Nicolas Lorgne - 1277/8-1284
22. Frà Jean de Villiers - 1284/5-1293/4
23. Frà Odon de Pins - 1294-1296
24. Frà Guillaume de Villaret - 1296-1305
25. Frà Foulques de Villaret - 1305-1319
26. Frà Helion de Villeneuve - 1319-1346
27. Frà Dieudonné de Gozon - 1346-1353
28. Frà Pierre de Corneillan - 1353-1355
29. Frà Roger de Pins - 1355-1365
30. Frà Raymond Bérenger - 1365-1374
31. Frà Robert de Juilliac - 1374-1376
32. Frà Jean Fernandez de Heredia - 1376-1396
33. Frà Richard Caracciolo - 1383-1395
34. Frà Philibert de Naillac - 1396-1421
35. Frà Antoine Fluvian de la Rivière - 1421-1437
36. Frà Jean de Lastic - 1437-1454
37. Frà Jacques de Milly - 1454-1461
38. Frà Pierre Raymond Zacosta - 1461-1467
39. Frà Jean-Baptiste Orsini - 1467-1476
40. Frà Pierre d’Aubusson, Cardinal - 1476-1503
41. Frà Emery d’Amboise - 1503-1512
42. Frà Guy de Blanchefort - 1512-1513
43. Frà Fabrice del Carretto - 1513-1521
44. Frà Philippe Villiers de Lisle-Adam - 1521-1534
45. Frà Pierre del Ponte - 1534-1535
46. Frà Didier de Saint-Jaille - 1535-1536
47. Frà Jean de Homedes - 1536-1553
48. Frà Claude de la Sengle - 1553-1557
49. Frà Jean de La Valette-Parisot - 1557-1568
50. Frà Pierre del Monte - 1568-1572
51. Frà Jean L’Evêque de la Cassiere - 1572-1581
52. Frà Hughes Loubenx de Verdala, Cardinal - 1581-1595
53. Frà Martin Garzez - 1595-1601
54. Frà Alof de Wignacourt - 1601-1622
55. Frà Louis Mendez de Vasconcellos - 1622-1623
56. Frà Antoine de Paule - 1623-1636
57. Frà Jean de Lascaris-Castellar - 1636-1657
58. Frà Martin de Redin - 1657-1660
59. Frà Annet de Clermont-Gessant - 1660
60. Frà Raphael Cotoner - 1660-1663
61. Frà Nicolas Cotoner - 1663-1680
62. Frà Grégoire Carafa - 1680-1690
63. Frà Adrien de Wignacourt - 1690-1697
64. Frà Raymond Perellos y Roccaful - 1697-1720
65. Frà Marc Antoine Zondadari - 1720-1722
66. Frà Antoine Manoel de Vilhena - 1722-1736
67. Frà Raymond Despuig - 1736-1741
68. Frà Manoel Pinto de Fonseca - 1741-1773
69. Frà Francis Ximenes de Texada - 1773-1775
70. Frà Emmanuel de Rohan-Polduc - 1775-1797
71. Frà Ferdinand von Hompesch - 1797-1799
72. (de facto) Paul I, Empereur de Russie - 1798-1801
73. Frà Jean-Baptiste Tommasi - 1803-1805
74. Frà Jean-Baptiste Ceschi à Santa Croce - 1879-1905
75. Frà Galeazzo von Thun und Hohenstein - 1905-1931
76. Frà Ludovic Chigi della Rovere Albani - 1931-1951
77. Frà Angelo de Mojana di Cologna - 1962
LIEUTENANTS OF THE GRANDMASTERSHIP
Frà Innico-Maria Guevara-Suardo - 1805-1814
Frà André Di Giovanni - 1814-1821
Frà Antoine Busca - 1821-1834
Frà Charles Candida - 1834-1845
Frà Philippe di Colloredo-Mels - 1845-1864
Frà Alexandre Borgia - 1865-1871
Frà Jean-Baptiste Ceschi à Santa Croce - 1871-1879
Frà Antoine Hercolani Fava Simonetti, ad interim - 1951-1955
LIEUTENANTS OF THE GRAND MASTER
Frà Pius Franchi de’ Cavalieri (during the illness of the 75th Grand Master) - 1929-1931
Frà Ernesto Paternò Castello di Carcaci - 1955-1962
Appendix III
A MILITARY GLOSSARY
Basilisk. A large cannon which fired an iron, stone or marble ball weighing from 50 to 200 pounds. (After the legendary monster whose breath and glance were fatal.)
Bastion. A defence work which consisted of two faces and two flanks, all the angles of which were salient.
Breastwork. A defence or parapet a few feet high, designed for the protection of arquebusiers.
Caravan. A term used by the Order of St John to denote a year’s seagoing duty on active service in the galleys of the Order.
Cavalier. A defensive work, sometimes shaped like a V, usually within the main fortifications. Any defensive work that stood higher than the main ramparts.
Chain-shot. Two cannon balls or half cannon balls, joined by a length of chain. On leaving the gun, chain-shot whirled round in a parabola. Used against massed troops, and in sea warfare against masts and rigging.
Counterscarp. The slope of a ditch opposite the parapet.
Counterwall. Any wall erected against the enemy. In siege terms, usually a wall erected inside the main defences as a secondary defensive system.
Culverin. A long cannon, firing a comparatively small ball but with a great range. Generally, any large cannon.
Curtain-wall. The part of a rampart, bordered by a parapet, that connects two bastions or main defensive towers.
Demi-bastion. A half bastion, with a single face and flank.
Embrasure. A gun-port, or any opening in a parapet widening from within and designed for gun or arquebus fire.
Enceinte. The main enclosure or principal area of a fortification.
Fascines. Bundles of sticks, rods or brushwood, bound together and used in the construction of earthworks.
Gabion. A cylinder of wickerwork filled with earth, used for fortifications. Also a large barrel used in a similar way.
Galleass. A large galley with three masts, and fifteen or more oars each side.
Galleot. A galley propelled both by oars and sails, but smaller than a galleass.
Galley. A vessel principally propelled by oars. Almost invariably a warship.
Outwork. A defensive work constructed outside the main enceinte, either in or beyond the ditch of a fort.
Pasha. An Ottoman title signifying an Admiral, General, or Governor of a province. It was divided into three grades of one, two or three horsetails—the latter being senior.
Portcullis. A frame or grating made of wooden or iron bars. Sharp-pointed at the lower end, it slid vertically in grooves at the portal of a main exit of a fortified place.
Ramp. The gradual slope from the interior of a fortification to the level immediately inside the parapet.
Ravelin. A defensive work detached from the main structure, with two faces meeting in a salient at the front, and open at the rear. It was usually placed in front of a curtain-wall to protect it, as well as the shoulders of near-by positions.
Sally-Port. Any small opening, usually masked or concealed, in a fortification, from which the defenders could sally out and catch the attackers by surprise.
Spur. A wall crossing part of a rampart and connecting it to the interior work. The projecting apex of any salient.
Traverse. An earthwork or parapet protecting a covered way. A doub
le right-angle in a trench to prevent enfilading. A gun-port designed in connection with another one to give protective cross-fire.
Trump. A type of flame-thrower handled by one man, and discharging a form of liquid fire. Sometimes combined with a musket so that small shot was also discharged. Similar but smaller was the ‘fire-pike’, which could be used as a pike when its combustibles had run out.
Appendix IV
SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHY
Abela, F. G. Della Descrizione di Malta (Malta, 1647).
D’Aleccio, M. P. I veri Ritrati della guerra & Dell’Assedio dali alla Isola di Malta dell’Armata Turchesa l’anno 1565 (Rome, 1582).
Balbi, F. di Correggio. La Veradera relagion de todo lo qui el año de MDLXV ha succedido en la Isla de Malta (Barcelonas 1568).
Barber, R, The Knight & Chivalry (London, 1970).
Baudouin, J. Histoire des Chevaliers de l’Ordre de S. Jean de Hierusalem (Paris, 1624).
Boisgelin, L. de. Ancient and Modern Malta & the History of the Knights of Jerusalem (London, 1805).
Sosio, G. Dell’Istoria della Sacra Religione et Illma. Militia di San Giovanni Gierosolimitano (Rome, 1594).
Brantôme, L’Abbé de. Oeuvres du Seigneur de Brantôme (Paris, 1740).
Brockman, E. The Two Sieges of Rhodes (London, 1969).
Brydone, P. A Tour through Sicily and Malta (London, 1773).
Cassar, P. Medical History of Malta (London, 1964).
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