"History of the Order of Malta" by A.R. Andreev, V.A. Zakharova, I.A. Nastenko, summary

Written in 1999 for the nine hundredth anniversary of the oldest knightly brotherhood, this book is a detailed chronicle of the Hospitallers’ development from crusader units to participants in a global humanitarian mission, with a special emphasis on Russian-Maltese diplomatic contacts. The publication draws on original documents from the Archives of the Mission of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta in Moscow, meticulously documenting the organization’s legal norms, internal hierarchy, and historical transformations.

Jerusalem Hospital and the First Strongholds

In the autumn of 1095, at the Council of Clermont, Pope Urban II called on Christians to liberate the Holy Sepulchre. A vast army of crusaders set out for the East. In July 1099, forces under the command of Godfrey of Bouillon captured Jerusalem after a long siege. The first king of Jerusalem donated the village of Salsola to the Johannite hospice. Gerard de Thorn became the leader of the brotherhood. The monks treated the wounded and fed the poor pilgrims.

In 1120, Raymond de Puy was elected head of the Hospitallers. He drafted the first charter, which required the brothers to observe vows of chastity, obedience, and voluntary poverty. Members of the organization were divided into knights of noble birth, chaplains, and squires. The Knights of St. John wore black cloth robes with a white eight-pointed linen cross. In battle, the knights wore red capes. Pope Innocent II issued a bull freeing the Hospitallers from subordination to local authorities.

The Brotherhood received numerous fortresses in the Middle East to protect pilgrims. Krak des Chevaliers Castle was protected by double stone walls, a moat carved into the rock, and a garrison of 2,000. Within, mills, granaries, and an aqueduct supplied drinking water operated. The fortress of Margat contained food supplies for a five-year siege. In 1187, the army of the Egyptian Sultan Saladin defeated the Crusaders at Hittin and occupied Jerusalem. The Knights moved their capital to Acre. In 1291, the Mamluks captured the last Christian strongholds in the Levant. The Hospitallers moved to the island of Cyprus, where they rebuilt their strength in the city of Limisso over a period of twenty years.

The Age of Rhodes and the struggle at sea

In 1310, Grand Master Fouquet de Villaret recaptured the island of Rhodes from the Turks. An independent sovereign state was formed there. The Brotherhood was divided into eight national "Languages": Provence, Auvergne, France, Italy, Aragon, Castile, Germany, and England. The property of the Templar Order, disbanded in 1312, was transferred to the Knights of St. John by decision of Pope Clement V. The Grand Master, together with the Sacred Chapter and the Council, exercised governance.

The Rhodian knights built armored multi-oared galleys and began using Greek fire. The Knights of St. John’s fleet defeated Osman’s flotilla at Amorgos in 1310 and at Chios in 1318. In 1480, Meshi Pasha’s 70,000-strong Turkish army attempted to capture Rhodes. Grand Master Pierre d’Aubuisson personally fought in the breaches, receiving five wounds. The Turks retreated. Sultan Bayezid II, as a sign of reconciliation, presented the knights with the right hand of John the Baptist.

In 1522, Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent landed a 200,000-strong army on Rhodes, supported by 400 ships. Three hundred knights, under the command of Philippe de Villiers de l’Isle-Adam, defended the fortress for six months. The Turks lost 100,000 soldiers killed and died of disease. The Sultan accepted an honorable surrender. On January 1, 1523, the Knights of St. John left the island, preserving their cannons, banners, and Christian relics. Emperor Charles V called this defense the most honorable defeat in military history.

Defenders of Malta

In 1530, Charles V ceded the islands of Malta, Gozo, and the African city of Tripoli to the Hospitallers. The annual rent was one live hunting falcon. The knights’ greatest test came in the Great Siege of 1565. Mustafa Pasha’s 30,000-strong army landed. Fort St. Elmo fell after heavy bombardment. Grand Master Jean de La Valette ordered burning wooden hoops soaked in saltpeter and tar to be dropped on the attackers. The Turks retreated, losing 25,000 men. In honor of their leader, the knights founded a new fortified capital — Valletta.

The Maltese fleet participated in the Battle of Lepanto on October 7, 1571. Three galleys of the Knights of St. John, commanded by Pietro Giustiniani, fought on the left flank. The Christian victory ended Ottoman dominance in the Mediterranean. The Brotherhood established itself as a sovereign power with the finest naval academy, a vast library, and advanced hospitals.

Diplomatic contacts with Russia

The Russian state’s interest in Malta arose under Peter the Great. Boyar Boris Sheremetev visited the island in the spring of 1698. Grand Master Raymond de Pereillos received him with honors and presented him with a cross with diamonds. That summer, Steward Pyotr Tolstoy inspected the armory, the hospital, and the cave of the Apostle Paul. During the reign of Catherine II, Russian naval officers were trained on Maltese galleys. Admiral Grigory Spiridov’s Russian squadron repaired ships in Maltese ports during the Chesma campaign.

The partitions of Poland transferred the lands of the Ostroh Majorat to the Russian Empire. These holdings historically financed the Polish Priory of the Hospitallers. Bailiff Giulio Litta’s ambassador arrived in St. Petersburg to demand repayment of the revenues. Emperor Paul I agreed to pay the debt. On January 4, 1797, the parties signed a convention establishing the Grand Priory of Russia. The treasury allocated three hundred thousand Polish zlotys for the annual maintenance of the commanderies.

Emperor Paul I at the head of the Hospitallers

In the summer of 1798, Napoleon Bonaparte’s French squadron approached Malta. Grand Master Ferdinand von Hompesch surrendered the forts to the French without resistance. Outraged, the knights gathered in St. Petersburg. They accused Hompesch of cowardice and deposed him. In November 1798, Paul I was proclaimed the new Grand Master.

The Russian monarch created a separate Orthodox branch of the brotherhood. The upper nobility received the right to establish family commanderies, deducting a percentage of the estates’ income. The white Maltese cross appeared on the state coat of arms of the Russian Empire. In St. Petersburg, the architect Giacomo Quarenghi erected the Catholic Chapel of St. John. In the autumn of 1799, the right hand of John the Baptist, a fragment of the True Cross, and the Philermos Icon were ceremoniously delivered to Gatchina.

The British fleet blockaded the French garrison on Malta. Paul I ordered Admiral Fyodor Ushakov to prepare a landing force. The British occupied the island in September 1800 and refused to allow Russian soldiers to enter. A severe diplomatic crisis ensued. The assassination of Paul I in St. Michael’s Castle on March 12, 1801, ended the political confrontation. The conspirators, including Count Palen and General Bennigsen, acted with the support of British diplomacy.

Leaving Russia and moving to Rome

Emperor Alexander I renounced the title of Grand Master. He retained the status of Protector and entrusted Count Nikolai Saltykov with the temporary management of the Order’s affairs. Pope Pius VII appointed the Italian Giovanni Battista Tommasi as head of the Hospitallers. The Russian government ceased paying responsa in 1810. In 1817, the Knights of St. John’s activities in Russia were finally curtailed. The Order’s relics were kept in the Gatchina Cathedral, and after the 1917 Revolution, they were secretly transported to Europe and placed in a Montenegrin monastery.

The Brotherhood lost most of its European estates. After extensive relocations, the Chapter acquired a mansion on Via Condotti in Rome. Its permanent headquarters were established here in 1834. In 1879, Pope Leo XIII restored the rank of Grand Master.

Humanitarian mission in the twentieth century

The 20th century required the Hospitallers to undertake extensive charitable work. The Knights organized ambulance trains during World War I. The white cross became a symbol of medical assistance at the front. In 1960, diplomatic notes secured the extraterritoriality of Roman sites.

Today, the sovereign entity maintains diplomatic relations with eighty-one states. The organization is led by Grand Master Andrew Bertie. Hundreds of hospitals, leper colonies, and blood banks operate. The constitution strictly divides members into Knights of Justice, who take monastic vows, Knights of Obedience, and lay members of the third class. Malta Relief Service centers operate in Russia, regularly supplying hospitals in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Smolensk with tons of medicine, equipment, and baby food.

The book’s authors thoroughly expose the activities of modern self-proclaimed organizations. Merchants in America and Europe actively sell counterfeit knighthoods, baselessly claiming mythical succession from the Orthodox priory of Paul I. Groups like the American association in Shickshinny use counterfeit titles to enrich themselves. The genuine Catholic order does not recognize these commercial entities and conducts its humanitarian work strictly through official national associations.