An authoritative history of the Knights of St. John, from Jerusalem to Malta, told by the bestselling author of The Great Siege. Known by many names through their centuries-long career, The Knights Hospitaller of Saint John dedicated themselves to defending the poor and sick. First formed in Jerusalem during the Crusades of the eleventh century, the Order of Saint John grew in wealth and power rivaled only by the Knights Templar. They survived exile from the Holy Land, settling first in Rhodes and then in Malta, which they famously defended against the Ottoman Empire’s epic invasion of 1565. Even after losing Malta to Napoleon Bonaparte two centuries later, the Order of Saint John continued its mission. Ernle Bradford, whose bestselling book The Great Siege recounts their historic battle for Malta, follows the Knights of Saint John through centuries of war, politics, rivalry, and perseverance in The Shield and the Sword.

This is a complete history of the Order of St John or Knights of Malta. Founded as a hospice for pilgrims in Jerusalem in the 11th Century, the Order has in succeeding centuries played an important military, religious and political role in the history of Europe and the Mediterranean.

This short study of the history of the Order of St John of Jerusalem, Rhodes and Malta, also known as the Knights Hospitaller, is intended as an introduction to the Order for academics working in other fields, as well as the interested general reader. Beginning with a consideration of the origins of the Order as a hospice for pilgrims in Jerusalem in the eleventh century, it traces the Hospitaller's development into a military order during the first part of the 12th century, and its military activities on the frontiers of Christendom in the eastern Mediterranean, Spain and eastern Europe during the middle ages and into early modern period: its role in crusades and in wars against non-Christians on land and at sea, as well as its role in building and maintaining fortresses.

The book outlines the history of the church. It also describes the chapels, the art and the treasures found within. Moreover it is the first book to be published after the completion of the restoration project of the main nave. This new edition retains most of the narrative of the 2010 edition however all photography has now been changed to reflect

The Hospitallers were a religious order, founded in Jerusalem by 1099, devoted to nursing and to fighting the infidel. With their fellow knights, the Templars, they played a heroic part in the defence of the Holy Land, defending great castles, such as Krak des Chevaliers, while at the same time providing exemplary nursing care for the poor. Hospitallers is an illustrated history, by a leading historian of the crusades, of this remarkable body, the heir of which is the Order of St. John.

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