TH E l LLUSTRlOUil O RDER O F H OEBPI’PA LEM A N D K N I G H T S O F T . O H N O F E R L E M S J J US A . P ET ER G ERA RD T H E F O UND E R , , A N D T H E TH RE E GRE AT G R A N D MASTE RS OF T H E I L L U S N J E T R I U S O R D E R O S T . O O O F J H F R U S A L E M . r a n d In s el ec tin g th e thre e g m asters of th e Hospitalers , who . for their ability to organize and c om m and in battle . to assau lt or defend a fortre ss or city , or rule and govern so mix ed a body of m en of so m any langu ages as c onstit u te d The Illustrious Knights of S t . J ohn , of Palestine , Rhodes , and M alta , from their organi za A 9 A D D . 1 7 8 . tion 1 1 0 0 . to , and p articularly th e thre e to whom in ou r j ud gment the honor belongs for m uc h of the glory whic h a t a t ac hes to th e Order of the Kni ghts of M alt . we c annot be far “ du wrong w hen we nam e Raym ond Puy , Phi lip Villi ers de L Isl e Adam , and John de la Vale tte . It is not our inten tion to enter into any discussion of the m erits of the t wo gre at ord ers of k nighthood whic h had th eir origin in , and i L n m did suc h valiant fi gh tin g for the possess on of th e Holy a d , u c h as w e belie ve the Order of th e Hospit al ers . The I llustrious Kni ghts of St . J ohn of J erusale m , better k nown as the Kni ghts of Malta i n t o h av e bee n th e older and gre ater , as it c erta ly was the longer in exist enc e . Th e foundation for t he Order of M alta was laid by the m er m N 0 c h an ts o f A ma l fi , K i n gdo of aples , 1 4 8 . When engaged in trade wit h the c ountries borde ring the east ern shores of th e M e di t e r ramean they visited Cairo , Egypt . and obtained permission from s r - C aliph M o n sta e billah , t o erec t a hospital in J erusalem for the u se of th e poor and sick pilgrims goin g up to that city . The E gyp ti ans bein g then in possessi on of th e Holy City and being kindly di sp osed . the governor on presentation of the order of th e c aliph . gav e th ese m erchan ts a pie c e of ground a sh ort distanc e south and e ast “abou t a stone ’ s th row from the door of th e churc h of the The I l lu str i o u s Or de r o f H o sp ita le r s " H oly Sepulchre , upon whic h to erect their buildings , wit h p er mission to bring monks and an Abbott from their own cou ntry to ” lt reside therein . Th ey first bui a c hapel . whic h was dedic ated to the blessed Virgi n , and then two hospit als for the . we ary and dis . r s tressed pilgrims . m ale and fem ale which they dedic ated e pe c J . ti ve l . y to St ohn th e Alm oner , and St M ary M agdalene , placin g m onks in c harge of one and nuns in charge of the other . M oney and supplies were gathered in Italy for the support of this splen 65 did charity , and i t was be coming widely k nown whe n in 1 0 the barbarous hord es of Tartary called Turc om ans , swept down and E over Palestine . c apturing J erusalem and destroying the g pt i a n garrison . The hospitals of St . J ohn th e Alm on er and St . M ary Magd a lene were not exempt from the plunder and desec ration whic h fol o r lowed . There is little nothing k nown of the brav e monk s and pious nuns who continued in charge of th ese hospit al s from 1 0 0 5 until th e brave Godfre y de Bouillon and his undaunted Crusade rs C “ storm ed and c aptured the Holy ity Friday . July 1 5, 1 0 99 . at th e hour of thre e in the afternoon . exactly the same d ay and hour at which Christ expired for the salvation of the hum an rac e . The capture of Jerusalem was the termination of a disastrous c am a i n p g , for of a body of men of all arm s numbering 70 0 0 0 0 at its c omm enc ement , but rem ained , bein g foot and horse with which to c omm ence the siege . The ranks on th e m arch had been depleted from various c auses . the princip al ones of w hic h I t were desertion . sic k ness , and de ath . is a matt er of re c ord that when th e siege of J erusalem began June the garrison c on ta i n e d m men at arms and citizens be aring ar s . Durin g the siege of six weeks such Christi ans as rem ained in th e city were imprisoned that they might not giv e aid or inform ation t o the b e besiegers . Among those imprison ed was the Re c tor or A dmi n i s J trator of the Hospital of St . ohn . a Frenchm an named Peter G er v f ard and nati e o the isl and of M artigu es in Provenc e . How inhum an all m en were in those days i s app arent in th e acts of the Crusaders . who prov ed themselv es as bloodthi rsty as s the barbarian . for no sooner h ad they captured t he city killin g , f all ound in arms . than they deliberately murd ered defenseless W men , om en . and c hildren . and it is a well att ested fact th at on f O the Tem ple area and in and about the Mosque o mar pe o ple were slaughtered . It is on that Tem ple area where th e ( fr u ’ sa d e r s f horses were said to have waded up to their etlocks in hu m an blood . Greater extremes w ere nev er k nown than in those days ; barbarous murder and inhum an “s l aughter one day to be fol . l lowed with exc essive piety the next , for it is re ated that surfeited C H URC H O F T H E H O L ! S EP UL C H RE . J E R US A L E M , 1 8 9 2 . n o J n J r a 3 a d n i t S t. o K gh s f oh f e us le m . with blood these same Crusaders haste ne d barefoot and unarm ed th e to do pe nanc e , after whic h v offered up th anksgivin g for their v ic tory at th e Holy S epul chre . H avin g c aptured t he city , it now be c am e n e c essary to form a governm ent , and they c ast abou t th em for a le ader , the lot fallin g upon Godfrey de Bouillon , whom th ey sought to m ak e king . That sturdy w arrior wou ld not hav e it so . H e w as willin g to le ad and c omm and , bu t wh en they desired to crow n him with a c rown of gold in the c hurc h of th e Holy S e pu l “ c hre h e said to his follow ers No ! ! o u sh all nev e r se e so ma gn i fi - c ent a crown upon m y head in the plac e where th e Saviour of th e ” w orld was crow ned with on e of thorns . That brav e Crusade r not w only re fused the cro n , but he as resolut ely d eclined to be c alled “ ' ‘ kin g and w as content to acc ept the title of Protector or De " fend er of th e Holy Sepulchre . ’ U pon Godfrey s first visit to the House of th e Hospitalers , he a dmi n str a found th at pious m an , Peter Gerard , at th e he ad of its tion : and as his assistant for th e fem ale hospital , a Rom an lady of C r u s nobl e birth .