
The Knights of St John of Jerusalem, also known as the Hospitallers, were a military religious order, subject to monastic vows and discipline but devoted to the active defence of the Holy Land. After evacuating the Holy Land at the beginning of the fourteenth century, they occupied Rhodes, which they held into the sixteenth century, when their headquarters moved to Malta. Branches of the order existed throughout Europe, and it is the English branch in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries that is examined here. Among the major subjects researched by O'Malley are the recruitment of members of the Hospital and their family ties; the operation of the order's career structure; the administration of its estates; its provision of spiritual and charitable services; and the publicity and logistical support it provided for the holy war carried on by its headquarters against the Ottoman Turks. It is argued that the English Hospitallers in particular took their military and financial duties to the order very seriously, making a major contribution to the Hospital's operations in the Mediterranean as a result. They were able to do so because they were wealthy, had close family and other ties with gentle and mercantile society, and above all because their activities had royal support. Where this was lacking or ineffective, as in Ireland, the Hospital might become the plaything of local interests eager to exploit its estates, and its wider functions might be neglected. Consequently the heart of the book lies in an extended discussion of the relationship between senior Hospitaller officers and the governing authorities of Britain and Ireland. It is concluded that rulers were generally supportive of the order's activities, but within strict limits, particularly in matters concerning appointments, the size of payments to the east, and the movement and foreign allegiances of senior brethren. When these limits were breached, or at times of political or religious sensitivity such as the
This work investigates the operational, administrative, and political role of the English branch of the Knights Hospitaller between 1460 and 1565. Gregory O'Malley utilizes extensive archival research to analyze how this military religious order balanced its monastic vows with its commitments to the Mediterranean holy war against the Ottoman Turks. The author argues that the English Hospitallers maintained significant influence and efficacy through strong ties to the English crown and domestic social structures, contrasting this with the order's struggles in Ireland.
What You Will Find
Scope Limits
Historians recognize this text as a definitive study of the English Hospitallers during the late medieval and early modern periods. Scholars frequently cite the work for its meticulous use of primary sources and its clear explanation of the intersection between religious military orders and national political interests.
Page Count:
440
Publication Date:
2005-01-01
Publisher:
Oxford University Press
ISBN-10:
0191514462
ISBN-13:
9780191514463
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