The Hospitaller Knights of Saint John, 1523-1565

The sequel to The Hospitaller Knights of Saint John at Rhodes 1306-1522, this volume covers the period 1523–1565. 

This volume opens with the relocation from Rhodes to Malta during the years following the Order’s heart-rending loss of Rhodes to Ottoman Sultan Suleiman. This loss was also that of 4,000 non-belligerent Christians choosing to abandon their homes and livelihoods and to accompany the Order in its search for a new home. Volume II further deals with the first thirty-five years of Hospitaller residence at Malta including operations from there along the coast of North Africa, with major sieges of Tripoli, Tunis, and Algiers, with penetrating exposés of corsair admirals such as Kheir-ed-Din Barbarossa and Dragut, and with giants of Christian history such as Andrea Doria. Finally, this volume deals with the Ottoman Empire’s 1565 attempt to eradicate the Order with that year’s Great Siege of Malta.

The author draws on the work of the Order’s official historians, Giacomo Bosio and his successor Bartolomeo dal Pozzo. He transcribes their writings for the modern reader, while also presenting new information revealed in the 400 years of scholarship since Bosio’s death in 1627. 

While initial chapters focus on Philippe Villiers de l’Isle-Adam, 44th Grand Master of the Hospitaller Knights of Saint John, this history also brings to light the contributions of properly identified lieutenants, allies and opponents. This volume is believed to be the only continuous history since Bosio of the Hospitallers during the period 1523 through 1565, and is certainly the only such history in English.