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A writer of the 13th century credits the Order with 19,000 manors
in Europe...
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The Knights Hospitaller
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The land around the Castle grew crops such as wheat and
held sheep and cattle which in turn provided a source of funds to support The
Knights Hospitallers. These were a Military Order known as the Knights of St
John and based in Jerusalem after the first Crusade in 1099. |
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The Knights Hospitaller acted as tactical and political
advisors to the Kings of Jerusalem, visiting crusader kings, and the nobility of
the Holy Land. The Hospitallers played a key role in garrisoning fortresses that
defended the frontier of the Crusader Kingdoms against Muslim incursions.
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Through land holdings such as Rindoon and throughout
Europe, the Order built up enough wealth to provide a small but permanent
fighting force in the Holy Land and were involved in almost every major military
action undertaken before 1291 with the fall of Acre and expulsion of the
Christian forces from the Middle East. |
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When Acre fell in 1291, the Hospitallers, fled to
Cyprus where they briefly established themselves. |
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In 1306, under Grand Master Villaret, the Hospitallers
attacked and captured the island of Rhodes with intentions of making it their
new home and base of operations. Rhodes fell to the Turks in 1522, however, and
the Order was forced to surrender the island. |
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After wandering for seven years, Emperor Charles V
offered the Order the island of Malta in 1530. The Knights became known as the
Knights of Malta (as well as the Hospitallers). The Order fortified the island
and set up a Hospital which offered the most advanced medical care in Europe.
The Order remained but slowly lost its crusading spirit and it was expelled
finally by Napoleon in 1798. |
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