Knights of St John

The Order of the St John called Hospitallers, Knights Hospitaller, Knights of Malta, etc. was founded in 1098 on an earlier hospice to provide a hospital in Jerusalem to care for the pilgrims visiting the Holy Land. Nowadays, the Order is represented by four branches, the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, The Venerable Order of St John, the Johanniterorden and the Russian Grand Priory.

The Hospitaller Order is distinct from the now defunct Order of the Temple which was founded in 1118 or 1119 to protect the Temple in Jerusalem and to maintain free passage for the pilgrims. See Knights Templar