Ties Between Armenia and the Grand Master of the Order of Malta Go Back in Times of the Crusades

• 10.25.2016, 11:26
•  World,  Info

The Independent

At the invitation of President Serzh Sargsyan, at Saturday night the Prince and Grand Master of the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Malta Fra Matthew Festing arrived to the Republic of Armenia on a state visit, the press service of the RA President informs.

On October 24, at the Presidential Palace an official welcoming ceremony for the Prince and Grand Master of the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Malta Fra Matthew Festing and his delegation took place. Later, a meeting of the President of Armenia and the Grand Master in the extended format with the participation of the official delegations took place.

Ties between the first Christian nation and the oldest Christian Order had formed back in times of the crusades and were based on mutual respect and mutual benefit.

Order of Malta or the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta, is a Roman Catholic lay religious order traditionally of military, chivalrous and noble nature. It was founded as the Knights Hospitaller circa 1099 in Jerusalem, Kingdom of Jerusalem, by the Blessed Gerard, making it the world's oldest surviving chivalric order. Headquartered in Palazzo Malta in Rome, widely considered a sovereign subject of international law.

The Order, with 13,500 Knights, Dames and auxiliary members, employs about 25,000 doctors, nurses, auxiliaries and paramedics assisted by 80,000 volunteers in more than 120 countries, assisting children, homeless, handicapped, refugees, elders, terminally ill and lepers around the world without distinction of ethnicity or religion. Through its worldwide relief corps, Malteser International, the order aids victims of natural disasters, epidemics and war. In several countries, including France, Germany and Ireland, local associations of the order are important providers of medical emergency services and training.

Thus, it is a neutral, completely apolitical body that predominantly concerns itself with humanitarian issues - at the moment, for example, it is widely involved in providing medical assistance to refugees crossing the Aegean Sea to Europe.

The only permanent passport it issues is to its highest officer - the Grand Master.

Twelve individuals also hold temporary passports for their five-year term. These positions include the traditional titles of Grand Commander (spiritual head) and the Grand Chancellor (Prime Minister) and the Grand Hospitaller (Minister of Health and Social Welfare).

The order also has diplomatic relations with 106 countries and the EU. Its permanent observer status at the UN allows it access to crisis-hit regions where it can carry out humanitarian work.  

It is interesting enough that in Rome, on the gate of the residence of the Knights of Malta, a special hole is made by the project of Piranesi. From there the dome of St. Peter's Basilica , and three states can be seen: Malta (to which the residence of the Order belongs), the Vatican (which is attributed to St. Peter's Cathedral) and Italy (which includes everything in between).