23 January: Knights of Malta

Today is the feast day of St John the Almsgiver, Patron of the Knights of Malta. 10 things you might not know about the Knights of Malta.

1. They weren’t always based in Malta. The order was founded in the 11^th century in Jerusalem when merchants from the ancient Marine Republic of Amalfi obtained permission from the Caliph of Egypt to build a church, convent, and hospital there, to care for pilgrims. At that time, they were known as The Order of St. John of Jerusalem.

2. In 1113, Pope Paschal II issued a Papal Bull which allowed the order to elect its own leaders without interference from other secular or religious authorities.

3. During the Crusades, the hospital took on a more military role, that of defending pilgrims and the sick and the faith in general, alongside its hospitaller mission.

4. In 1291, the last Christian stronghold in the Holy Land fell after the Siege of Acre, so the Knights had to leave. First of all, they settled in Cyprus, but in 1310, led by Grand Master Fra' Foulques de Villaret, they relocated to Rhodes. There, they became a formidable naval force, building a fleet and fighting battles in the eastern Mediterranean, Syria and Egypt. On 21 May 1651 the order acquired the islands of Saint Barthélemy, Saint Christopher, Saint Croix and Saint Martin, and ruled them until 1665.

5. In due course, the Ottoman Empire kicked the knights out of Rhodes and that is where Malta comes in. In 1530 Charles I of Spain granted them Malta in a perpetual lease. Their rent, or tribute, was one falcon from Malta each year. This is where The Maltese Falcon, the novel by Dashiell Hammett and the film adaptation of it starring Humphrey Bogart comes from.

6. The knights weren’t that keen on Malta to start with. They thought it was barren, undeveloped and lacking in resources. However, they decided to make the best of it and develop the island.

7. One of the best known Knights of Malta was Grand Master Jean Parisot de Valette, who led the order through the Great Siege of 1565. De Valette started building a fortified city in Malta. He died before it was finished, but to this day it bears his name and it is the capital of Malta, Valetta.

8. They were eventually kicked out of Malta, too, by Napoleon in 1798. The locals in Malta weren’t that sorry to see them go. Despite being a religious order, they lived quite lavish lifestyles, which turned the Maltese people against them.

9. Carnival is a tradition they started, initially consisting of pageants and tournaments before Lent. Carnival was known for getting a bit out of hand and degenerating into drunken brawls. The Grand Master of the time had to give the knights a strict telling off.

10. The order still exists today although it has no permanent territory. It is now known as the Sovereign Military Order of Malta and produces its own currency and Postage stamps. Today, it is a charitable organisation concentrating on healthcare and disaster relief. Its motto is Tuitio fidei et obsequium pauperum ("Defence of the faith and assistance to the poor"). The order venerates The Virgin Mary under the title of Our Lady of Philermos.

Beta

(Combat Team Series #2)

Steff was abducted by an evil alien race, the Orbs, at fourteen. Used as a weapon for years, he eventually escapes, but his problems are just beginning. How does a man support himself when his only work experience is a paper round and using an Orb bio-integrated gun?

Warlord is an alien soldier who knows little but war. When the centuries-old conflict which ravaged his planet ends, he seeks out another world where his skills are still relevant. There are always wars on Earth, it seems. However, none of Earth's powerful armies want him.

Natalie has always wanted to visit England and sees a chance to do so while using her martial arts skills, but there are sacrifices she must make in order to fulfil her dream. 

Maggie resorted to crime to fund her sister's medical care. She uses her genetic variant abilities to gain access to the rooms of wealthy hotel guests. The Ballards look like rich pickings, but they are not what they seem. When Maggie targets them, little does she know that she is walking into a trap.

Hotel owner Hamilton Lonsdale puts together a combat team to pit against those of other multi-millionaires. He recruits Warlord, Natalie, Maggie and Steff along with a trained gorilla, a probability-altering alien, a stockbroker whose work of art proved to be much more than he'd bargained for, a marketing officer who can create psionic forcefields, a teleporting member of the landed gentry, and a socially awkward fixer. This is Combat Team Beta.

Steff never talks about his time with the Orbs, until he finds a woman who lived through it, too. Steff believes he has finally found happiness, but it is destined to be short-lived. He is left with an unusual legacy which he and Team Beta struggle to comprehend; including why something out there seems determined to destroy it.

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