2. Background to the founding of the order and legendary origins

Although the year 1099 is generally accepted today as the founding year of the Order of St. John, written sources for its early period are scarce, which has given rise to numerous legends. The spectrum of these accounts ranges from the construction of a pre-Christian continuity to the assumption of a spontaneous new foundation in 1099.³³

The anchoring in salvation history

The French historian William of St. Stephen ³⁴ recounts a legend according to which the origins of the hospital date back to the time of King Antiochus and the Jewish high priest Melchior . Melchior, acting on divine inspiration, is said to have built a hospice with a treasure on the very spot that would later be sanctified by the crucifixion of Christ. The management of this institution later passed to Zechariah , the father of John the Baptist. Even a visit from Christ himself, as well as the leadership of Saint Stephen —as the first deacon of the Church, predestined for charitable service—are part of this narrative.

This legend-building can be traced back to the 12th and 13th centuries. In 1291, the prevailing belief in Rome was that the hospital in Jerusalem had been the site of key events in the New Testament . As early as 1260 ³⁵, a hospital master of the Order of St. John suggested that St. Stephen had been one of his predecessors³⁶. However, William of St. Stephen was sceptical of this authenticity and suspected that any ancient institution would have been lost at the latest with the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus.

The Maccabean tradition and archaeological references

Other authors, such as Louis Beurrier , trace the founding back to John Hyrcanus I (r. 134–104 BC) of the Maccabean dynasty. The aim, they suggest, was to receive pilgrims at Solomon's Temple. This theory is supported by the mention of Hyrcanus in 2 Maccabees 3:11 and by the historically attested "Hyrcanus Monument," which is said to have stood on the site where the hospital's Church of St. John, dedicated to the patron saint of the Order of St. John, was later built.

William Caoursin ³⁷further exaggerated this tradition in 1496: He claimed that
Judas Maccabeus himself had founded the hospital. He asserted that in this sacred space the Apostle Peter had received his primacy, that the first Council of Jerusalem had taken place there, and that Saint Stephen had chosen John the Baptist as the permanent patron saint of the house.

These legends illustrate the high ideal value that was attributed to the site of the hospital – it was understood as the centre of salvation history's continuity.

The late antique and early medieval forerunners

Besides the purely legendary origins, there are reports of early institutional foundations by the Christian Empire.

Thus, the historian A. v. Winterfeld ³⁸1859 held the view that Emperor Constantine and his mother Helena had already founded hospitals along the pilgrimage routes as well as in Jerusalem itself.

Masson³⁹elaborates on this Byzantine tradition and locates the “birthplace” of the later Order of St. John in the hospital that Emperor Justinian I (r. 527–565) had built in Jerusalem.

Pope Gregory the Great⁴⁰ is historically documented, who at the end of the 6th century sent Abbot Probus to Jerusalem to establish⁴¹ a Xenodochium⁴².

According to Breycha-Vauthier de Baillamont, this complex comprised a hospital, a hospice, and a church dedicated to the Virgin Mary . ⁴³To distinguish it from the Greek Orthodox tradition, it was named St. Maria Latina . This institution was completed in 603 but was probably destroyed as early as 614 during the Persian invasion.

Towards the end of the 8th century, this charitable infrastructure was restored by
Charlemagne ⁴⁴. With the diplomatic permission of Caliph Harun al-Rashid, he renewed the Gregorian foundation and placed it under the jurisdiction of the Benedictine monastery at the Church of St. Maria Latina ⁴⁵. This connection to the Benedictine tradition laid the foundation for those hospital structures from which the Order of St. John would later emerge.

The Destruction of 1009
and the Amalfi Restoration

The monk Bernard⁴⁶reported around 870 on the existence of the aforementioned hospital. However, this hospital, along with the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, was destroyed around 1009 by the Fatimid Caliph al-Hakim, despite the fact that his mother was a Christian.

After protracted negotiations with Caliph al-Zahir (r. 1021–1036), merchants from Amalfi, led by Mauro di Pantaleone , succeeded ⁴⁷in obtaining permission to rebuild in 1023. The work, completed under Caliph al-Mustansir , led to the establishment of three separate institutions:

1. The reconstruction of the Benedictine Abbey of St. Maria Latina.

2. A hospice for female pilgrims, dedicated to Saint Mary Magdalene .

3. A hospice for male pilgrims,
   whose chapel was originally dedicated
   to John the Almsgiver⁴⁸
   but at the latest by 1113 received the patronage of St. John the Baptist⁴⁹

The management of these hospices was the responsibility of rectors who were either Benedictines themselves, or at least closely associated with the Benedictine Order.

Historical sources mention a Magister Anzelinus⁵⁰ and later a
superior Geraldus⁵¹ (Brother Gérard) as head of the John’s Hospice.

The hospice of St. Mary Magdalene is said to have been run by a noble Roman woman named Agnes⁵². The hospice was probably affiliated with the Benedictine convent of St. Mary Major⁵³ .

⁵⁴

Archaeological findings⁵⁵ confirm the existence of this early triple facility.

Methodological classification of continuity

It would be presumptuous, in the interest of a complete history of the religious orders, to assert a direct institutional continuity between the Gregorian, Carolingian, and Amalfi foundations. The upheavals of the 7th and 11th centuries make a continuous line unlikely. Nevertheless, these initiatives demonstrate the constant need of Western Christendom for a hospital infrastructure. This continuity is corroborated by archaeological findings in the Muristan district . Excavations, based on the plans of Conrad Schick and continued by the German Protestant Institute (DEI), identified the foundations of St. Maria Latina and the hospitals. This structural evidence supports the accounts of the specialized triple complex and bridges the gap to the most enduring form of this tradition: the
Order of St. John .

Site plan of the Hospital of St. John (in the green rectangle). Image⁵⁶

1B Excursus: Santa Maria Latina Today: The (Protestant) Church of the Redeemer the Church of St. John the Baptist and the Muristan in Jerusalem The cradle of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem The Seal of Santa Maria Latina Sketch of the “Golgotha Corner” in Jerusalem, 30 AD (by Fr. Bargil Pixner O.S.B.) The area outlined in red is now covered by the Church of the Holy Sepulchre . The area outlined in blue is now called Muristan. This is the site where St. Mary Latina and the Hospital of Jerusalem were located. ❶ Golgotha, the place where Jesus Christ died on the cross. ❷ The Holy Sepulchre, the place, on which Jesus Christ was buried and rose from the dead. ❸ The Hyrcanus Monument, the place, where the Church of St. John the Baptist is located today. ❹ The site where St. Maria Latina was located is now the Church of the Redeemer. ❺ The place where the hospital of Jerusalem was located. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre and Muristan today Holy Sepulchre is framed in red , the Muristan area in blue. 57 Map(58 of the area that belonged to the Order of St. John of Jerusalem in the 12th century. The superimposed white lines show the present-day streets of Muristan. The green dot in the centre indicates the present-day Muristan fountain. The distribution of functions in Muristan59 Highly interesting 3D reconstructions of the Muristan district can be found at: Heinzelmann, Dorothee / Heinzelmann, Michael / Krüger, Jürgen / Wacker, Marc: The Hospital of St. John in Jerusalem ― from the Architectural Remains to a 3D Reconstruction, In: Vieweger , Dieter / Gibson, Shimon (eds.): The Archaeology and History of the Church of the Redeemer and the Muristan in Jerusalem . Oxford: Archaeopteris 2016, pp. 307–321. According to the aforementioned research results, the hospital grounds must have looked like this 60: The floor plan of St. Maria Latina61 Map of the "Hospitaliter Quarter" of Jerusalem62 St. Maria Latina in contemporary “city maps” Idealized city plan of Jerusalem based on an ancient model, showing the city wall and main street intersection. 12th century, Crusader period.63 The “St. Omar Plan” of Jerusalem from the 13th century

The Church of Santa Maria Latina64 (Today the Evangelical Church of the Redeemer) The north portal of St. Maria Latina / Church of the Redeemer today The former monastery building The chapel The former refectory (dining hall) of St. Maria Latina is now a conference room of the Church of the Redeemer. The cloister of St. Maria Latina / Church of the Redeemer. The column dates back to the former monastery. All images on this page are the author's own photos. Entrance to the hospice of the Order of St. John and minaret of the Omar Mosque 65 66 67 Portal of the Hospital of the Order of St. John from the North 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 The foundation stone for the Church of the Redeemer was laid on October 31, 1893, in the ruins of St. Maria Latina.75 A 3D model of Jerusalem around 1930 shows an empty space on the site of the former Hospital of Jerusalem. [Left: the dome of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, centre: the minaret of the Omar Mosque, right: the dome of the Church of St. John the Baptist. The space between the mosque and the Church of St. John the Baptist is empty. The tree in the gap stands exactly where the Hospital of Jerusalem once stood.] The Church of St. John the Baptist then and now Stairs leading to St. John's Church. A Greek priest is descending the stairs.76 “House sign” of St. John’s Church77 78 79 The interior of the Church of St. John the Baptist Images80 81 The Muristan The grounds of the former hospital are called "Muristan." The name derives from the Persian word bīmārestān82, meaning "place of the sick" or "hospital." In Arabic, بيمارستان The prefix "Bi-" was dropped, resulting in Muristan (or Maristan). The dome in the background is the Church of St. John the Baptist. Images83

The emancipation of the hospital under Blessed Gérard

⁸⁴

After the capture of Jerusalem on July 15, 1099—the culmination of the First Crusade— Godfrey of Bouillon and his companions found the hospital already fully operational. The comprehensive care provided there for the wounded crusaders impressed Godfrey so profoundly that he bestowed generous donations upon the brotherhood. ⁸⁵ These endowments laid the financial foundation for its institutional independence. Subsequently, Gérard severed the connection with the mother abbey of St. Maria Latina in order to manage the hospital independently. Indeed, separate donations to the hospital adjacent to the monastery are documented as early as 1099.

Godfrey of Bouillon , Duke of Lower Lorraine since 1076, was one of the principal leaders of the First Crusade. He commanded the troops that victoriously entered Jerusalem in 1099. Although offered the royal crown, he declined the title and instead chose to serve as "Advocate of the Holy Sepulchre" (Advocatus Sancti Sepulchri). However, he died after a reign of only one year.⁸⁶

Miniature from the book
"Chronicle of Geoffroy de Bouillon"⁸⁷ (Cod.Reg.Lat.737)

"The Siege of Jerusalem
during the First Crusade"
Stamp of the Order of Malta⁸⁸

The French contingent of crusaders
elected Godfrey as their leader in 1096 1096 ⁸⁹.

The Hospital of Jerusalem on historical city maps The “Cambrai map” of Jerusalem around 113090 Map of Jerusalem in the year 118091 The woodcut by Erhard Reuwich of the Civitas Iherusalem in 1483 in Bernhard von Breydenbach's “Peregrinatio in Terram Sanctam” shows the “hospitale in quo peregrini hierosolyma venientes deponuntur” (The hospital where pilgrims arriving in Jerusalem are accommodated.)92 93 Jerusalem The Comminelli map by Pietro del Massaio 1472 shows the hospital as "Hospicium Peregrinorum94" Engraving by Claudio Buschetti (1554-1597)