The Shield and the Sword: The Knights of St. John (Classic Military History)

Book Description
The order of the Knights Hospitaller of St. John of Jerusalem is the most long-lived of the great military orders of knighthood. Originating in a hospice on the road to Jerusalem and officially founded in 1099 during the First Crusade, the Knights of St. John continued to grow in wealth, power, and territory long after they were run out of Jerusalem by victorious Muslim forces. In The Shield and the Sword, Ernle Bradford displays his talents as a master storyteller and great scholar of the Mediterranean, charting the intriguing history of the Knights-from their origins in the Holy Land to their subsequent relocations to Rhodes, the island of Malta, and eventually England.

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6 1.5-hour cassettes


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"The story of the Knights Hospitaller of St. John of Jerusalem, the most long-lived of the great military orders of knighthood, is both gripping and compulsive. Founded in charity and never numbering more than an active few thousands, these master mariners, navigators and immensely skilled builders became the true heroes of the clash between the Cross and the Crescent." Ernle Bradford's vivid chronicle follows the Knights of St. John from their modest beginnings in a hospice on the road to Jerusalem to their establishment as an international Order of great wealth, territory and power. He recounts their expulsion from Cyprus and Rhodes and their dramatic conflict with the Turks during the Great Siege of Malta, where they built impressive fortifications that remain a wonder to this day. At its peak the Order embodied the vision and spirit of medieval Europe, but today it is still flourishing, and sends doctors and medical supplies to trouble spots across the world.


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