Rhodes was officially a dominion of the Emperor of Byzantium who made it quite clear that he would never oppose a possible occupation of this territory by the Hospitaller Order. In addition, the island had for some time raised the attention of the Muslims and many groups of Saracens were beginning to settle there. Finally, it was the undertaking of an action against the eternal enemy of the Cross who threatened to take possession of an important stronghold.

Fulk de Villaret decided in favour of the great adventure and set forth preparations for a fleet composed of ships of the Order and from Genoa. The expedition was planned in Cyprus but the organisation was carried out in Italy.

The ships took to the sea from Brindisi in Southern Italy, sailing towards the island of Cyprus where they stopped to embark crew and soldiers together with all kinds of baggage, supplies and implements. This operation presented rather complicated logistical problems.

The island not only contained what the Hospitallers had carried away from Palestine but also what they had accumulated during their stay at Cyprus together with all the material that had come to them from their commanderies in Europe following the loss of Palestine. What was about to begin was an enormous undertaking that would take not only great thought and precision but also time and determination.

At the beginning of the summer the fleet landed at Rhodes and the Knights began their work.

It would take some years before the conquest of the island was complete, but eventually, on August 15th 1310, the red flag of the Order could be seen flying over the whole island. One of the most splendid periods in its history was beginning for the Order of St. John.

The initial moments at Rhodes were difficult but very soon the Knights realised that they had found an ideal home. The warmth and friendliness of the inhabitants and the mild weather and favourable geographical position would facilitate their revival. Very soon the Order began to show qualities it had not been able to fully manifest in Palestine. Also from the cultural point of view, the interests here were very different from the ones cultivated in the Holy Land. The Grand Masters were compelled to defend themselves continuously but at the same time they were able to attract remarkable attention to their new home, always aware of the necessity that the "Sacra Milizia" was to be the genuine expression of a Crusade that not only took up arms to defend principles and ideals. Very soon, Rhodes became a landmark and the centre of two different interests. It was a very strategically positioned military base for the

The courtyard of the Hospital, one of the major sanitary structures of its time.

European powers, while for the Church and the Christian world, it was the outpost of a hope; as long as the flag with a White Cross on a red background was seen flying, the dream of one day returning to Palestine would not be futile.

Situated between the East and West, the island of Rhodes represented, from a purely romantic point of view, the ideal setting for heroic deeds. It was the new home for the soldiers of the "Sacra Milizia" who succeeded in updating and developing in depth the political and religious raison d'étre of the Crusades.

Very soon, the Hospitaller Order became a maritime power but not being able to acquire strength based on a somewhat limited number of ships, it entrusted the secret of its success to the quality of its ships and the courage of its Captains and crew.

Interest in the sea dates back to the period preceding the settlement in Cyprus. In the last years of their stay in the Holy Land the Order had felt it necessary to have some ships of its own, especially after moving the Hospital to Acre which had become a harbour of great strategic and mercantile importance in this period of hostility. We must consider, besides, that the evacuation itself was carried out under difficult conditions and made possible only thanks to the employment of an efficient fleet.

With farsightedness characteristic of their history, the Hospitallers had long since faced the problem of their presence at sea and the earliest news of possession of their own ships dates back to 1230. What was probably the first armed vessel of the Order was called the "Comptesse", which was able to carry up to 1500 men plus cargo. On board, besides the crew and the oarsmen, was foreseen the presence of three Knights: the Captain, the Knight Commander of the ship and a third, whose task it was to look after supplies. The need to dispose of battleships was felt immediately following the move to Limassol on the island of Cyprus. Their wish not to lose contact with Palestine and their hope to return there was, at first, the reason for a decision which would suggest new strategies to the Knights of St. John. In spite of many difficulties, the development of a navy must have been rather rapid if in 1299, a few years after the fall of Acre, we find the charge of "Admiral" mentioned in the regulations. In that year in fact, they speak of a monk, named Fulk de Villaret, who was appointed the "Admiral of the house".

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