They knew that Islam would not give them a moment's respite and, as soon as they were in their new home, they would be attacked by the armies of Suleiman. This was a commitment of historical importance vis a vis the whole of Christianity and they needed to know the dimension and the consistency of the economic problems they would have to face there.

The first approach disappointed them. Malta was large, rocky and unfriendly and could not be compared in any way with Rhodes either for its natural beauties or for its climate. The Knights who were expert soldiers were immediately aware of the difficulties they would have in defending it. To fortify the island they would have to spend terrific sums of money and the goings on in Europe were already seriously affecting the Order's economy. In just a few years they had lost their possessions in both Germany and England and the Reformation and Schism was causing grave problems for the Common Treasury.

In the meantime the plague had compelled them to leave Viterbo. On June 15th 1527 they reached Corneto, a small town not far away but also this new refuge appeared unsafe. On November 14th the fleet weighed anchor in the port of Nice, welcomed by Duke Charles III of Savoy. It was the third residence following Rhodes and the Knights stayed there for nearly two years waiting for something to happen.

The Ambassadors, meanwhile, continued their work and in 1528 Fra' Antonio Bosio finally gave the Grand Master the good news that Emperor Charles V had decided to accept the requests the Chapter General had made in May 1524: the Emperor granted Malta to the Order free from any feudal ties, but insisted on including the Fortress of Tripoli. This last was a gift that the Order would willingly have done without. Finally on March 23rd 1530, one month following his solemn coronation in St. Petronio's in Bologna, during a stop at Castelfranco Emilia, the Emperor signed a Bull by which he conceded the island to the "Sacra Milizia".

The Emperor accepted the conditions and between the Mass and the falcon he chose the latter.

Some months later, on October 26th, the Grand Master reached Malta and solemnly took possession of the Island. Seven years had passed since that grey winter morning when the Knights Hospitallers had left Rhodes. For the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and, from this moment on, also of Malta, another important stage of history was just beginning ...

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