THE HOSPITALLER KNIGHTS OF SAINT LAZARUS

The Hospitaller Knights of Saint Lazarus is a detailed account of the history of an Order that was originally set up in Jerusalem with the brief of furnishing succour to the sufferers of leprosy. Increasing Islamic aggression required these hospitaller monks to become also "monks of war"; and were to play a crucial role in the defense of the Holy Land and the Crusades. The order retained its existence even after the Christians were expelled from the Holy Land. Its fortunes have sea-sawed throughout the centuries, but the members of the Order have managed to maintain an existence to the present day. This book reviews the history of this lesser known Crusader Order from its initiation to the present times basing much of the conclusions on original contemporary documentation.