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Description: | Oval portrait of Ferdinand von Hompesch zu Bolheim, Grand Master of the Order of St John, 1797-98. His progress through the Order was as follows: Councillor of the Langue of Germany, 1767; Castellan, 1768-70; Lieutenant to the Grand Bailiff, head of the German Langue, at least four times between 1770-82; Grand Cross ad Honores and Commissioner for Fortifications, 1775; he was involved in a diplomatic capacity as Charge d'Affaires to the Austrian Emperor Francis II, 1775-97; Administrator of Justice in the Conventual Church, 1783; Commander of Lage, 1783-97; Bailiff of Brandenburg, 1787-96; and Grand Bailiff, 1796-97. He is unfortunately remembered as the Grand Master who presided over the near destruction of the Order, when he was forced to surrender Malta to the then General Napoleon Bonaparte virtually unopposed in 1798; an Island that the Knights had held against the concerted efforts of Turkish armies since 1530, was taken in just two days by 15,000 Frenchmen. All the more ignominious since we now know that Napoleon had only three days of supplies and would have been forced to withdraw had the Knights held out. It should be noted that Hompesch was in an extremely weak position; all income from the Order's commanderies in French territories had been cut off and the incomes from Sicily and Spain reduced because both countries had effectively been bankrupted by the war. There was also considerable doubt as to the loyalties of the French Knights, who were a majority on Malta; although this may only have been a rumour spread by French agents. However, Hompesch had been warned a year earlier about the threat of invasion, and his complete failure to prepare for this eventuality does not sit well with the inheritor of Jean de la Valletta's crown. The headquarters of the Order were moved to Trist in Italy and two months later, Ljubljana, in Slovenia. In 1799 he was effectively forced to resign as Grand Master in favour of Paul I, Tsar of Russia. | Subjects: | portrait (Ferdinand von Hompesch zu Bolheim Grand Master) | Source: | Vads | Creator: | Artist: Maltese School Æ | Identifier: | http://www.vads.ac.uk/large.php?uid=8600... | Go to resource |
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