Military defence matters and the Congregazione della Guerra regarding the protection of Hospitaller Malta 1636-1798

Abstract

In the formulation of this dissertation the writer has sought to focus holistically on the historical buildup of the Order of St. John as an independent military force, eventually basing itself on the Maltese Islands, behind its grand fortifications. The dissertation will concentrate on the direct defence of the Islands during the period 1636-1798, when the task was the direct responsibility of a central defence committee, the Congregazione de/la Guerra. The writer will not, however, be investigating the organization and great exploits of the Navy of the Order to any depth, which was the Order's prime policy instrument of war. The prime objective of the Order over the centuries, including the period 1636-1798 m particular, was the maintenance of an ongoing military and naval force for the protection of the Christian World through the curtailment of the military might of the Islamic World throughout the Mediterranean. The Order also fought as an ally of other Christian military forces against the common enemy - the Ottoman Empire and its North African satellites. The Order was structured to function offensively, to a limited capacity, by its navy, and functioned defensively through its garrison and its fortifications.