The organization of the Knights of John started as a simple
organization during the 11th century. The merchants from Amalfi obtained
permission from the Caliph of Egypt to built a hospital in Jerusalem. At the
beginning, it consisted a church and a hospital and the organization was purely
a religious character. During the following centuries, especially because of the
Crusades and political events of period, it became very powerful military
organization. The Knights of John supplied food, medical help and security to
those traveling to Christian Holy lands. Since the hospitality was always their
main concerns, the Knights were also called the Hospitallers. However, at the
same time, they called themselves as soldiers of Christ and the defenders of
Holy places in Jerusalem. Their help and success during battles brought many
rich donations and attracted generosity of Pope. Due to Muslim occupation of the
Holly Lands, the Knights moved first to Cyprus then to Rhodes where they
established their order in 1309. They built various castles on the major Aegean
islands including Cos. Then they decided to build a fortress Asia Minor (present
day Turkey). Their city of choice was Izmir (ancient Symrna) where they built
a fortress on Mount Pagus. But in 1402, when Mongolian King Tamerlane defeated
Ottoman Sultan and occupied whole Anatolia, the knights started looking for a
new place in the south of Izmir. This time their new city was ancient
Halicarnassus.
