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Sovereign Military Order of Malta

1090s establishments in the Kingdom of Jerusalem1099 establishments in AsiaCatholic orders of chivalryCatholic religious orders established in the 11th centuryFormer governments in exile
Harv and Sfn no-target errorsHistory of MaltaKnights of MaltaLang and lang-xx code promoted to ISO 639-1Military orders (monastic society)Orders following the Rule of Saint BenedictOrders of chivalry awarded to heads of state, consorts and sovereign family membersOrders of chivalry in EuropeOrders of chivalry under protection of the Holy SeeOrganisations based in RomeOverseas empiresReligion and politicsReligious organisations based in ItalySovereign Military Order of MaltaUnited Nations General Assembly observers
Flag of the Order of St. John (various)
Flag of the Order of St. John (various)

The Sovereign Military Order of Malta (SMOM), officially the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta (Italian: Sovrano Militare Ordine Ospedaliero di San Giovanni di Gerusalemme, di Rodi e di Malta; Latin: Supremus Militaris Ordo Hospitalarius Sancti Ioannis Hierosolymitani Rhodiensis et Melitensis), commonly known as the Order of Malta or Knights of Malta, is a Catholic lay religious order, traditionally of a military, chivalric, and noble nature. Though it possesses no territory, the order is often considered a sovereign entity of international law, as it maintains diplomatic relations with many countries.The order claims continuity with the Knights Hospitaller, a chivalric order that was founded about 1099 by the Blessed Gerard in the Kingdom of Jerusalem. The order is led by an elected prince and grand master. Its motto is Tuitio fidei et obsequium pauperumcode: lat promoted to code: la ('Defence of the faith and assistance to the poor'). The order venerates the Virgin Mary as its patroness, under the title of Our Lady of Philermos. The Order's membership includes about 13,500 Knights, Dames and Chaplains. Thirty-eight of these are professed religious Knights of Justice. Until the 1990s, the highest classes of membership, including officers, required proof of noble lineage. More recently, a path was created for Knights and Dames of the lowest class (of whom proof of aristocratic lineage is not required) to be specially elevated to the highest class, making them eligible for office in the order. The Order's modern-day role is largely focused on providing humanitarian assistance and assisting with international humanitarian relations, for which purpose it has had permanent observer status at the United Nations General Assembly since 1994. The Order employs about 52,000 doctors, nurses, auxiliaries and paramedics assisted by 95,000 volunteers in more than 120 countries, assisting children, homeless, disabled, elderly, and terminally ill people, refugees, and lepers around the world without distinction of ethnicity or religion. Through its worldwide relief corps, Malteser International, the order aids victims of natural disasters, epidemics and war.The Order maintains diplomatic relations with 112 states, enters into treaties, and issues its own passports, coins and postage stamps. Its two headquarters buildings in Rome enjoy extraterritoriality, similar to embassies, and it maintains embassies in other countries. The Agenzia Nazionale Stampa Associatacode: ita promoted to code: it news agency has called it "the smallest sovereign state in the world". The three principal officers are counted as citizens. Although the Order has been a United Nations General Assembly observer since 1994, this was granted in view of its "long-standing dedication [...] in providing humanitarian assistance and its special role in international humanitarian relations"; the same category is held by other non-state entities such as the International Olympic Committee and International Committee of the Red Cross.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Sovereign Military Order of Malta (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Sovereign Military Order of Malta
Via dei Condotti, Rome Municipio Roma I

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Geographical coordinates (GPS)

Latitude Longitude
N 41.905277777778 ° E 12.480555555556 °
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Address

Palazzo Magistrale

Via dei Condotti
00186 Rome, Municipio Roma I
Lazio, Italy
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Flag of the Order of St. John (various)
Flag of the Order of St. John (various)
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Via Condotti
Via Condotti

Via dei Condotti (named always Via Condotti) is a busy and fashionable street of Rome, Italy. In Roman times it was one of the streets that crossed the ancient Via Flaminia and enabled people who transversed the Tiber to reach the Pincio hill. It begins at the foot of the Spanish steps and is named after conduits or channels which carried water to the Baths of Agrippa. Today, it is the street which contains the greatest number of Rome-based Italian fashion retailers, equivalent to Milan's Via Montenapoleone, Paris' Rue du Faubourg-Saint-Honoré, Florence's Via de' Tornabuoni or London's Bond Street. Caffé Greco (or Antico Caffé Greco), perhaps the most famous café in Rome was established at Via dei Condotti 86 in 1760, and attracted figures such as Stendhal, Goethe, Byron, Liszt and Keats to have coffee there. Guglielmo Marconi, inventor of radio, lived at Via dei Condotti 11, until his death in 1937. Being near the Spanish steps, the street is visited by large numbers of tourists. In May 1986, fashion designer Valentino filed suit to close a McDonald's shortly after it opened near the Spanish steps, complaining of "noise and disgusting odours" below his six-story palazzo in the vicinity of Via Condotti. But to the dismay of some Romans, McDonald's overcame the obstacles and is successful.Via Condotti is a center of fashion shopping in Rome. Dior, Gucci, Valentino, Hermès, Armani, Jimmy Choo, Rolex, Tudor, Patek Philippe, Prada, Salvatore Ferragamo, Céline, Van Cleef & Arpels, Dolce & Gabbana, Max Mara, Alberta Ferretti, Trussardi, Buccellati, Bulgari, Damiani, Tod's, Zegna, Cartier, Montblanc, Tiffany & Co., Louis Vuitton have stores on Via Condotti. Others, such as Laura Biagiotti, have their offices there.