Page:A History of the Knights of Malta, or the Order of St. John of Jerusalem.djvu/30

 had in this hospital received the assistance so liberally extended to all wayfarers, abandoned the idea of returning to their homes, and formed themselves into a charitable body, who, without any regular religious profession, devoted themselves to its service and the care of its sick inmates.

All the chief cities of Italy and the south of Europe subscribed liberally for the support of this admirable and much-wanted institution. The merchants of Amalfi who were its original founders acted as the stewards of their bounty; and as its beneficial influence became more widely known throughout Europe, their revenues increased largely. Grateful pilgrims on their return home spread far and wide the reputation of the Jerusalem hospitals, so that contributions flowed in from every quarter, and their utility was greatly extended. Such was the original establishment from which the Order of St. John eventually sprang, and it was from this fraternity of charitable devotees that a body of men descended, who for centuries continued a terror to the infidel, and the main bulwark of Christendom in the East.

Meanwhile a calamitous change befel the sacred city. Its Mahometan masters, after four centuries of dominion, were in their turn overpowered by a fierce horde of barbarians, bearing the name of Turcomans, who, coming from the wild regions beyond the Caspian Sea, poured themselves gradually over all the countries bordering on the Euphrates. The Holy Land soon fell into their hands, and from that moment a new and most disastrous æra dawned upon the pilgrims of Europe. Their tribute was largely increased, and, more than this, they themselves were plundered, maltreated, and subjected to every kind of atrocity, in comparison with which their former hardships seemed light indeed. From this time the journey to, and sojourn in Jerusalem became an undertaking fraught with the greatest possible danger. A large number of the pilgrims who still endeavoured to make their way thither never returned, and those who were fortunate enough to do so, spread the evil tidings of what they had been called on to suffer, so that gradually a strong feeling of horror and indignation was evoked throughout Europe.

In the year 1093, whilst these cruelties were at their height,