The commonly known milestones in the history of the Hospitaller Order in Malta include their arrival in 1530 and their victory during the Great Siege of 1565. However, significant events unfolded before these. One such event was a crucial letter written on June 22, 1525, by Pope Clement VII to Mercurio Arborio di Gattinara, Grand Chancellor to Holy Roman Emperor Charles V. In this letter, the Pope urged Gattinara to persuade the Grand Master of the Hospitallers, Philippe Villiers de L'Isle-Adam, to accept the Emperor's offer of Malta as a new base for the Order, following their expulsion from Rhodes in 1522. The Pope argued that Malta would serve as a strategic stronghold against Turkish threats and that the Order should welcome the Emperor's generosity with gratitude, rather than seek alternatives.
Gattinara, born in 1465 in Piedmont, was a respected legal scholar and diplomat. After obtaining his law degree at the University of Turin, he served various influential roles, including advisor to Margherita of Habsburg and later as a key figure in the court of Charles I of Spain, who would become Emperor Charles V. Gattinara retired briefly to a monastery in 1516, where he developed the concept of a universal monarchy; a vision that greatly influenced his later work.
He returned to politics when Charles I became emperor and was appointed Grand Chancellor in 1518. Gattinara was instrumental in securing Charles's election as Holy Roman Emperor and played a leading role during the turbulent years of conflict between France and the Emperor's territories. After the Pope's imprisonment during these conflicts and the Sack of Rome in 1527, Gattinara's diplomacy helped bring about the 1529 peace.
In the same year, at the Bologna Conference, Gattinara successfully persuaded the Emperor to grant Malta to the Hospitallers. This agreement was formalised on March 24, 1530. Pope Clement VII later made Gattinara a cardinal, but he died shortly thereafter, on June 5, 1530, before the Hospitallers arrived in Malta.
Although not a prominent figure in Maltese collective memory, Gattinara's influence was pivotal in shaping Malta's history. His efforts laid the foundation for the Hospitallers' settlement in Malta, making him a key, though often overlooked, figure in European and Mediterranean history.
Dr. John Vella, Cospicua
Sources:
General Archive of Simancas, Spain. The digital image is accessible online at https://pares.mcu.es/ParesBusquedas20/catalogo/description/2205533?nm
Salvador Miranda. 2023. The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church. Biographical Dictionary. Pope Clement VII (1523-1534). Consistory of August 13, 1529 (VII). https://cardinals.fiu.edu/bios1529-iii.htm