The Order of Saint John of Jerusalem (Maltese Cross) was an order of the Russian Empire. Named after John the Baptist.
History
In 1798, when Napoleon I captured Malta during an expedition to Egypt, the knights of the order turned to the Russian Emperor Paul I with a request to assume the rank of Grand Master of the Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, to which the latter agreed.
On November 29, 1798, Paul I issued the highest Manifesto on the Establishment in Favor of the Russian Nobility of the Order of Saint John of Jerusalem and the Rule for the Acceptance of the Nobility of the Russian Empire into this order.
During the reign of Paul I, the Order of Saint John of Jerusalem became, in essence, the highest distinction awarded for civil and military merit. The award of the commandery surpassed in its significance even the awarding of the Order of Saint Andrew the First–Called, since this expressed the personal benevolence of the sovereign. On the day of his coronation on April 5, 1797, Paul I united the order corporations existing in Russia into a single Russian Cavalier Order, or Cavalier Society. However, it did not include holders of the orders established by Empress Catherine II – Saint George and Saint Vladimir.
