Which Military Order is the oldest in the world?

The Sovereign Military Order of Malta (SMOM), officially the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta, commonly known as the Order of Malta, is a Catholic lay religious order, traditionally of military, chivalric and noble nature.

SMOM claims continuity with the Knights Hospitaller, a chivalric order that was founded c. 1099 by the Blessed Gerard in medieval Jerusalem. Its motto is "Tuitio fidei et obsequium pauperum" ('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 Mount Philermos.

More Info: en.wikipedia.org

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12 Comments

John McLardie

Seriously arguable and a badly worded question to boot.

George Oliver Prince

Isn't it amazing how often the longest answer is the correct one

David Stokes

There was a time when "Order" meant monks and friars. The Religious and Military orders were created during the Crusades, specifically the Knights Templar and the Hospitalers. Other specialised military groups, as cited by comments below were not called "orders", they had their specific names. They were also created with the involvement and backing of the Vatican. Apart from their military duties, they also had a strict religious life. The Templars role was to protect pilgrims on their way to sacred sites. The Hospitalers offered hospital and medical services to the sick and injured Christians. As the Crusades wound down the Templars lost their reason for being, the Hospitalers however brought the skills and knowledge learned in the Levant back to Europe and they survive as the St John's Ambulance.