The aim of this book is to examine afresh and in depth the contribution of the serving brothers to the existence and well being of the Hospitals in Jerusalem and Acre. The author has traced the internal and external history of the Hospital over the approximate two hundred years of its existence, and examined some of the history and composition of the Order of St John. Debate has centred on such topics as whether the Hospitallers developed from the Benedictine or the Augustinian Orders, the sources of the ideas found in the Rule of Raymond du Puy, and whether the Hospital was a nursing homeonly, or rather a medical institution. The author is keen to ensure brothers are recognised for their rightful place in the important work of caring for the poor and pilgrims as well as the organisation of the medical and social ministry for which the Order became famous.