Alof de Wignacourt (1547-1622), Grand Master of the Order of St. John. Malta

Olof de Wignacourt (1547-1622), Grand Master of the Order of St John, Malta

In 2024, I had the pleasure of staying at the House of W. in Nicholas Street, Valletta, Malta. When we booked, we didn’t realise the building's significance. Located in the heart of Valletta, just a short walk from the Grand Master's Palace and St John's Co-Cathedral (formerly the Conventual Church of St. John), the building appears unremarkable from the outside, similar to many others in Valletta. However, step inside, and you can feel Malta’s rich history come alive.

Most older Maltese houses have an open interior 
to let in light and for air circulation.

When Malta became the most bombed place on Earth during WWII, the building, like others nearby, was destroyed. After the new owners purchased the building, they aimed to restore it to emphasize its historical importance. Research in Malta’s archives uncovered plans showing that the building was once owned by none other than Grand Master Alof de Wignacourt, a key figure in Malta’s history.

Official portrait of de Wignacourt

Alof de Wignacourt was born in 1547 to a noble French family, and at just 17 years old, he answered the call to arms from France to defend the Maltese islands that had come under the control of the Order of Saint John in 1530 against the Ottoman invasion known as the Great Siege of Malta in 1565. At the time, the Knights' stronghold was in the Three Cities, particularly Birgu, where they built Fort St. Angelo on the site of a medieval castle. This bastioned fort, located at the centre of the Grand Harbour, overlooks the main battle that took place at Fort St Elmo on the Sceberras Peninsular It was during this time that de Wignacourt’s skill as an engineer came to the fore, After the Ottomans were defeated, Grand Master Jean de Valette decided to build the new city named La Vallette, (Valletta) in his honour and after only four years of joining the order, his prudence and courage, combined with his engineering skills were quickly put to use earning him a nomination as Lieutenant of the new city of Valletta.

A painting of The Great Siege of Malta showing galleys around Senglea, 
which was almost defeated, and Fort St Angelo in Birgu.

De Wignacourt's military and administrative skills were soon recognised, and he was appointed Grand Cross and head of the Langue of France. His outstanding merits and services rendered to the Order earned him the unanimous election to the Grand Magistry. With his election as Grand Master in 1601, the Order experienced a naval and military power rebirth, demonstrating their maritime supremacy in the Mediterranean by expanding the navy to include a great galleon commissioned by him in Austria at 60,000 gold scudi. In 1602, he dispatched galleys of the Order on an expedition against the corsairs of North Africa, seizing the town of Mahomet and expelling the corsairs. It must be noted that corsairs. Two years later, the island of Kos was taken, followed by Corinth in 1611.

A Maltese galley brings in a captured Ottoman galley

A painting showing Maltese galleys capturing an Ottoman 
vessel near Malta

By the beginning of the 17th century, the importance of corsairs in the Mediterranean cannot be underestimated. In an area mostly dominated by Ottomans or Spanish, switching from a military role to an economic, viable, and necessary one. Captured booty made these states wealthy, and with wealth came diverse trades. In fact, the Order’s fleet of private corsairs made them some of the most feared seamen in the Mediterranean.

De Wignacourt Coat of Arms on the 
reconstructed arch.

After the Maltese successfully defended the islands against another Turkish raid of 60 vessels carrying 5,000 men, efforts were made to build new coastal fortifications. Under the reign of Grand Master Martin Garzez, another military engineer, Giovanni Rinaldini, was asked to suggest improvements, but after Garzez died in 1601, de Wignacourt became Grand Master, and he set about building the defenses himself. These included the Wignacourt Tower at St Paul's Bay and St Julien's Tower at Marsaxlokk. Only four of the original six forts now survive. He also oversaw significant expansions and renovations to the fortifications and buildings of Malta, including the construction of the Wignacourt Aqueduct in 1616, which brought fresh water to the capital city of Valletta.

The Tower at St Paul's Bay

The Wignacourt Aqueduct

During his reign, de Wignacourt often defended the privileges of the Order, preserving peace among the knights of different Langues, which was mainly a cosmopolitan order. Despite the formal structure of the Langues, the linguistic landscape was complex. French was the dominant language and acted as the language of chivalry during the Middle Ages, though Italian, specifically Tuscan Italian, became the main language for official purposes after the Order settled in Malta. French remained in use for documentation and maps, especially due to the influence of notable French military engineers. Latin was also used in official documents and diplomatic correspondence, but French was initially preferred for administrative purposes.

Selmun Palace (villa)

The Mistra Gate (1760) is the main entrance to the 
large estate once owned by Caterina Vitale.

In 1607, Wignacourt established the Monte della Redenzione degli Schiavi after a Capuchin friar delivered a series of sermons about the plight of Christian slaves under Muslim captivity. The ransom for a Maltese slave was initially set at 70 scudi, but this later rose to 120 scudi. From 1707 onwards, the rate increased to 150 scudi. In the early years, the institution struggled to gather enough funds, but this improved when Caterina Vitalee, a noblewoman of Greek descent, bequeathed most of her estate to the Monte di Redenzione upon her passing in 1619. Some of her property was sold, and an extra 6,000 scudi was donated by Gio. Domenico Felici, who allowed the institution to begin operating. The Foundation continued until 1798, when, during the French occupation of Malta, it was taken over by the government, and the estates formerly belonging to the Monte di Redenzione became state property.

‘Portrait of Grand Master Alof de Wignacourt with
 a Page’ by Caravaggio

It was under Wignacourt's reign that the painter, Caravaggio, left for Malta. He travelled in July 1607 aboard a vessel of the Order and was enthusiastically accepted into the folds of the Order as a Knight of Obedience on 14 July 1608. The Grand Master was aware of Caravaggio’s dark past, when, in May 1606, whilst working in Rome, he killed a man named Ranuccio Tomassoni. This should have impeded the artist from entering the Order, yet de Wignacourt had managed to obtain papal permission to accept the artist within the Order and became his patron. Whilst in Malta, Caravaggio painted some of his most famous paintings, ‘The Beheading of St John the Baptist’ and ‘St Jerome Writing’, both of which are at St John’s Co-Cathedral. In 1608, he painted the ‘Portrait of Grand Master Alof de Wignacourt with a Page’, now in the Louvre, Paris. Unfortunately, Caravaggio’s period of relative calm was short-lived, as by late August, he was involved in yet another brawl. This time, several knights were wounded. He was immediately arrested and imprisoned in Fort St Angelo. Thoroughly disgraced, Caravaggio managed to escape before his trial and fled from Malta.

‘Beheading of St John the Baptist’ by Caravaggio.

On 1 December 1608, in a meeting of the Public Assembly held in the Oratory of St John’s Co-Cathedral, in front of his masterpiece, the ‘Beheading of St John the Baptist’, Caravaggio was “expelled and thrust forth like a rotten and fetid limb” from the Order. Although his period in Malta was short-lived, his work contributed to that period of the Order’s grandeur and might.

Parade armour of Wignacourt, displayed in the Palace Armoury, Valletta

Grand Master Alof de Wignacourt suffered a stroke in August 1622, while he was out hunting. He died on September 14 at the age of 75. Like his predecessors, he is buried in the crypt of St. John's Co-Cathedral. De Wignacourt’s armour now stands in the Armoury at the Grand Master’s Palace. It is beautifully engraved and in excellent condition.