Pierre Cardinal d' Aubusson — Grand Master | Order of Malta in South Africa

Illustrated postcard showing Pierre d'Aubusson defending the Tower of Saint Nicholas at Rhodes — Illustrated postcard: Pierre d’Aubusson at the breach of the Tower of Saint Nicholas, Rhodes (caption printed on the card).

Brief Biography

Pierre d'Aubusson was Grand Master during the Ottoman siege of Rhodes in 1480.

Sources: Order of Malta: The Grand Masters; Wikipedia: Grand Masters of the Knights Hospitaller.

Édouard Odier's painting of the relief of the siege of Rhodes in 1480 — The Relief of the Siege of Rhodes, 19 August 1480, Édouard Alexandre Odier, 1841. Palace of Versailles. French Ministry of Culture catalogue.

Life and service to the Order

The Hospitallers repelled the assault, making his long tenure one of the best-known periods in the Order's history on Rhodes.

Rhodes provided the Order with a new island headquarters after its departure from the Holy Land. Its masters balanced hospitaller service, maritime defence and the government of a fortified Mediterranean state.

The painting depicts the Knights Hospitaller under Pierre d’Aubusson after the Ottoman siege of Rhodes in 1480. The accompanying text supplied with the image describes the defence of the Tower of Saint Nicholas and d’Aubusson’s leadership. The museum catalogue dates the scene to 19 August 1480.

1476 - 1503

Pierre d'Aubusson - Wikipédia

Historical context: Order of Malta, The Grand Masters; History of the Order.

Further images from the archive

Weathered stone relief with a central shield at Rhodes — Stone relief with a central shield, Rhodes (supplied photograph).

Archive image of Pierre Cardinal d' Aubusson