Brief Biography
Giovanni Battista Tommasi became Grand Master after the crisis caused by the loss of Malta.
Sources: Order of Malta: The Grand Masters; Wikipedia: Grand Masters of the Knights Hospitaller.
Life and service to the Order
Confirmed by Pope Pius VII in 1803, he governed the Order from Messina and Catania in Sicily until his death in 1805.
The loss of Malta in 1798 forced the Order to preserve its institutions without its former island territory. Leadership and recognition of the office became central questions in this period.
(XIX century) MEMORIAL TO GIOVANBATTISTA TOMMASI GRANDMASTER
OF THE ORDER OF MALTA
In the same apse of the cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta, under the pavement of
the left chapel are the tombs of the noble family Tommasi to which Cortona owes
much of its history. To his commonly recognized merit, GiovanBattista
(1731-1805) assumed the title of Grand Sovereign Master of the Order of Malta in
1803 and died in 1805 in exile in Catania after the island, dominion of the
Cavalieri from 1533, was conquered by Napoleon.
GiovanBattista Tommasi was buried in the cathedral of Catania but in Cortona a
marble memorial was dedicated to him. As there was no room available in the
Tommasi chapel it was placed on the left wall at the back of the church.
The monument is the work of the Florentine sculptor Luigi Nencioli.
Historical context: Order of Malta, The Grand Masters; History of the Order.
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