Many have said that the Sovereign Military Order of Malta is best understood as a state without territory – a landless country. After all, as the name suggests, it claims sovereignty. It also has international personality. It even has diplomatic relations with over 110 countries. However, it has no formal territory. So, does this really make it a state or country? In this video, I explore the Order and set out how we can really best understand it.
Hello and welcome! My name is James Ker-Lindsay. Here I take an informed look at International Relations with a focus on territorial conflicts, secession, independence movements and new countries. If you like what you see, please do subscribe. If you want more, including exclusive content and benefits, consider becoming a channel member. Many thanks!
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The Sovereign Military Order of Malta – officially the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta – is one of the strangest bodies in international relations. Founded in 1048, and also known as the Knights of Malta, it is acknowledged to be one of the oldest institutions in the world. Better known today for its charitable works, the Order Malta is also famous because of its rather unusual characteristics, including its observer status at the United Nations. This has led many to think of it as state without territory. As I show, this is incorrect. It isn’t a country, and can’t be one. However, there is another way of looking at it that makes far more sense. As this video shows, for all its quirks and its historically unique position, the Order is in fact becoming less out of the ordinary and far more normal in a modern world filled with all sorts of bodies and entities operating at the international level.
CHAPTERS
0:00 Introduction and Titles
0:41 Background to the Sovereign Military Order of Malta
1:52 The History of the Order of Malta
3:16 Is the Order of Malta a State?
7:20 How Should we Understand the Order of Malta?
10:06 The Sovereign Order of Malta in the Modern World
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FURTHER READING & USEFUL SOURCES
Order of Malta
The Sovereign Order of Malta in International Law
The Continuing Question of Sovereignty and the Sovereign Military Order of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta
The Acquisition of Sovereignty by Quasi-States: The Case of the Order of Malta
The International Legal Status of the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St. John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta
The Country above the Hermes Boutique: The International Status of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta
The Creation of States in International Law
Satow’s Diplomatic Practice
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MY BOOKS
Secession and State Creation: What Everyone Needs to Know [PRE-ORDER]
The Foreign Policy of Counter-Secession
My other books
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MY PROFILES & SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS
Twitter
LinkedIn
Academia.edu
Research Gate
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EQUIPMENT& TOOL USED TO MAKE THIS VIDEO
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KEYWORDS
#OrderofMalta #SovereignOrderofMalta #InternationalRelations
#Statehood #Independence
#InternationalLaw #InternationalHistory
#KnightsofMalta #Vatican #Malta
Image Credit
@le:Palazzo_di_Malta_(Roma).jpg
Willtron / CC BY-SA (@s/by-sa/3.0)
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