(8) The most active of the groups to split away from (4) was the "Sovereign Military and Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem Knights of Malta United States Priory of the Order of Saint John Knights of Malta Ecumenical" as it is described in a 1980 publication. This body was registered as a New York corporation under the name "US Priory of the Order of St. John, Knights of Malta, Ltd" on 17 May 1972 [1] and also in the Netherlands as the "US Priory of the Order of St. John, Knights of Malta" and "The Sovereign Military and Hospitaller Order of St. John of Jerusalem, Knights of Malta" (on 28 September 1973). Its self-styled "grand master", "prince Robert M.N.G. Bassaraba de Brancovan-Khimchiachvili- Dadiani", is an American citizen who has been identified by various authors (perhaps mistakenly) as Isaac Wolff [2] and was listed in the New York telephone directory at 116 Central Park South, NY 10019, until his recent troubles in the law courts. [3] This organization was active in recruiting members but, despite claiming to have given $600,000 to an appeal for Nicaragua (for which no evidence was produced), "prince Robert" has since denied under oath that his organization gives money to charity or is designed to raise money for charity. "Prince Robert" not only founded this "Order" but also claimed an association with a non-existent "state" which had first been called "Freedomland" (or Khalayaan) but from 1978 was renamed "Colonia Saint John" and granted "passports" of this supposed "sovereign territory".

 

The history of "prince Robert" can be pieced together from the depositions he made and his evidence given under oath in the Alhadeff and Markovics cases cited earlier. He has denied being "Isaac Wolff", but has identified himself as having been born "Robert Michael Nicholas Georg von Badische" on 15 February 1925 at the Murray Hill Hotel in Manhattan, New York; this name also appears on his driver's license (according to his evidence, although he was unable to produce this for the court). He has claimed that some of his many titles have been "inherited" from his maternal grandmother's mother who, according to a genealogy published in "The Augustan", was "Prince (sic) Gennet Bassaraba von Brancovan-Khimchiavili" married to "Freiherr Louis von Baden von Badische". One may presume that his father, a certain "Freiherr Robert von Baden von Badische" and therefore presumably a blood relative of his mother, "Freifrau Diana", was married before his birth but no original birth or marriage certificates were ever produced despite counsel's frequent requests. Even if his ancestors had been princes of Brancovan, or princes Khimchiavili, the descent to him through three females would totally preclude him from inheriting their names or titles under Russian or Georgian nobiliary law. Until her death in 1983 at the age of eighty-six, his mother apparently still organized the finances of her son's "Order" about which (according to his evidence) he knew nothing; he has also testified that he has never had any employment other than as an officer of these "orders of Saint John". His latest enterprise is a banking operation whose web sit can eb found at http://www.badische.com/.

 

A document issued on the stationery of the "Sovereign Order of Saint John of Jerusalem Knights of Malta" (see above, 4), and dated 29 June 1969, claims an association with King Peter at that time, when he apparently functioned as "Grand Chancellor", despite the obvious conflict with the King's 1968 resignation and 1970 declaration against these groups. It appears that he was at various times associated with three earlier manifestations of Saint John "orders" (see above, 3A, 4, 4B) before going out on his own. In his 1987 deposition he stated that he was "the Legate of the King and his Deputy in the Order", although his group's name was different to that formerly headed by King Peter. On 15 June 1987 the stationery of his organization bore the logo "The Sovereign Military and Hospitaler (sic) Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, Knights of Malta Official Seat The Hague, Kingdom of the Netherlands Ecumenical" still at 116 Central Park South, but meanwhile on 28 June 1987 "H.E. Julian, Graf von Heisermann, Grand Chancellor O.S.J.", wrote to a new recruit to this "Order", from the "Vice-Chancellory" (sic) of "The Sovereign Military and Hospitaler Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, Knights of Malta, Ecumenical, Official Seat The Hague, Kingdom of the Netherlands" and, less his potential recruits were not already confused enough, in smaller letters "This, The Royal and Imperial Russian Langue of The Knights of Malta, is also known as The American Order, and The United States Priory of the Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, knights of Malta, Ecumenical" which was under "The Protection of His Royal and Imperial Highness Alexis II, Prince Dolgorouky-Romanov D'Anjou-Durassow" (see 8A).

 

In an earlier dispute with a one-time associate, a certain "Sir" Kevin Quinn Avery [4] sent out a letter on stationery of the "Knights of Malta, Sovereign Order of Saint John, Official Seat: Valetta, Malta", under the "royal and imperial protection of H.R. and I.H. Prince Henri III of Paleologue", [5] stating that "two hundred people resigned from the ("prince Robert" group) headed by Robert Khimchiachvili as Grand Master. .... The titles and claims of Robert Khimchiachvili (von Brancovan) are false! ... Some $250,000 US dollars of the Order's money was dilapidated in the past year by Robert Khimchiachvili for his own personal living expenses... Robert Khimchiachvili signed an agreement with one Victor Rees [6] to place on the market in the name of the Order worthless stock in the now-named Kingdom of Colonia .....". The letter made many accusations against "prince Robert" and stated that an organization called the "Union of Christian Chivalry" in Rome had removed him from its rolls, but at the same time invited would-be knights in the Avery organization to pay a one-time $25 fee to this same "Union"! "Prince Robert" hlost another confederate when his "protector", "prince Alexis/Alejandro" (see below 8A) declared himself "grand master" independently.

 

From 1970 until 1974 he used the style "lieutenant of the Grand Master" but, in 1974, he proclaimed himself "Grand Master" with the style "Imperial and Royal Highness" (much grander than the style "Most Eminent Highness" used by the Grand Masters of the genuine SMHOM). "Prince Robert's" investitures were apparently well-organized with much dressing-up by the participants in self-styled "orders"; the last known investiture in New York was held at St Bartholomew's Episcopal Church, on Park Avenue at 50th Street, by courtesy of and with the participation of the Rector, the Rev. Thomas D. Bowers. Despite the fact that these investitures took place in an Episcopal church, a substantial proportion of those invested (50% on one list) were non-Christian and in the Alhadeff Case the plaintiff was Jewish. In a publication announcing an earlier investiture, at Christ Church, on Park Avenue at 60th Street, "prince Robert" was described not only as "Grand Master", "Grand Chancellor, Grand Bailiff, Grand Prior" and "Prince of Thrace" but this publication announced that on 23 September 1980 he had been enthroned as "Archbishop Metropolitan with full Apostolic Succession to the Seat of Peter, of the Holy Seat of the Church of St. John of Jerusalem, Ecumenical" at Christ Church! The long list of persons, most of whom bore noble titles of questionable origin, the lowest rank of which was "Sir", included several well-known individuals whose presence may have been intended to give some degree of legitimacy to the proceedings and who were presumably taken in by "prince Robert's" fantastic pretensions. [7] This investiture, which included a procession in which "Their Majesties the King and Queen of Colonia St. John" entered to their "country's" "national anthem", followed by "prince Robert" and his associates who walked to their "order's" anthem, must have been very good entertainment (indeed the similarity between "Freedomland", the former name of Colonia Saint John, and the Marks' Brothers "Freedonia" may have occurred to some of the participants). [8]

 

In 1975 "prince Robert" announced his union with the "Priory of the Holy Trinity of Ville-Dieu" (see below, 12) and, in 1980, put his group under the "imperial and royal protection" of one of the many pretended claimants to the Byzantine throne (see below, 15). In Canada, where a number of self-styled "Orders" of various types have found widespread support, particularly in French-speaking Quebec, a "Colonel J. André Fontaine" or "Fontaine-Gagnon" was the active representative of "prince Robert's" group. However, despite his claim to have given his "order's" patronage to the ephemeral state of "Colonia Saint John", which like his "Order" issued "passports", "prince Robert" stated under oath in his deposition in the Markovics case that "we are not a country and we do not (have) [sic] documents such recognition" and "we are not a sovereign country ....". Since 1988 not much was heard from "prince Robert", until July 1990 when a member of the American Association of the SMHOM received a letter from "prince Robert" informing him he had been distinguished by membership in a new "Saint John" fellowship. [9]

 

"Prince Robert" later established a new base of operations in Nassau, Bahamas before reopening his activities in New York with the "Imperial Russian Order of Saint John of Jerusalem [Knights of Malta], Ecumenical Foundation." Between 1992 and 1994 hundreds of letters were sent from this organization's "Grand Chancellery" in New York. [10] The stationary claimed Priories and Commanderies listed in Germany, Brazil, Egypt, Switzerland, Haiti, Ireland, Japan, South Africa, England, Malta, Philippines, Nepal, France, India, Italy, Venezuela and the Virgin Islands. The letters were generally worded much the same, one such dated 8 June 1993, beginning "We, the Imperial ....etc" betraying their Brancovan connection with the phrase "Official Seat The Hague, Kingdom of the Netherlands, Ecumenical". The letters then continued (we) "are pleased to inform you that the Honours Committee of the above Ecumenical Order is considering your person for the Honour of the most August and Ancient KNIGHTHOOD in the ORDER OF SAINT JOHN. The bestowal is for philanthropic endeavors, for exceptional achievement and unselfish support of humanity. We would be pleased, in pursuit of this possible consideration, to arrange an appointment with you and members of our Grand Magistery and Honours Committee. Please communicate by telephone or telefax with the above Chancellery to arrange for an appointment". The first group of letters were signed by a certain Lieutenant Edward Hugh Willis, described as "Aide de Camp", then by Captain "Sir" Alfred de Saverin, Protocol Officer on behalf of our Grand Chancellor, or Captain Manfred Karl Mitze, Aide de Camp, but more recent letters bore the name "His Excellency Julian Count von Heisermann, Grand Chancellor", whom we know from his earlier association with Wolff/Brancovan. The letter was accompanied by a five page document entitled "Our Glorious History", signed by "His Serene Highness Prince Robert Michael Nicolaus George Cantacuzene Bassaraba von Brancovan Khimchiachvili, "Prince Grand Master". In this letter "Prince Robert" claimed that King Peter was helped guiding "the Protestant Knights of Malta to its new destiny. Encouraged by Pope John (!!), with the help of many, including his cousin (!!), Prince Robert Khimchiachvili". Like so many of these documents emanating from this source it was filled with lies and distortions of fact from start to finish. One amused recipient pretending to believe this group (he was actually a member of the SMHOM and familiar with false Orders of Saint John), turned up for his appointment where he was introduced to "Prince Peter", from whose description it seemed that "Prince Robert" had now assumed a new forename in addition to his many other last names.

 

The high rent address leads one to suppose that, unfortunately, Wolff/Brancovan and Heisermann have once again found gullible victims for their scam. A later communication from this group, this time sent from a new address [11] where they have been resident since late 1994, came from "Sir Bernard Schuchardt", whose position in this "Order" was not stated. The stationary had by now been changed to "Knights of Malta / Sovereign Order of the Hospitallers of St. John of Jerusalem / O.S.J." and Schuchardt's letter enclosed two "Personal Biographical Questionnaires" for those chosen to be "Nominees for the Honour of The Cross of Merit of the Order of Malta". These documents did not demand much of the applicants in the form of biographical information but, mysteriously, demanded to know their height, weight, colors of their eyes and their blood group. It is likely that more will be heard of them before long.

 

An Italian group associated with the Brancovan operation includes among its members a Dr don Giuseppe Compagnino, "Barone de La Torre de Laredo, "Ambasciatore S.O.S.J. (as of October 24th, 1994). [12]

 

(8A) Until the death from AIDS of its founder, one of the more active of the self-styled Saint John Orders was the "Sovereign Military and Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, Ecumenical Knights of Malta, grand priory of Castile and Leon", under its "grand prior" "prince" Alexis or Alejandro d'Anjou de Bourbon-Condé Romanov-Dolgorouky (referred to henceforth as "Prince Alexis/Alejandro"), who, in addition to this extraordinary name claims to be "volodar of the Ukraine", "head of the Royal House of Anjou of Naples" and "king of Sicily". [13] How Alex Brimeyer, born in the Belgian Congo (now Zaire) in 1946, the son of an engineer and his wife, Beatrice Difonzo, was apparently transformed via the names Brimeyer "de la Kalschayer", to (circa 1966) "prince of Khevenhuller-Abensberg", then circa 1969 to "prince Alexis Romanov Dolgorouki" before finally emerging into his last incarnation as "prince of Anjou" (born two years later, in 1948) was explained in a review of Brimeyer's "autobiography", "Moi, Alexis, arrière-petit-fils du Tsar" in which Brimeyer told of his purported descent, via Nicholas II's murdered daughter the Grand Duchess Maria. [14] His story received wide coverage in the Belgian press following a judgment against him in Brussels on 24 November 1971, when he was sentenced to eighteen months imprisonment for using the name "prince Dolgorouky". [15] Among the more interesting claims of "prince Alexis/Alejandro" was his pretension that his alleged Dolgorouky grandfather had been crowned "Czar (or Volodar) of the Ukraine" in 1939. [16] His history has also been anaylsed by Mr James Algrant in an article published on the Internet.

 

Apparently dissatisfied with these relatively modest pretensions, "prince Alexis/Alejandro" soon reappeared, under an even more elaborate name, "prince Alexis d'Anjou-Durazzo-Durassow" which was later transformed into "prince d'Anjou de Bourbon-Condé [17] Romanov Dolgorouky". [18] His last publication included an extract from records of birth from the Belgian Congo, now Zaire (not the original certificate issued at the time of birth), dated 12 December 1988 [19] stating that Alejandro (in Spanish!) d'Anjou de Bourbon-Condé Romanov Dolgorouky was born the son of Basil d'Anjou-Durazzo, Schishkov [20] and Olga-Beatrice-Dolgorouky di Fonzo-Romanov. [21]

It would be interesting to learn why (a) he was given a Spanish forename in a French speaking country, since his Spanish connections were not made until several years after his Belgian conviction, until which time he had always used the name Alexis (the original birth certificate has not been published), (b) the "recognition" of the marriage by the Patriarch (see note) does not give the place of the marriage, only the residences of the alleged parents of the "prince" (Zaire and Rome); where is the original marriage certificate?, or (c) he was apparently given the name "Bourbon-Condé" at birth when he was not adopted by "prince Bruce" until 1983/84; was this just extraordinary foresight on the part of his putative parents?

 

Since a number of writers have explored the alleged ancestry of "prince Alexis/Alejandro" in greater detail than it is possible to do here, [22] it is sufficient to state that whether or not "prince Alexis/Alejandro" was descended from the Romanovs, the Dolgorouky's, or any other noble or non-noble family for that matter, such descent could not give rise to a claim to be "protector", or "grand master", of any "order of Saint John", or any purported "Russian grand priory" of the same. The succession to the Imperial Russian Throne and, today, the Headship of the Imperial Dynasty, passes by male primogeniture. When all the male heirs of Czar Paul I born of equal marriages are extinct the succession passes to the nearest female relative of the last dynast of the family, born of an equal marriage, or to the male heir thereof. The last living dynasts born of equal marriage was the Grand Duke Wladimir Kyrillovich (a Bailiff Grand Cross of Honor and Devotion of the SMHOM, who died in 1992, when his only daughter, the Grand Duchess Maria Wladimirovna was proclaimed his successor. Not only do the Romanov House laws make a marriage between a Grand Duchess and a Dolgorouky prince (a subject of the Czar) unequal for succession purposes, but the titles and claims of the Czars from 1811 until the end of the Monarchy in 1917 did not include any pretension to the title of "grand master" or "protector" of any "order of Saint John".

 

Also associated with the Brimeyer faction is a Mr John Walsh "of Branagh", Chancellor of "Greenwich University", a degree mill based in Hawaii. [23] He is an advocate of Brimeyer's pretension to be the grandson of the Grand Duchess Maria Nicolaevna and therefore legitimate claimant to the Russian throne. The fact that the bodies of the Czar and his family have been discovered and that the two missing bodies, of the Czarevich and one Grand Duchess (either Maria or Anastasia), were documented as having been burnt, serves to disprove this connection. Mr Walsh has claimed [24] that Brimeyer's descent from the Czar is accepted by the Union of Russian Nobility and the Monarchist Party; this author has been informed that this is emphatically not the case and that this recognition is from a fringe Monarchist organization, obviously entirely ignorant of the their nation's dynastic laws. [25] More recently, Mr Walsh, now styling himself "The Duke de Branagh and de Ronceray" circulated a letter bearing the heading " The Regency of H.I.R.H. Prince Alexis II" laying claim to run the Brimeyer organization. The address, a post box on "Norfolk Island, South Pacific" which he described as a "former British colony, now a parliamentary monarchy, located in the Pacific Ocean about halfway between Australia and New Zealand". This letter, dated 27 January 1996, states that Brimeyer's "passing is a great loss, and not only to members of the Order of St John, but also to Russia and Ukraine, and to the other countries from which he held royal and priceley descent. In fact his death has proved such an incalculable loss that one can say the history of Europe and of the entire world has been affected". Indeed, one can say this, but anyone who does so must be considered to be suffering from delusions. Walsh claims to have visited the College of Arms, Westminster (the College is actually situated in the City of London!) whose officers are well-acquainted with the false pretensions of the late "Prince" Alexis, and "Washington, in the United States of America, where serious discussions were held with diplomatic and government persons". Whether Walsh seriously believes the nonsensical and contradictory claims of Brimeyer or is simply taking advantage of the ignorance of others is difficult to tell. We may hope that Alexis's widow and child, who are not mentioned in Walsh's letter, will have nothing further to do with the whole ridiculous charade. [26]

 

 

The first connection of "prince Alexis/Alejandro" with the Saint John name came with his "nomination" by "prince Robert" as "Hereditary Royal Protector" on 15 April 1981 and as "grand prior of Castile and Leon". One of "prince Alexis/Alejandro's" adherents, D. Luis Blazquez Fabian, then registered with the Spanish Ministry of the Interior an entity named the "Capitulo Espanol de la Orden Soberana y Militar de San Juan de Jerusalem, Caballeros Hospitalarios Ecumenicos de Rodas y Malta" with a patrimony of 100,000 pesetas (approximately $1000); subsequently, on 10 December 1984, a "Soberana, Orden, Hospitalaria y Militar de San Juan de Jerusalem, Caballeros Ecumenicos de Rodas y Malta, O.S.J., Real Commendaduria del Principado de Cataluna" was registered in Barcelona with the Generalitat of Catalonia. In 1983, "prince Alexis/Alejandro" became involved with an extreme right-wing group which included several of the lawyers who had defended the participants in the 1981 coup attempting to overthrow the Spanish democratic constitution. One of these gentlemen, Gerardo Quintana, was named "grand chancellor" but then, seeking autonomy from the "prince Robert" group, proclaimed himself "grand master". "Prince Alexis/Alejandro" appears to have equivocated for a while but, in 1985, reaffirmed his loyalty to "prince Robert" and, on 29 January 1985, the latter reappointed him to be the "only Royal Protector of the Sovereign Order and the only legitimate (sic) authority in the Kingdom of Spain".

 

Since "prince Robert" had his own troubles in the US Federal Courts, the connection proved not to be so useful for "prince Alexis/Alejandro" and "prince Robert" was abandoned. A recent publication of the "Capitulo Espanol de la Orden Soberana y Militar de San Juan de Jerusalem Caballeros Hospitalarios Ecumenicos de Malta y Rodas", an invitation to an investiture in Segovia dated 30 June 1990, named "S.A.R. Don Alexis (no more Alejandro) de Anjou de Bourbon-Condé, Duque de Durazzo, Jefe de la Casa Real de Anjou de Napoles, Gran Maestre de la Soberana y Militar Orden de San Juan de Jerusalem" and stated that it was under the "spiritual protection" of the Patriarch of Moscow and All the Russias. With the break up of Yugoslavia, Brimeyer tried to claim the Serbian throne, amending his genealogy to include a previously unclaimed descent from a distant Serbian Prince! An article in the Aragon/Huesca of February 12th, 1992, explained in a long but somewhat tongue in cheek article that Alexis had been offered the Serbian Crown by the President of the Radical Serbian Party and one of the most notorious militia leaders, Vojislav Seselj in a small ceremony at the Parador hotel of Monte Perdid in Huesca. Astonishingly, news of this offer was repeated in much of the world press and Alexis briefly saw his name in print, often with a photograph in a white uniform with quantities of braid and multifarious decorations. The fact that the two Serbs had absolutely no authority to offer him the throne and that his descent was a complete invention was generally ignored.

 

Following the same practice as his mentor, "prince Alexis/Alejandro" established a "Diplomatic Chancellery of the Sovereign Order of Malta Ecumenical O.S.J.", with a certain "Martin Condé de Sulkowski-Bielitz", [27] as "Ambassador", issued passports and to make it easier for his American candidates, even provided an English language application form, full of grammatical errors but making it clear that payment was the key to entry. Before his death "prince Alexis/Alejandro" brought into his orbit yet another of the self-styled "orders" of Saint John, the "grand prieuré Oecumenique de la Sainte-Trinité de Villedieu" (see below, 12), but it is not know what has now happened to this last. Despite his earlier troubles in Belgium, "prince Alexis/Alejandro" has also founded, in 1986, a "commanderie royale .... en Royaume de Belgique" of his "Order", with its seat at avenue Molière 155, 1060 Bruxelles which was intended to function in Belgium and Luxembourg. [28] The last known Grand Chancellor is a "Baron" Alex Ostoya Starzewski. [29]

 

In late 1993, Brimeyer's group acquired a disused artificial island, constructed as part of Britain's war time sea defenses, which had been converted by its previous owner into the self-styled "principality of Sealand". This offered banking licenses for approximately $10 million and was run by Paulus "Baron" van Drongeland a Major "Sir" Robert Crampton-Barden. [30]

 

A commandery of his Order developed in the San José and San Francisco area, and several distinguished retired military officers were recruited by a Mr Edward Allegretti and Rev Christopher Seal, an Episcopalian priest, at which time the then local Suffragen Bishop, the Rt Rev Richard Millard, was also a member. The instigator behind this seemed to have been the notorious John Wilkinson, pseudo Prince de Bat(d)em(n)berg, who led his nascent group into the "Prince Alexis" fold. Lowell Barker, associated with so many other self-styled chivalric groups, was another of those instrumental in promoting Brimeyer/"prince Alexis". It appears that within a few years a number of high ranking serving and retired officers, many attached to NATO, were recruited into this organization, some of whom had been members of the "Order of the Temple" and the NATO grand priory of the latter body. Following the publication of the first edition of The Orders of Saint John, which included much of this information on Mr Brimeyer, the author was asked to speak to the San Francisco based members of his "Order". [31] As a result of this meeting, most of the members lost interest and it ceased to function actively.[32]

 

(8B) It seems that this group has now continued under new management with its head quarters in Switzerland, at Via Maggio 1b, CH 6900 Lugano, with Commander Bruno G. Bruzi in charge, and (they claim) Gilles Bouneou, Attorney at law of Spiess Brunori & Associati, Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, somehow acting for them. My thanks to Luis Blanco for this information.

 

(8C) A Mr Dieter Schweiger, apparently a German citizen, in March 1991 succeeded in persuading some officials of the German government bureaucracy that he was "knight commander and Grand Chancellor of the Sovereign Hospitaller Order of St John, Ecumenical and Orthodox Knights of Rhodes and of Malta" and applied for part of the medicines and hospital equipment belonging to the former East German armed forces to be given to his organization. He managed to obtain goods to the value of millions of Deutsche Marks without any checks on his credentials by the officials concerned. Not content with just medical supplies, and hospital equipment, he obtained 150,000 pairs of military boots, several container loads of Marlboro cigarettes and billions of liters of diesel fuel. His intention was to sell of this material to the Iranians but could not pay for the transportation so once again turned to the German government, this time asking the Foreign Office in Bonn to provide financial support for, as he claimed, transporting medical supplies to Djibouti. By the time he and his accomplices were apprehended they had already raised 5.7 million Deutsche marks. What was even more astonishing was that the German bureaucrats gave this conman so much, while restricting the Malteser Hilfsdienst to some dressing materials for distribution in the Baltic states. The government subsequently faced some embarrassing questions in the Bundestag. [33]

 

(8D) While not directly connected with any of the above, much of the same claims are made by a Mr Roberto Coppola whose activities are generally confined to Poland but also elsewhere in Eastern Europe. In the late 1980's he had promised loans to various heads of state in Africa and Latin America amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars.

 

(8E) Another body which may have sprung from the Brancovan group is the "Priory of Saint John, The Sovereign Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem, Knights of Malta" headed by "His Serene Highness Prince Celsior VII, Grand Sovereign Master". The "Grand Chancellor" of the "Court of Saint John of Jerusalem" is another deluded fantasist, a Mr James M. Owen, then of 415 East Third Avenue, Red Springs, North Carolina 28377, [34] who styles himself "The Right Honourable the Viscount Valletta, Grand Prior of the Priory of Saint John, Knight Commander Grand Cross (O.S.J.), The Knights of Malta, A servant of the priory, The Right Reverend Lord.....etc". This body, claiming to "be descended from The Grand Priory of Scotland (a subsidiary of Valletta, Malta), offers to provide application details in return for a $10.00 honorarium to "Dear Prospective members of the Priory of Saint John". They state that their first Grand Master, "H.S.H. Prince Jean Roger Guiscard Steward de Hauteville de Macarthur, Grand Duke of Mdina", was invested (by whom?) as H.S.H. the Prince of Valletta in 1874. There has never been a Grand Duchy of Mdina, which is a small city on the island of Malta and from 1800 until 1964 Malta was a British colony; no titles of Prince have ever been granted or recognized by the British Crown other than (a) to members of the British Royal Family or their spouses, or (b) the Indian Princes and Aga Khan. This statement is clearly false. "Prince" Celsior VII is described as being 7th Prince of Valletta and 78th Grand Duke of Mdina - bearing in mind that allowing for even short generational differences this would suggest this "grand duchy" came into being some 1500 years ago the extent of the fantasy becomes even more astonishing. In a letter Mr Owen states that this title derives from a grant to an unspecified member of the Hauteville family, Norman kings of Sicily, an unnamed cousin of King Roger II but no documents proving this are disclosed or even cited.

 

This group's pretensions to legitimacy apparently stem from two sources. The first being the purported descent of their Grand Master, whose real name is Randall, from the Sandilands of Torphichen family through several female descents. As has been shown in the history of the genuine Grand Priory of England of the Order of Saint John, Sandilands was granted the Torphichen lands along with a Scottish peerage and there are male descendants today. If any such "Grand Priory of Scotland" had ever existed, and if it could have passed by hereditary descent (which it could not), the only claimant would be the present Lord Torphichen who, of course, makes no such assertion. In their literature they refer to being associated with a fringe church - the "Holy Episcopal Church Worldwide" (a body unknown to the World Council of Churches, the Episcopalian Church in the United States, or the Anglican Church), and has formed a body called the "Court of Saint John of Jerusalem". They literature is almost comic in tone, the historical nonsense they recite even exceeding the wildest excesses of Hollywood script writers. The genealogical succession described (albeit sketchily), the claims for various past acts and recognitions, the grandiloquent but often semi-literate prose, all lead to a story of a Peter "de Hauteville de" MacArthur (we imagine the middle names to be inventions) who emigrated to Cape Fear, North Carolina in the late seventeenth century. Exactly how this man's descendants acquired the title of Grand Duke of Mdina, why "all the members of the Court are Titular Bishops", on what basis their "Order" and "Court" are "Sovereign and Independent", or why they chose Flora Macdonald College, Red Springs, North Carolina, for the investiture of their chief is unexplained.

 

In response to an inquiry incited by their letter to "prospective members", inquiries were met with an almost unintelligible letter, dated February 1, 1991, filled with elementary spelling mistakes. This bore the logo of their "Order" along with "Regnant G.S.M. (Grand Sovereign Master?) H.S.H. Prince Randall I", and stated that "the Sovereign Principality of Saint John is a Titular sovereign principality mainting (sic) an international diplomatic corps. This Principality composes the Grand Priory of Saint John comprized (sic) of Knights, Dames, noble, royals and various digniairies (sic)". Later in this epistle, a connection with "His Beatitude the Patriarch of Antioch" (which one of the three genuine or many self-styled Patriarchs is not stated) is described; since the author of the letter, Deborah Lee (who is clearly badly in need of remedial spelling lessons), asserts that this Patriarch "in a gesture of friendship and benevolence created the principality (titular) and conveyed sovereignty to His Most Eminent and Most Noble Highness, the Prince + Celsior VII....etc" we may be confident that this Patriarch is himself as deluded as Mr Owen. Despite the extravagant claims of this group, it does not seem to have had great success.

 

The various officers [35] all use extraordinary titles which, one must suppose, are not commonly utilized by their neighbors and friends in rural North Carolina. They invite applicants to pay $25 for an application and, if accepted, are required to cover the expenses of the investiture ceremony (which may be either in person or by mail), the former including the cost of three first class round trip air line tickets from Fayetteville, North Carolina to the city nearest to the investiture location, hotel reservations and limousines for three (one of whom is described as an "assistant"), the arrangement by the candidate of a suitable location, and a speakers podium. The ceremony apparently takes twenty - thirty minutes. All of this in addition to the price for admission to this illustrious body of $1400. The stationary used for a letter to "dear future members of the O.S.J." bears three crests at the top, crudely drawn and, as with the hand drawn seal on the bottom, each hand colored with felt tip pens! One cannot but wonder how many individuals have been foolish enough to believe this amateur confidence trick and pay up.

(8F) "The Sovereign Military and Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, Knights of Malta" is a much more elaborate fraud, linked with the "Euro-American Money Fund Trust" and "Metal Trading and Finance International". The head of this group, John J. Voigt, was once associated with Brancovan, but his other associates Skip Alevi and Ralph A. Anderskow, were not formerly involved in the pseudo-chivalric world. Their addresses in Panama and Liechtenstein were convenient and anonymous and enabled them to collect substantial sums from would-be investors who were enticed by the list of purported investors who included many members of the genuine Orders. A Federal Grand Jury was impaneled to investigate Mr Voigt's activities in Atlantic City and a lengthy FBI investigation followed which ultimately led to the conviction and imprisonment of Mr Voigt.

 

(8G) "The Royal Sovereign Military and Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, Knights of Malta, Ecumenical, A Reigning Territorial Sovereignty" is an off-shoot of Brancovan's group, inspired by his Marx-Brother fantasy state of St John Colonia. The Grand Master is a Prince John de Mariveles d'Anjou (Prince John de Colonia) and the Chancellor is a "Sir" Peter Morgan, Bt. [36]

 

(9) Another such "Order" was founded by a certain G. Tonna Barthet with the support of individuals who had split away from (1), (3) and (4). Despite being based on the island of Malta itself, the Republic of Malta, which enjoys full diplomatic relations with the Sovereign Military Order, has not recognized this group as an "Order of Chivalry". Tonna-Barthet was at one time "grand bailiff" of King Peter's group, then "grand Prior of Malta", before allying himself with the late Prince Andrew of Yugoslavia in July 1977. [37] In 1975 it was described as being "The O.S.J. Sovereign Order of Saint John of Jerusalem: Knights Hospitaller of Malta under the hereditary protection of the Royal House of Yugoslavia" (despite King Peter's disavowal of such protection in 1969 and his son's denunciation of all organizations which assumed this pretension). In Autumn 1976 the title was amended to being "Under Charter of King Peter II of Jugoslavia"; in Autumn 1978 "Under High Protection of the Royal House of Yugoslavia" was re-introduced but in Winter 1979 the word "High" was dropped. Six months later this was again amended to "Under Protection of the Royal House of Jugoslavia as per Constitution of King Peter the II"; this last clause was amended in the summer of 1981 to "as awarded by King Peter II".

 

Between the spring and summer of 1979, following some kind of agreement with the Troubetzkoy "Order" (in April of that year [38]), Prince Troubetzkoy became "lieutenant-grand master" - since Troubetzkoy's name appears as an hereditary commander of (1A) and despite the earlier breach with this group we may assume that this relationship continues. The word "sovereign" was now dropped from the mast head of Tonna-Barthet's bulletin and the "Order" apparently renamed the "order of Saint John of Jerusalem, Knights Hospitaller" - thus in the summer of 1983 Tonna-Barthet was able to write in an editorial that "the word 'sovereign' does not appear, in fact it is not in our nomenclature". From the same date in 1979 this group assumed the additional lettering before its title of "R.G.P.M. & E" which presumably means "Russian Grand Priory of Malta and England (Europe?)".

 

It is apparent that there was an attempted coup against Tonna-Barthet in 1983 organized by supporters of Prince Andrew but the details were covered up and Tonna-Barthet apparently remained in charge. A study of the bulletins produced by his organization is instructive as it lists new members and the money given to his "Order". [39] On 22 June 1985 an agreement was signed with a "priory of Dacia" (see 2A above). Associated with this group is a "Grand Priory of Canada" headed by a Dr Giles Lamoureux-Gadoury, "Bailiff Grand Cross" of this Order. [40] On 16 April 1984, a letter on the stationery of the "Orthodox Church in America", [41] and signed by "Metropolitan Theodosius, Archbishop of Washington, Metropolitan of All America and Canada", addressed to the Governor-General of Canada, stated that Theodosius, as "Primate of the Orthodox Church in America and Canada", had conferred his Archpastoral blessing and spiritual protection on the Grand Priory of Canada of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem, Knights Hospitaller, legally constituted under the Canada Corporations Act since 1980.

 

Another group probably associated with this organizations, has emerged in Belgium under a Guy Demal de Franchimont. [42] It is not know if this is connected with the "Prieuré Orthodoxe Russe Saint Alexandre-Nevski", see 4A above.

 

(10) The first defectors from the "Sovereign Military and Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, Knights of Malta" (see above 3 and 4) were Schobert (who died, possibly poisoned, in 1970) and Eisenstatter, who kept control of the 1964 corporation. [43] With Schobert's death Eisenstatter, along with a "Monsignor" Vittorio Busa, self-styled "Orthodox Metropolitan and Archbishop of Bialystok, Orthodox Patriarch of the Occidental and Oriental Diaspora/ Metropolitan Grand Prior of the Pius Union of Christian Churches/ Religious Superior of the Ecumenical Ecclesiastical Community of Saints Andrew Apostle and of Caffa", [44] formed a break-away group. Meanwhile, during the 1970's, a certain Dr Ivan Markovics (see US Federal Case cited earlier), "Ambassador of special missions" became associated with the 1964 corporation and embarked on a successful recruiting campaign which ended with his non-appearance in the Federal District Court of Dallas, the condemnation of his organization and a $40,000 judgment against him and his corporation. When Markovics left the United States to live in Europe, he asked that "prince Robert" (see above, 8), take over his knights and the latter duly sent out invitations to those on Markovics list to attend the Saint Bartholomew investiture (this action resulted in "prince Robert" being cited as co-defendant in the Markovics Case). Since then no more has been heard of this group. [45] Self-styled Archbishop Valitch, more directly connected with 12 below, carried out investitures on behalf of this body, even traveling as far as Rhodes where, on June 1st, 1985, he knighted fourteen men and women into this "Order". This is further evidence of the continually shifting alliances between the different groups.

 

 

(10A) Once connected with (10), but now apparently independent, is an "Order" of the same name founded by Basilio Petrucci, "Prince of Vacona and Sienna". He died in 1977 when his son, Arnaldo, apparently adopted his father's claims and pseudo-titles. [46] The Petrucci "princes" pretend that their ancestor was accorded the hereditary Grand Magistery of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem by Grand Master de la Cassière in 1581, a concession which the Grand Master could not in any case have legally made and the claim to which is unsupported by any contemporary documentary evidence. Petrucci's Order has also issued "passports" and established its own "Consular Corps" and "Diplomatic Service", profiting as much from the distribution of these passports (valueless as international travel documents) as pseudo-knighthoods. The dubious nature of the Petrucci group's claims can be demonstrated by the exposure of one definite forgery; a purported papal document supposedly issued by Pope Leo XIII and naming "principe Vincenzo Petrucci di Vacone gran priore magistrale dinastico per se e per tutti i discendenti con diritto di creare un ordine unico di cavalieri di Malta non nobiliare...", dated 25 December 1879; in a letter from the Secret Archives of the Vatican dated 12 February 1980 addressed to H.E. Christopher de Kallay, Ambassador of the SMHOM to the Vatican, this was denounced as a falsification. [47] Among the Petrucci recruits was the sometime financier, Giancarlo Parretti, who is rumored to have paid as much as half a million dollars for the dubious honor of knighthood in Petrucci's "Order". Somehow Petrucci tried to get involved in Parretti's deal to buy MGM but he was unable to help the unfortunate financier who ultimately lost control of the studio.

 

In the early 1980's Petrucci apparently fell out with one of his late father's aides, a Mr (Prince or Baron, in different contexts) Umberto Stefanizzi, who had been "Minister of Foreign Affairs" for his father (while serving as his chauffeur). Stefanizzi claimed to have taken over the Order on the death of the older Petrucci, as "Vice-Grand Master" and subsequently managed to persuade some gullible clerics that his was the "genuine" Order of Malta. In 1978 the then Primate of Brazil, Cardinal Vielar Avelar Brandae, gave them some recognition and granted them a Convent (which they did not retain) and a year later the then bishop of Palestrina allowed them the use of a Church and in the same year the Coptic Patriarch of Alexandria gave them his "protection". In 1980 Stefanizzi appointed a Dr Michelangelo Pascasio to be "Grand Chancellor" In 1983 he formed a not-for-profit corporation in New York State and, according to Stefanizzi's publicity material, "took notice of the termination of the leadership of the Serene Petrucci family of Vacone and Siena". Unfortunately the representative of the "serene Petrucci family", Mr (self-styled "Prince") Arnaldo Petrucci did not see it that way and denied this in a letter dated September 17, 1985, signed "Sovereign Grand Master". At about this time Petrucci offered to decorate President Ronald Reagan with his grand cross; this was taken sufficiently seriously by the White House for inquiries to be made through the CIA. There was considerable embarrassment when it was discovered that the organization was not connected with the genuine Order of Malta. Stefanizzi continued to run his group separately and, on June 9, 1986, wrote to President Aquino of the Philippines in an attempt to establish mutual diplomatic relations and naming a Mr Antonio Delgado to the rank of Ambassador; unfortunately, as the SMHOM already had diplomatic relations with the Republic, he was unsuccessful.

 

In the early 1980s Petrucci successfully recruited an ambitious Japanese businessman, Tamaki Sasaki, [48] who paid $20,000 for his knighthood in 1981. Sasaki's greater ambition was to be a genuine Ambassador of the Knights of Malta with all the privileges that such a rank enjoyed, including as he hoped the ability to import goods free of tax,. Although Sasaki claimed to have been baptized a Catholic, he also admitted to having had five wives, although it was not clear whether all were living at the same time. In 1984 Sasaki purchased a Roman Palace for $3 million for the "Order" and began to recruit other Japanese businessmen. With an address at 866 United Nations Plaza (a private office and apartment complex), the name apparently convinced the gullible that his group was somehow connected with the United Nations. Sasaki's recruits were extremely generous, according to Tamaki Sasaki giving Petrucci several million dollars. They even persuaded a senior member of the Japanese Imperial Family to join the Order, this Japanese Prince being invested by Petrucci in an elaborate ceremony in the United Nations Chapel administered by Petrucci, assisted by a Rev Eusebio Pace and a Mr Angelo Agazzi. Petrucci was apparently aided in his activities at the UN by a senior official of Burkina Faso [49] nationality, Mr Gilbert Ilboudo.

 

With Sasaki's help, Petrucci managed to fool the government of the Republic of Vanuatu into granting his Order diplomatic recognition and, in a letter dated December 2, 1986 [50] the Republic recognized Sasaki as "the accredited Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Knights of Malta to the Republic of Vanuatu with residence in Manila". [51] Sasaki's principle business being in Malaysia he used his close relationship with the then King of Malaysia to try and open diplomatic relations with Petrucci's Order and himself as Ambassador. Unfortunately investigations by the Malaysian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, much better informed than that of Vanuatu, disclosed that Petrucci's organization was not what it claimed and a mortified Sasaki discovered that the whole edifice was a fantasy. Anxious not to lose face, he hunted around for the "genuine" Order and, unfortunately, fell into the hands of yet another pseudo-Order, this time managed by the husband of an Austrian Archduchess (see 21 below).

 

One of the most extraordinary aspects of this affair is that the "Diplomatic Passport" issued by the "Knights of Malta / United Nations O.St J - USA/ Foreign Service "CD" for "International Diplomatic Service", "No 28101 /DPL", with the text "The Minister for Foreign Affairs issues this passport to" (also in French, German and Italian), Tamaki Sasaki, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary" was accepted by several countries who stamped it and let him pass. Dated Aug 19, 1986 (expiring Aug 20, 1991), it read inside "this passport is issued for the following countries" then "All countries whose Governments are recognized" - rather a bizarre statement bearing in mind the "Order" was only recognized by Vanuatu! [52] This passport was actually accepted by the Singapore authorities and bears two entry stamps dated 27 Feb 1987 and 20 Apr 1987 and a visa dated May 1987. Meanwhile, allegedly through the agency of Mr Ilboudo, Petrucci [53] and Agazzi both obtained UN documents stating "The bearer is an official of the United Nations", describing them (without their titles) as "Interregional Adviser". Petrucci's lawyer during the 1980's, whom he also involved in the attempts to raise funs for Parretti, was Mr Donald O. Clark, [54] on whom he conferred the title "Sir" and the office of "Secretary of State".

 

In 1999, this author learnt of further activities of Petrucci and his associates, this time apparently financed by Mr C. David Hallman, CDH & Affiliates, 160 Carnegie Place, Fayetteville, Georgia 30214. Although mr Hallman was advized of petrucci's history, he did not apparently choose to loosen his ties, having been "knighted" by the peripatetic "prince". 

 

(10B) Yet another group modeled on the Brancovan organization is "Knights of Malta / Sovereign Hospitallers Order of Saint John of Jerusalem / the International Grand Chancellery" headed by Dr W. Kosciesza-Kolakowski and based at Great Neck, Long Island. [55] Kolakowski is also connected with the Petrucci "Order" but seems to function independently. On June 3, 1993 this organization issued a press release stating that one of their members, a "Sir" David Montefiore (tenor and Jewish Cantor), described as "Envoy of the International Grand Chancellery on matters relating to Vatican-Israel and Judeo-Christian relations, has been invited by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Municipality of the City of Jerusalem to perform an ecumenical concert". It was claimed that this concert (which never took place) was sponsored by the "Sovereign Hospitallers Order of St John of Jerusalem, knights of Malta and the Association of Christians and Jews in Israel". Fortunately, Fr Thomas Stransky of the Tantur Ecumenical Institute where the concert was to have taken place, became suspicious and, after making inquiries, the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs canceled the concert. On February 23, 1981, Congressman John LeBoutillier of New York was persuaded to enter a text in praise of Kolakowski in the Congressional Record; the Congressman was evidently persuaded that Kolakowski was "Grand Chancellor" of the SMHOM, repeating a publicity text put out by Kolakowski himself.

 

(10C) Perhaps connected with the above is the "Sovereign Order of the Coptic Catholic Knights of Malta" which, briefly, enjoyed the support of Patriarch Sidarouss of Alexandria and was recognized by the communist government of the Seychelles, where it maintained an Embassy larger than the British High Commission. This organization was subsequently exposed in the British Press and the Seychelles mission closed.

 

(11) The "international grand priory", and "autonomous priory of Sicily-Aragon" of Saint John has a "Prince Grand Master" in the person of Don Roberto Paternò Castello dei Duchi di Carcaci, self-styled "H.R.H. Prince Roberto Paternò Ayerbe Aragona, Duke of Perpignan". Paternò transferred his attentions to Saint John following the failure of his pseudo-"Order of Saint Agatha of Paternò" se below). Sometime styled Prince of Emmanuel, he also lays claim to the thrones of Aragon and the Balearic Islands, without any support, as far as is known, from the citizens of Spain whom he claims for his potential subjects. This gentleman is actually a great-nephew of the late Lieutenant of the Grand Magistery of the Sovereign Military Order, Frà Ernesto Paternò Castello, who emphatically denounced his unfortunate relative, [56] but has long been associated with various self-styled "Orders". Since Paternò joined the Shickshinny group in 1973 (from which he resigned in 1977), his "Order" has now fragmented and divided into a branch based in Malta, an "Irish Association", now quasi-independent but about which little is known and (11B) a group once associated with Paternò named the "priory of Malta". This was part of Paternò's "autonomous priory of Sicily-Aragon", whose sponsor ("prior") was a certain Kelinu Vella Haber, "Marquis of Alaro, Alcatan and Erbesso", and who was associated with a self-styled "baron of Palmanova", actually Kenneth Bertram Benfield, and a certain Orlando Pietro Serra, otherwise "prince of Kentoiphai".

 

Paternò managed to establish a "Grand Priory of Canada" [57] which, on May 27, 1984, held a "solemn investiture" presided over by a Bishop I Borecky, described as "H.E. the Grand Prelate", and photographed wearing the robes of an Orthodox cleric. The officers listed in the program, the first four of whom were each styled "Count", were Thorbjorn Wiklund (see also under 1), the infamous Crolian Edelen de Burgh (now deceased), Eric de Leuwenhaupt and J. Frendo Cumbo, and three "chevaliers", F. Copeman, W. Coleman and C. Wilkinson. [58] Somehow the Canadian Prime Minister's office was persuaded to send a letter of greeting, as did the Premier of Ontario Province. Other more recent publications of the Paternò "Order" show that Mr Copeman has been promoted to "Count", Wiklund is now Wiklund de Valformet, Louis Scerri Montaldo is "Grand Prior of Malta", Gunnar Laatio is "Grand Prior of Scandinavia" and a new Grand Prior of the United Kingdom, a Dr James Walsh had been appointed. A list of "Ambassadors at large" included several who formerly held more lowly posts, while a new addition was a Prince Fahed Hatem Bey, of otherwise unknown origin. The address of the "European Grand Priory and local Grand Priory headquarters" was given as the "Auberge des Chevaliers" in Malta. [59] A year later a Mr Arthur O. Allen seems to have emerged and shared with Mr Cumbo the position of Grand Chancellor. [60]

 

There is a "Grand Priory of Russia" of this body of which the Chancellor is a Mr Eugene I. Deballov whose representative in the USA, a Mr Nikita E. Pokrovsky, was appointed on March 18, 1993. On May 11, 1993, Professor Pokrovsky wrote the New York headquarters of the Most Venerable Order of Saint John stating that he was International Visiting Professor from Moscow University at Wartburg College, Iowa and that in the past year he had been a consultant to the Sovereign Order of St John of Jerusalem (Grand Priory of Russia). He suggested discussing a humanitarian project of the Russian Grand Priory. Needless to say his suggestion met with a polite rebuttal. This group has an address in Moscow [61] but its connection with Paternò is exposed by the address of their European and Commonwealth Grand Priory Headquarters at Merchant's Street, Valletta.

 

(11A) The successor or a further schismatic group of the Paternò Grand Priory of Canada was until the late 1990s under the direction as "Grand Prior" of a self-styled "Prince" Korey (previously known as "Count") who managed to persuade (former) King Michael of Roumania to accept the post of "Protector". This, however, did not in any way alter the legal status of this body and King Michael is apparently unaware that his name is being used as a sign of this "Order's" legitimacy. Korey was more recently succeeded by Mr Joseph Fred (or Frendo) Cumbo, self-styled Marquis and Count of Torre Sarroca (an invented title), now of Torre Cumbo, Auberge de Chevaliers, 52 Kingwood Drive, Courtice, Ontario L1E 1Z3, Canada. He is a sometime resident of Malta and a former officer of the Paternò Order,who may have been involved with at least one other self-styled Saint John order (that run by "Prince" Enrico Vigo, self-styled claimant to the Byzantine throne). Cumbo's claims to recognition by the Canadian authorities, presented in the form of polite letters of acknowledgment of donations to various charities from several  government officials (including a former, then serving, Governor-General) in no way affected its legal status. Although incorporated under Canadian law, this body is not recognzied as an Order of Chivalry by the Canadian authorities, nor (as has been claimed on its behalf) has it been recognized by the Most Venerable Order of Saint John. In the recent report of the "False Orders Committee" of the Alliance of Orders of Saint John this body has been listed under "Unrecognized Orders" A.1, 1, as the continuation of the Shickshinny Orders. Cumbo has now elevated himself to the position of "Prince and Grand Master", while "Prince" Roberto Paternò (Ayerbe Aragona) Castello retains the title of "Grand Master Emeritus", a "Count" Emanuel Bonello della Torrella is sometimes listed as "Lieutenant Grand Master" or "Grand Prior of Australia" and a Colonel Derrick Langford as Grand Chancellor. Other officers include a Grand Prior of Malta, "Baron" Adrian Busietta.

 

Somehow associated with this (the conenction is made on the basis of a common addressin Malta), is the Sovereign Order Knights of Malta OSJ-USA of Krac, whose "Grand Master" is a Faiz Ismail (an unlikely name for the head of what claims to be the survivor of a great Crusader institution. The "grand bailiff" of this body is a mr oreste Palamara and its "chancery" is based at the "biblioteca dei cavalieri, Baliato di Morichella 62029, Italy. 

 

(11B) A second group has also emerged now under its "grand protector" "H.I.H. Prince Hugo-José Tomassini Paternò, Head of the Imperial House of Leopardi Tomassini Paternò of Constantinople" (a gentleman possibly of Venezuelan origin who claims to have been consecrated successor according to the Catholic Apostolic Orthodox Byzantine Rite!). According to a biography put out in 1992 in an "Historical File Summary" by the Secretariat [62] of the "Imperial House", "Prince" Hugo-José was an Italian war veteran (W.W.II), wounded in action and a member of Mussolini's storm troopers. Associated with this group was the late Forest Barber, [63] a member of both genuine and false Orders, a Mgr Enrico Galbiati (whose photograph with His Holiness appears in the "File", announcing his appointment as an Apostolic Protonotary, [64] and the late Major-General Marcial Samaniego, sometime Paraguayan Minister of Defense, Public Works and Communications who was apparently also a "Grand Cross of the Imperial Military Constantinian Order of St George the Martyr". [65] In the entry on this group in the Malta Year Book 1992, Tomassini is named as "High Protector" while a "Rt Rev Bishop" G. Fenocchio is named as Prince Grand Master and Grand Bailiff.  "Baron" Kenneth Benfield de Palmanova de Spire (see above, under 11), Lord of Kienton, is named as Lt-Grand Master (and mroe recently Prince Grand master) and "Marquis" don K. Vella Haber as Grand Prior International (Vella Haber and Benfield were both involved with the Paternò Order above). Among the bizarre offices listed was that of "Grand Samaritan", whatever that means, occupied by Mr Walter Downing, Baron Kephart de Skjoldung-Erlach, who may be one or two different individuals - the title is an invention. Among those also involved in this "Order" are William Schilling von Canstat Lutz, Count de Rheinfelden, who is an activist in the US, Tyrone Arpa (Grand Chancellor International), Bernard Jensen (grand Hospitaller International), Ernest Johann Stracke (Grand Marshal International), and the Rev Prof Anthony Gauci (Grand Prelate International). This is based at 66 Stuart Street, Gzira, Malta. [66] the late prince Esterhazy de Galantha was apparently "grand Prior in the East, although a long-standing member of the SMOM! A group connected with this is the "World Order of St John of Jerusalem Inc" with Charles C. Hermanowski as Grand Chancellor and Brig-Gen Jan libront as Chancellor (36 grant Road, Buffalo, NY 14226, USA).

 

(11C) It is not know how the "International Knights of Saint John" are connected with any of the above. On May 23rd, 1991 a report and photograph appeared in the Newsletter of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington of the placing of a wreath of roses at the Tomb of the Unknowns by two exotically uniformed officers, Lt-Gen John M. Windsor of Forestville and Gen Thomas Graziano, New York Supreme President.

 

(12) The "Priory of the Most Holy Trinity of Ville-Dieu" of the "Sovereign Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, Knights of Malta", or several variations of that name, emerged without claiming directly to be an heir of the Russian "legacy". This one of the older "self-styled" Orders, first mentioned by Roger Peyrefitte in his entertaining novel, Les Chevaliers de Malte It was also once associated with the so-called "Priory of Dacia" organized by Erik Reitzel-Nielsen. [67] Alessandro Licastro, self-styled Duke of La Châtre or "Prince Alexander Licastro Grimaldi Lascaris Comnenus Vintimiglia", was its founder and leading proponent until his death in 1978, along with Carlo Stivala, self-styled "Marquis de Flavigny", and a Belgian by name of Pierre Pasleau who has assumed Licastro's title of "Prince of La Châtre". [68] It is claimed that the hereditary (!!) Grand Priory of the Holy Trinity of Ville-Dieu was "erected in the 17th century in favour of the House of La Châtre", and that the first and last Duke of La Châtre (who died in 1824), left a son Maximilien who moved to Naples and italianised his name to Licastro.

Unfortunately for the proponents of this interesting theory, the history of the La Châtre family is very well-known and widely published; no member of the family ever received any hereditary position in the Order of Malta (indeed nobody ever could receive such a position as it is canonically impossible for professed members to enjoy hereditary honors in any legitimate religious-military Order) and the family did not even have a commandery jus patronatus. The title of hereditary Duke-Peer was conferred on Claude-Louis de la Châtre, a staunch supporter of the Bourbon restoration, on 24 November 1815, but his only son, Alphonse-Louis (1779-1802), had already predeceased him and he left no other children by his wife who had divorced him during the revolution; on his death, therefore, the title became extinct.

 

Not only can Licastro and Pasleau's genealogical fantasy be dismissed for lacking any contemporary documentary support or historical justification but likewise the supposed foundation of the hereditary "Priory" can be regarded as an invention three centuries later. Somehow Pasleau has postulated the bizarre claim that he is the heir to the titles of the self-styled "prince" Licastro, although he is not a blood relation and French ducal titles could only pass by male primogeniture after 1711. Not content with the assumption of a French dukedom, Pasleau also claims, through the grandmother of Licastro, a lady by the name of Rosa Maltese (again with no genealogical connection), to be the heir to the "Imperial and Royal" family of "Grimaldi-Lascaris-Ventimiglia", "Porphyrogenitus of the Roman Byzantine Empire"! On January 30th, 1992, Pasleau was convicted in Belgium for trading in false passports, false names and false titles and sentenced to 30 month's imprisonment and a 100,000 B.Frs fine. [69] This group (or a dissident branch thereof) was associated with "prince Alexis/Alejandro" from 1990-1994 (see above, 8A).

(12A) Once associated directly with this group is a body until very recently headed by Lorenzo Michael de Valitch, and his associates "Dom Lorenzo", "Archbishop Primate of the American Orthodox Catholic Church", and a Mr Kenneth Roger Rooney, [70] who professes to be "Minister for Affairs of Justice" and Chief Executive". The latter instituted a lawsuit in 1993 against the other two, alleging that as Mr Valitch had been declared legally incompetent in 1992, Mr Lorenzo had been trying to gain control over him and his "Order". A newspaper article [71] which unfortunately confused this body with the genuine SMHOM stated that these gentlemen had been able to persuade the gullible to join their "Order" by paying as much as $25,000 each. Among those cited as having joined was Mr Giancarlo Parretti, [72] sometime chief executive of MGM-Pathe Communications and the late J. Seward Johnson. From the description of the pathetic Mr Valitch protesting that "I am not cuckoo" and thumbing through an album of photographs of the Order's events, which included one of him standing beside Pope John Paul II at a public audience, it seemed that at the age of ninety-one (according to this article) he had finally come to believe his own fantasies. The Valitch organization was located at 1 West 67th Street (also home of the famous art deco restaurant, Café des Artistes). A "Knights of Malta Priory of the Holy Trinity of Ville Dieu" were listed in the New York telephone directory at 853 Seventh Avenue (212-757-1977), an address which was also apparently the headquarters of an organization called the "Sovereign Order of Cyprus". In a recent investiture of Knights of "Honour and Devotion", the Commander was named as being Joe Anton Walter.

 

(12B) Joe Anton Walter, as Joseph A. Walter [73] on December 5th, 1988, incorporated a body he called "The Federation of Autonomous Priories of The Order of Saint John of Jerusalem - Knights of Malta". The other incorporators were named as Glen F. Stinson and Bert H. Jacob. [74] In the articles of incorporation it is stated that this body includes "Hereditary Knights by lineage ... and forms one sovereign, military and hospitaller Order. Each branch ... remains independent from one another as each traces its origins to the one and same ancient order..... The Spirituality of the Order is Benedictine (?)". The document also names several directors, including in addition to the incorporators a Mr Frank C. Lee. [75] It has filed annual registration reports with the Missouri Secretary of State since 1989 and holds investitures in Kansas, Missouri. The officers of the Order have improperly adopted the style "Sir" and on their stationary use the Cross of Malta, surmounted by a Crown. Lorenzo Michel de Valitch, described as Archbishop of Ephesus, was listed as "Proctor-General" in the 1992 and 1993 publicity material but, in the course of 1993 (possibly in connection with the events described in 12A above), his role was reduced to that of "Patron" while Mr Walter assumed the title of "Proctor-General". Walter was apparently sworn in as such by Stinson on August 24, 1993 in Independence, Missouri (according to a letter dated August 27 of the same year signed by Stinson). Nonetheless, the Kansas City group evidently consider that Valitch confers something they need upon their organization because in one of their booklets they reproduced a photo of Valitch in clerical robes at a public audience with his Holiness, in which the Pope appears to be rejecting something Valitch is offering. In another pamphlet they state, rather comically, that Valitch "is of Royal Heritage. He renounced his rights of accession in the order to become a member of the Orthodox Catholic clergy". What possible royal rights this fantasist could ever properly assume one can only speculate upon!

 

The 1993 investiture was held at the Airport Hilton Hotel in Kansas City, Missouri, on July 17, 1993 but by 1994 this group had spread its tentacles to several other states, particularly Virginia and Texas. No longer content with its earlier name it has also merged with or adopted the "Priorate of the Holy Trinity of Ville-Dieu". It seems that the Rt Rev William de J. Rutherfoord, Bishop of the Diocese of the Mid-Atlantic States, Anglican Catholic Church, formerly an Episcopalian priest in the Diocese of Southwestern Virginia but now Rector of St Thomas of Canterbury in Roanoke, Virginia, has been persuaded to participate over the investiture ceremonies. [76] Another associate of Walter, now styled "Supreme Commander and Proctor-General", and Stinson is Mr Theodore J. Mortensen, President and CEO of the National Vietnam War Memorial Coalition Foundation, who describes himself as a "Knight of Malta" and a deacon in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Dallas, Rev Mr Denis G. Simon was also recruited and his appointment announced in the diocesan newspaper. This report named several members of the SMHOM who were also Knights of Malta, presumably because the author assumed Rev Simon had joined the genuine Order.

 

Their 1995 investiture was held at the Anglican Catholic Church of St Thomas of Canterbury, Roanoke, Virginia, on November 11 - the same day the Most Venerable Order was holding its investiture at the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine in New York city. The Patron was still described as "Titular Archbishop of Ephesus Lorenzo Michel de Valitch" and "Supreme Commander and Proctor General Sir (sic) Joe Anton Walter. The Order has now become "The Sovereign Military Order of Saint John of Jerusalem Knights of Malta / Priorate of the Holy Trinity of Ville Dieu" and their "banquet" was held in the no doubt delightful surroundings of the Sheraton Inn Airport in Roanoke - at a cost of $20 each for dinner with a cash bar one may wonder about the quality of entertainment! Responses were to be sent to PO Box 1141, Platte City, Missouri 64079. In the pathetic ceremony, designed to impress the candidates with the solemnity of the occasion, they apparently had to read the "ten commandments of chivalry" whatever they might be, and kiss the ring of someone called "the consecrator". They were also presented with a sword, scroll and a Papal blessing. The document enrolling members, headed "The Federation of Autonomous Priories..... etc, to those who as a group and as individuals are concerned with this business (an appropriate term), Our Friendship and Good Wishes! We have always taken note that there are citizens, whose loyalty of spirit has been offered to Us, untainted and steadfast, and who are worthy of great bounty and gratitude from US and who like Our Ancestors should be decorated with honours, so that others will also strive the more to earn rewards from Us. So by name, the loyal ...... (Space for name) .... has been chosen by Us as we think it right to grant to him the highest honour of Our Order. Remembering how devoted he has been in his enthusiasm for Us (he has, after all gone all the way to Roanoke for this ridiculous charade) and Our Order and how, to Our certain knowledge, he has persevered in unbroken loyalty and respect for Our Order, we agree with the wise and well considered opinion of the Councillors (sic), and we nominate and create the aforesaid ... a Knight .... of Our Order. For which reason we order these Our letters to be read by all and sundry of Our members (both lapsed and faithful) whatever their Position, Situation or Seniority, and these letters were signed by our hand and secured with the validation of Our Seal and were issued ..... etc." Reminiscent of the kind of proclamations heard in Hollywood "B" movies such as Robin Hood, the paucity of imagination on the part of the authors of this document can only be pitied.

 

Stinson now seems to have broken away from the Walters group (such schisms are endemic in these organizations), and on February 7^th, 1998, presided over an "investiture" held at St Luke's Episcopal Church in Dallas, apparently attended by 115 persons, most of whom one may assume are ignorant of the real nature of this body and its spurious claims to a 900 year old history. Among those named as participating in this ceremony were Messers William Dunn, Luke Stinson, Edwin Hodges, Kent Farquahar, Warren Quinlan, John Sheppard, who gathered to assist "Lady" Dina Mavis Moor as she was invested with this dubious honor. Ms Moor was one of three Stinson relations admitted (the other being "Lady" Dorothy M. Joyce, admitted with her son Jon), and runs a marketing and communications company in Dallas and has various involvements in worthy Dallas causes.

 

Other groups associated with this "Order" are an "Accademia internazionale per gli studi economici e socio-culturali" of Via Nazionale 163, 00184 Roma, and 146/2 St Lucia Street, Valletta, Malta. A Euro Institute for higher education, and a Euro-University of Nuie, of Wellington, New Zealand. These are run by a "Count" Lucio Musizza, who (according to the report of the False Orders Committee of the Alliance Orders has an Italian criminal record). 

 

(12C) Also broken away from the Ville Dieu group is the "Real Archicofradia de los Santos Juan Bautista y Evangelista de los Caballeros de Malta ad Honorem de Catanzaro". The President, a Mr José Coma, was once a recruiter for the Ville Dieu group; the Prior is Dr Domenico Mittiga.

 

(13) Parallel to the above and somehow connected with (1) and (4) was a now extinct "Sovereign Order of Saint John of Jerusalem" whose "Grand Master" from 1972 was the late Robert Formhals (died 1992), alias "prince Sanguszko". [77] The "Grand Commander" of this group was at one time a Mr George Lennox Wilson and both he and Formhals were former officers of the "King Peter" groups. This body, like several others cited earlier, claimed to be the only legitimate continuation of King Peter's "Order". It had its origins in a Masonic organization which, losing its working-class protestant-Masonic base was transformed into a self-styled "knightly confraternity". [78] Based in the 1950's in Pittsburgh it called itself the "Sovereign Order of Saint John and Malta or Order of Saint John of Jerusalem", but confusion resulted when several officers of this group also held appointments in the Shickshinny "Order" (see 1 above). This culminated in the 1962 schism between Granier, Pichel and Edelen and a rise in the fortunes of the Granier/King Peter group (see 3-4 above). Meanwhile, in 1965, the California branch of the original Masonic organization, under Robert Formhals and the late "Sir" Forest E. Barber (married to a Princess of Auersperg, a member of the Castro Constantinian Order and also, at one time, of a so-called Byzantine Constantinian Order as well as Saint Lazarus), joined with King Peter. Following the King's death in 1970 there was a new schism and on 9/10 September 1972 Formhals was himself elected "Prince Grand Master" of this new rump, which naturally claimed to be the only legitimate successor of the King Peter group. Formhals expanded his activities throughout North America, particularly in Canada and Texas and, in 1973, the late Prince Andrew of Yugoslavia was chosen as "Protector", before leaving in 1976 to join the Tonna-Barthet group (see above, 9). Another sometime associate of Formhals was a certain John Wilkinson, alias "Prince of Bad(t)en(m)berg", from Houston, Texas, who, in 1979, joined the Tonna-Barthet group. [79]

 

A "Prince Grand Master de Flachslanden" is associated with the continuation of this group. A report in the Fall 1993 issue of the Newsletter of the Sons of the American Revolution shows the President General, Robert B. Vance, with Flachslanden, receiving the decoration of a knight (a red cross, rather than a white one).

 

(13a) A newsletter of the "Hospitaller Order of Saint John, United States Grand Priory" dated April 1998 and signed by  a dentist, "H.E. Bailiff William E. Harris," "Grand bailiff of America", stated that "Richard Flachs de Flachslanden is no longer Grand Master of the Order," the tone of this comment suggesting another split. his replacement was apparently a Dr Joe Rudé, the Grand Chancellor of this "Order" as Lieutenant Grand master. The newsletter also announced that the "financial accountability of the Order has been found wanmting. Bailiff Maich, who resigned as the Order Treasurer, has not provided either an audited 1995, 1996 nor a 1997 Order financial statement, despite having been directed to do so by the Sovereign Council several times. The Sovereign Council appointed Bailiff Jack Shankle, K.H., the past Commander of the Carolinas and the Treasurer of the Grand Priory of the United States, to be the new Treasurer of the Order and will now manage the financial affairs of our Order". One may hope that e will do a better job than Mr Maich!

 

This breakaway group has an active branch in Finland, under Jukka Suotmaa, KH, KCLJ (a lazarite), Prior, of Rauhankatu 1 B A 15-16, 20100 Turku, Finland. A certain Mervyn J. Richards is now Grand Chancellor of this Ordfer, while a mr David hanson is "Blanche crouix Juge d'Armes". 

 

Footnotes

 

[1] The lawyer who prepared the documents of incorporation of this company was Russell Frederick Laux, Esq, of 71 West 23rd Street, NY, NY 10010 (no longer listed).

[2] According to Chairoff, Op.cit., p.167 Badische-Brancovan was born Isaac Wolff in the ghetto of Oradeao Mare, a town close to the Romanian-Hungarian border. The identification of Badische-Brancovan as Wolff is also made by Chaffanjon and Galimard Flavigny, Op.cit.. The Princes Bassaraba of Brancovan, a title inherited by the Bibesco family with Austrian Imperial authority, are a distinguished Romanian noble family whose actual head, Prince Matei Bassaraba de Brancovan, has denied that the soi-disant "prince Robert" has any connection with his family. See Toumanoff, Op.cit., 1979, appendix. The princes Khimchiachvili were a Georgian family, apparently now extinct in the male line, while the (now extinct) Princes Dadian of Mingrelia were a sovereign branch of the former royal house of Georgia - this last title was conferred on "prince Robert" by "prince Alexis/Alejandro d'Anjou" (see below). Other titles used by "prince Robert" in his publications at various times include "prince Montezuma", "duke of Mogolov", "Marquis de Hermosilla" (co-incidentally perhaps, the street in which "prince Alexis/Alejandro" lives), "Condé de Cabo St. Eugenio", "Prince of Thrace" and even "Archbishop Metropolitan of the Holy Church of Saint John of Jerusalem - Ecumenical".

[3] There were no listings in the 1994-1995 Manhattan phone book for Bassaraba, Brancovan or Khimchiachvili.

[4] In a 1980 publication of "prince Robert" this gentleman is described under "Synod of Bishops of the Holy Church of Saint John of Jerusalem-Ecumenical" as "Vicar-General of the Arch-Diocese of New York".

[5] See later under 15.

[6] Who appeared as a defense witness in the Markovics case.

[7] The title of "Sir" can be properly used only by subjects of the British Crown who have been honored with membership in the Orders of the Garter or the Thistle, or the rank of Grand Cross or Knight Commander in the Orders of the Bath, Saint Michael and Saint George, the British Empire, or the Royal Victorian Order, or have received the honor of being appointed a Knight Bachelor appointed by the British Sovereign, or by Baronets. The use of "Sir" by members of European State Orders, Papal Orders, the Holy Sepulcher, the SMHOM, etc, is improper unless authorized by British royal license. Among the people listed in "prince Robert's" brochure as members or to be invested on this occasion were Major-General Alden Sibley, General Gerhardt Hyatt, Chief of Chaplains, U.S. Army, a (Sir) Isaac Bensimon (apparently knighted by the British Crown but being an Israeli not entitled to the style "Sir"), General Julius Becton, Shirley Temple Black, Sammy Davis Jr, Hermione Gingold, John Diebold, Robert S. Slocum MD, Dr William Toff (then City of New York Commissioner of Health), Hugh Auchincloss, Roy Chalk, Rev. Thomas Blessin, SJ, Rev. Joseph Cogo, SJ, Msgr John J. O'Brien, Msgr Joseph Capoano (a chaplain of the SMHOM in gremio religionis and a knight of the Holy Sepulcher, who died in 1976) the Hon. H. Lloyd Weston, and Jalib Hussein El Shahib (then Iraqi Foreign Minister).

[8] "Prince Robert's" elaborate ceremonial may have recalled the introduction of "ambassadors" before Groucho's (President Rufus T. Firefly) arrival. See Duck Soup, the Marx Brothers, Paramount Pictures (MCA), 1933.

[9] The most detailed analysis of the "prince Robert" or "Badische-Brancovan" group was made by Patrice Chairoff Op. cit. supra, pp.166-184. To penetrate this organization (and other similar bodies) Chairoff assumed the invented title of "Duke of Luthern" and "Count of Knossos"; "prince Robert" issued him a letter on the stationery of his "Order", stating that "His Excellency Dr. Sir Patrice Chairoff holds the rank of Knight Grand Cross of Justice, and the post of Ambassador at large" signed by "H.R.& I.H. Prince Robert B. von B.-Khimchiachvili, Prince of Thrace, 74th Sovereign Grand Master", noting that Chairoff had the "Diplomatic Passport of the Order No. 00 145 Dated May 17th 1979". This followed a letter bearing the logo Ordre Souverain de Malte and the arms of the SMHOM, appointing our "beloved Brother in Christ, the Count Doctor Patrice Ivan Chairoff, Duke von Luthern, Knight Grand Cross of the Sovereign Military and Hospitaler (sic) Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, Knights of Malta (Oecumenical), Ambassador at large of our Order, to represent the interests of the Order in France, Belgium, Switzerland and Italy...." dated 14 May 1979. A diploma of the following day, in printed gothic script, appointed Chairoff a "knight commander of Justice", when he was apparently already a knight grand cross!

[10] The Galleria, 117 East 57th Street, Suites 42 C & D, New York, New York 10022; tel: 212-486-3359; fax 212-486-4013.

[11] 240 Central Park South, New York, NY 10019.

[12] Via Mazzini 6, 95030 Gravina di Ct (Ct), Sicilia, Italy.

[13] An identity document ("carta nazionali d'identita") issued by the authority of the "libbiru guvernu sicilianu" (with the word "Reale" typed in afterwards) of the "Statu di Sicilia" on 29 September 1987 and printed in Sicilian dialect, names "S.A.R. Principe'd'Angio Borbone/Don Alessandro" and under "Prufissioni" describes him as "Re di Sicilia"!

[14] Emmanuel de Schietre de Lophem, Le Parchemin, Mai-Juin 1983, no. 225, Bibliographie, pp. 273-277.

[15] This case was brought by the Royal Procurator, jointly with Princess Marie Dolgorouky, Prince Alexandre-Petrovich Dolgorouky and the Association of Descendants of the Russian Nobility of Belgium. The defendant was identified as "Brimeyer, Alex, Cetlawa, Maurice, Jean", without profession, born 4 May 1946 in Bukavu, Democratic Republic of the Congo, "a foreigner". The court entirely rejected his claim that any marriage had actually occurred between his alleged grandfather, prince Dolgorouky and his alleged grand-mother, the Grand Duchess Maria-Nicolaievna, who was purported to have survived the massacre at Ekaterinburg, and that he was the descendant of either the princely family of Dolgorouky or the Imperial House of Romanov.

[16] There is no published evidence adduced to demonstrate that there was ever a popular movement to establish a Ukrainian Monarchy in the 1930's, although it is well-known that the policy of Nazi Germany was to establish a client state out of the Soviet and Polish Ukraine. The Ukrainian nationalist movement, keen to ally itself with any power which would support its intention to secede from the Soviet Empire, proved a willing associate of the Nazis but there are no contemporary reports to suggest that this movement ever hoped to establish a Monarchy. The Grand Duke Wladimir is quoted in contemporary newspaper reports (December 1938) as denying that either he or his dynasty supported any movement to detach the Ukraine from the Soviet Empire. There were more than forty million Ukrainians in the 1930's and it seems improbable, to say the least, that a popular Monarchist movement could have escaped their attention as well as that of the rest of the world.

[17] This intriguing addition to his name apparently derives from the "adoption" by "A. Bruce-Alfonso de Borbon-Condé, XI Principe de Condé", a former "general of division" of the "royal Yemeni army" on 3 February 1984, following his "dynastic testament" of 8 November 1981. It appears that "prince Bruce", born a U.S. citizen as Bruce Chalmers on December 5th, 1913, claims that he is descended from the princes of Condé and that his ancestor went to California before 1830. Mr Chalmers was the son of Thomas Hugh Buckingham Chalmers (born 1883 at Stockton, California, died 1917) and Margaret Bruce (born 1887 at Santa Cruz, California and died in 1913 five days after Bruce's death). Margaret claimed descent from Louis I of France and Thomas claimed to be a descendant of the Stuarts. On June 29th, 1939, Bruce Chalmers obtained a judgment of the Superior Court for Alameda County, California, changing his last name to Bourbon-Condé. He served in the US Army Air Corps in W.W.II under the name Bourbon-Condé and in the Korean War on General Ridgeway's staff and received the French Croix de Guerre. He attended the American University at Beirut and, after becoming involved with the Imman of the Yemen, surrendered his American citizenship. This is not the place to examine this pretension in detail beyond stating that the last prince of Condé died in 1830, without surviving issue or heirs of the Condé line, leaving an immense fortune to a younger son of King Louis-Philippe which "prince Bruce's" alleged ancestor declined to claim; indeed it was not until the arrival of "prince Bruce" that the story of his alleged ancestors and their claim to the Condé name and title became known. I am grateful to Col John Fell for much of this information.

[18] In a letter dated 8 August 1978, Mme Barbara Kotchoubey, born Princess Barbara Alexandrovna Dolgorouky (1885-1980), who lived in Rome where the "prince Alexis-Alejandro's" alleged father also resided, wrote that there was "no family connection between my family and the Durassow family and in particular with Wassili Durassow Prince of Anjou of Durazzo".

[19] Along with the Spanish record of this birth, dated 15 February 1988.

[20] The mysterious "Prince" Basil or Wassili, whose genealogical claims may be found in intermittent issues of the Almanach de Gotha between 1915 and 1936, was a fantasist whose real name was Durassow. He claimed to be descended from a mythical Prince of the House of Anjou who had settled in Russia, without producing any verifiable contemporary documents to support this claim. Somehow one of the Spanish Kings of Arms (whose authority did not in any case encompass the right to recognize foreign genealogical pretensions), was persuaded to validate this claim when confirming his arms (in 1911), following which Alfonso XIII appears to have "recognized" the claim, and this certificate was recorded in Russia (although never included in the list of formal recognitions of noble titles accorded by the Czars nor the Spanish Kings). On the strength of this, "Prince" Basil managed to persuade the editors of the Gotha to publish his titles, but they must have had some reservations since they included him in the third section for Ducal or Princely houses, and not in the first or second sections which exclusively included reigning, formerly reigning or mediatized houses and their cadet branches (where one might presume a genuine cadet branch of the House of France to be included). "Prince" Basil's name can be found associated with many dubious Orders that flourished between the two world wars, but his reputed personal tastes did not incline him towards marriage and there is no mention in his will of either a marriage or a son. One of the more interesting documents produced by "prince Alexis/Alejandro" is the "abdication" of "prince" Basil, dated 4 May 1966, in which "prince Alexis/Alejandro" was described as "S.A.R. Alessio d'Angio (d'Anjou) Durazzo, Conte di Gravina" with no mention of the "Bourbon-Condé" name that appears in the 1988 extract from the Congo registry of births despite his putative father having purportedly given him this name at birth! It is worth noting that this document is unwitnessed and that several persons acquainted with "prince" Basil have averred that he never married and never had any issue. Furthermore, none of the claims concerning our "prince's" "d'Anjou Durazzo" ancestry were published until after "prince" Basil's death in 1971.

[21] His 1990 publication also includes a statement dated 27 November 1980 by "Victor Ivan I, Metropolitan of Byelostok, Patriarch of Dantzig and of All Bielorussia" of the "Holy Catholic Primitive Apostolic Church of Antioch of the Orthodox tradition and Oriental Rite", "recognizing the marriage celebrated on" 5 April 1947 between "Olga Beata Nicolaevna, Hereditary Princess of all the Ukraine and of all Ruthenia, Grand Duchess of Tchernihiv, Countess of Fonzo" .... "daughter and heiress of His Majesty the Tsar of all the Ukraine and of all Ruthenia, His Majesty Nicholas the First Alexandrovich and Her Majesty the Tsarina .... Maria Nicolaevna, born Grand Duchess of Russia" and "Vassili Alexeievitch, Prince of Anjou-Durassow, Duke of Durazzo, ..." etc "Hereditary Prince of the Order of Saint John"!! Since Danzig (now Gdansk, in Poland) is a Catholic city on the Baltic coast and is a long way from Bielorussia with few, if any, Orthodox residents, the exact nature of this Patriarchate is difficult to establish. It is certainly neither in communion with the Church in Rome nor the Russian Orthodox Church. For the possible real identity of this "patriarch", see below (10).

[22]See in particular Raoul de Warren and A. de Lestrange, Les Prétendants au trone de France, editions Memorables, l'Herne, 1990, under Troisième Part, Les Prétendants dont l'appartenance à la maison capetienne est contestée, pp. 121-132.

[23] At 103 Kapiolani Street, Hilo, Hawaii.

[24] In a letter dated August 8th, 1994, addressed to the Asociacion Monarquica Europea.

[25] Mr Walsh has circulated a letter from a Mr Robert Witolniek-Tchartortisky, President of "The Russian Monarchist league" (co-signed by the Secretary, Ms Ludmilla Feodorovna Kotchubey), dated July 15, 1994, stating that "we, the Russian Monarchists, do hereby recognize and proclaim His Imperial and Royal Highness Alexey Vasilievitch Romanov-Dologoruky, Prince of Anjou, Prince of Bourbon-Condé, King of the Ukraine, etc, as the only legitimate and lawful heir to the All Russian Throne and Head of the Imperial House of Russia. We hereby fully recognize the rights of His Imperial and Royal Highness as the great-grandson of His late Majesty the Emperor Nicholas II, and we recognize his right to succeed to the Throne as Heir Apparent. We accept and recognize ...(Brimeyer) .... as the future Monarch and Sovereign of the whole All Russian Empire, in the interest of our future, both politically and morally, and for the future of our State and in the defense of the Christian world and of our ideas."

[26] My thanks to Don Foreman of the Monarchist League for provising me with a copy of Walsh's letter.

[27] Resident at Calle Franchy y Roca 5, 85007 Las Palmas.

[28] Among the officers listed in the statutes of this body are: Gustave Keteler, of rue Neuve Saint-Germain 5 bis, 92100 Boulogne, France; "princesse" Beatrice de Bourbon-Condé, avenue Emile Zola 20, 1030 Bruxelles (mother of our "prince" and now married to "prince Bruce"); and Marcel Remacle, the Bourgmestre of Vielsalm and member of the European parliament.

[29] The following addresses are given, PO Gracia 89 70, 08008 Barcelona, Spain; Via Nizza and Via Veglia, Rome; 11 Aqueduct Court, Potomac, Maryland 20854. The Grand Priory of America was based at PO Box 22946, Houston, TX 77227.

[30] Drangel's address was then 46 Parc du Woulwe Betel, 1160 Brussells; Crampton-Barden's was 5 Kinterbury Court, 27 Westwood Avenue, Southampton SO2 1DL.

[31] I am most grateful to Col John C. Fell and Colonel John Roscoe for their help in unraveling some of this story.

[32] A list of "titles and honors of the royal house of Anjou-Bourbon-Condé-Sicilia" granted after 3 January 1971, includes the title of "Condé de Sulkowski-Bielitz" as having been granted to a certain "Don Martin Maier" (an officer of this "Order"). Other names on this list (of twenty-three nominees) include (apart from "prince Alexis/Alejandro's" mother , half-sisters and cousins): Don Juan-Luis de Velsaco y Govillart as Duke of Isambert; Don Gerardo Quintana y Aparicio as Duke of San Miguel-Caserta; Don Fernando Lamas-Pereyra de Castro y Aldobrandini-Borghese as Prince of Rocca Padula; and fourteen other titles of count, one marquess (coupled with that of count), two of viscount, and two of baron (coupled with that of count). The "commander of Saint Francis" of Brimeyer's group was a Colonel D.A. (Doug) Riach, Aus-Ret, of 2609 Trousdale Drive, Burlinghame, CA, 94010, tel: 415-697-8941.

[33] For a fuller report of this story, see the False Orders Newsletter (nos 7,8 and 9).

[34] Now of Church St, Red Springs, NC (910-843-4325) and S. Fayetteville, Liberty, NC (910-622-3239).

[35] William C. MCNeill (RR3, Maxton, NC, 910-844-3463), styled "The Right Honourable Lord McNeill of Valletta, Grand Marshall (sic) of the Court of Saint John of Jerusalem, etc, Ernest C. Graham, styled "The Right Honourable Lord Graham of Valletta, Chaplain of the Court......", and ie H. Brock, styled Sir Harvie, Right Honourable Lord Chamberlain of the Court ....".

[36] Cherry Hill, Portnall Drive, Wentworth, Virginia Water, Surrey, England.

[37] Prince Andrew became "74th grand master" of the renamed "grand priory of Russia of the O.S.J." but his thought to have broken his association with the group.

[38] See Formhals, Op.cit., p.205.

[39] Among these is a certain Colonel Harding Isaacson who today is also "prior of St George" of the "sovereign military order of the Temple of Jerusalem", as a modest donor, Count Bobrinskoy who regularly gave between $25 and $75 each quarter and, most generous of all, Mr Adnan Khasoggi who, in 1976, gave $5,150. Associated as officers of this group were Joseph A. Storace ("grand bailiff"), Godwin Drago "grand marshal", John Wilkinson "prince of Badenberg" ("grand prior of America"), and Richard D. Murray, MD, of Ohio as Registrar and Acting-Treasurer, Tonna-Barthet himself being variously "grand chancellor" and "grand commander".

[40] Mr Lamoureaux-Gadoury was the recipient of a 1985 letter from the Principal Aide-de-Camp to Crown Prince Alexander of Yugoslavia denouncing his group and requesting he drop the claimed association with the Royal House of Yugoslavia.

[41] P.O. Box 675, Route 25A, Syosset, NY 11791, Tel: 516-822-0550. The letter continued" "We have accredited His Excellency, Bailiff Giles Lamoureux-Gadoury, G.C.S.J., Ph.D., Registrar General and Grand Prior of Canada, as our representative in Canada on matters relating to the Grand Priory of Canada of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem. We ask you to welcome our representative and to grant him the necessary consideration". Theodosius then petitioned that "Queen Elizabeth II, in her capacity as Protector (sic) of the Most Venerable Order of St. John of Jerusalem in the British Realm ... restore between Her Order and our Orthodox Order, the Christian and fraternal bonds that existed in the past between them, in the true spirit of oecumenism". The address of the grand Priory is given at P.O. Box 1077, Station "B", Ottawa, K1P 5R1, Canada; tel: (613) 744-2576. This Orthodox Church in America is the former Russian "Metropolia" and was given autocephaly by the Patriarchate of Moscow in the late 70s. It is a member of the SCOBA (standing conference of canonical bishops in America) which includes all legitimate canonical orthodox jurisdictions. One may assume that the Patriarch has been taken in by the claims of this group.

[42] In a letter to this gentleman dated 12 June 1990, Professor Tihomir Markovic, Aide-de-Camp to H.R.H. Crown Prince Alexander, wrote denouncing the use of the statement "under the Royal Charter of H.M. King Peter II of Yugoslavia", and stated: "L'usage abusif et illegal de la reference à la Maison Royale de Yougosvalie est totalement inadmissible et nous vous demandons de cesser immediatement. Tout cela porte enormement prejudice à la Maison Royale de Yougoslavie qui a decidé depuis plus de vingt deux ans de lutter activement contre ces associations qui m'ont rien à voir, de près où de loin, avec la Maison Royale de Yougoslavie".

[43] Schobert's successor, a certain Willi Geuer, in whose house Schobert died and who assumed the title of "Delegate" at Schobert's death, received a large number of knights in return for substantial payments, and was later imprisoned for life after being convicted for the murder of one of his clients who had apparently discovered that he had been cheated. See Galimard and Flavigny, Op.cit.

[44] Also self-styled President of the Republic of Danzig, President of the Democratic Republic of Beylorussia and Grand Khan of Tartary and Mongolia under the name of Victor Timur (Tamerlaine) II. It appears that he may also be identified as the Patriarch of Danzig who "recognized" the marriage of the alleged parents of "prince Alexis/Alejandro", see above (8A).

[45] Chairoff Op.cit., pp.21, 25, 160, 217, 228-240, details the activities of Busa at some length. Chairoff was particularly interested in his claim to be "President du Parlement Mondial pour la Securité et la Paix" (President of the World Parliament for Security and Peace), and pointed out (pp.228-229) that Busa had obtained the title of Admiral from Governor George Wallace of Alabama and Colonel Aide-de-Camp from then Governor of Georgia (later President) Jimmy Carter. Chairoff obtained from Busa an appointment as "Conseiller Politique du Parlement Mondial pour la Securite et la Paix", in Busa's claimed capacity as President.

[46] Between 1972 and 1982 alone there were some sixteen judgments against Petrucci in the Italian courts for issuing false checks or letters of credit.

[47] Vatican Secretariat of State reference 10.662/C.

[48] Resident at No 52 Jalan Damai, Ampang 55000, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; tel: 03-242-6411; fax 03-242-4058.

[49] The exact translation of the name of this tiny West African State is "Land of Upright Men". According to an excellent exposé in the Italian magazine Europeo by Claudio Gatti, Mr Iboudo was paid $14,000 for his services. His card reads "United Nations / Gilbert Ilboudo, Department of Recruitment and Administration Service, Department of Technical Co-operation for Development, 1 UN Plaza, Room DC 1-1454, New York, NY 10017, 212-949-6899.

[50] Ref: FAET/9/3/0/JT/1h, signed by Nikenike Vurobaravu, Secretary for Foreign Affairs and External Trade.

[51] A photograph and report (page 11) in the Vanuatu Weekly, January 24, 1987, described the reception by the then President of the Republic, Ati George Sokomanu, on November 27, 1986, when Mr Sasaki presented his credentials as Ambassador. On page 6 of the same journal, edition of February 7th, 1987, Sasaki and his wife were illustrated presenting four boxes of bandages to the Vanuatu Red Cross.

[52] Sasaki is described as having been born February 20, 1924, of Japanese nationality, married, height -1.69, hair - black.

[53] Giving his birth date as May 3, 1944 and Mr Agazzi's as May 4, 1936. These passes were dated May 3, 1990 and May 10, 1990.

[54] With offices at 3010 Ellicott Street, NW, Washington, DC 20008.

[55] No telephone listings for W. Kolakowski were given the address given, Great Neck, New York 11022-0394.

[56] When an inquiry was made in 1958 of don Roberto's great-uncle, Frà Ernesto Paternò Castello, then Lieutenant of the Grand Magistery of the SMHOM, the response stated that "the would-be Prince Don Francesco Maria II (Roberto's father) Paternò Castello ..... cannot absolutely grant any kind of decorations ...... (he) is not a prince, neither has he any title of nobility....... (he has) appointed himself automatically as chief of nonexistent Orders, living on expedients and tricks.... he has undergone a series of penalties through over fourty (sic) prosecutions and is presently in detainment in Palermo". R. Gayre, The Knightly Twilight, Malta, 1973, pp.30-31, letter from the Grand Magistery of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta of Seotember 25, 1958, addressed to Lt-Col Gayre.

[57] Whose headquarters were once at "Torre Cumbo", 641 Bermuda Avenue, Oshawa, Ontario, Canada LIJ 6J4 when this body was directed by its owner, Mr J. Frendo Cumbo.

[58] Others also named were Alain Lagoutte (prior of France), Tord Brandt (Solicitor-General), "Count" G. Korey (Ambassador at large), R. Dickens (Prior of the United Kingdom), S. Haidasz, L. Azzopardi, M. Sillato, N. Leluk, W. K. Robinson, C. Mizzi, J. Muscat, K.V. Moore, Dr D. Gyallay, "Archbishop" R. Laufers, Rev. F. Morrell, J. Mamo, J. Fenech, G. Gusman, K. Foston, J. Zammit, and five chaplains, Revs A. Grima, J. Fenech, F. Morrell, D. MacNab and "Archbishop" Laufers.

[59] 108 Merchant's Street, Valletta, Malta, tel: 222957. The Grand Prior's address was given as 428 Main Street, St Paul's Bay, tel: 475037.

[60] Mr Allen's address is Northcourt, Park House Lane, Reading, Berks RG3 2AH.

[61] 7 Sterej Beemarnaj Str, 2-nd Buld, art 11, Moscow.

[62] P.O. Box 771, Lilburn, Georgia 30226.

[63] Mr Barber is described in the obituary published in this "File" as "Prince Forest Ernest Proskowski-Barber".

[64] According to the Annuario Pontificio this appointment was made on July 12th, 1991. Mgr Galbiati serves in the Archdiocese of Milan.

[65] A body unconnected with the genuine Constantinian Order, see Part III, Chapter II.

[66] Others involved include James Merryfield, Fernando J. Cabrere de la Rosa, Kund von Boye-Morch, Karl Hechter-Schulz, Count de Cumath, Roger Vandekerhove, Serge Jurasunas, Michael Alexander Summers (prior of Canada), Giuseppe Sabato.

[67] This information can be found in the Newsletter (no. 9) of the False Orders Committee (of the SMHOM), May 1992

[68] For a history of this group see Aspects Méconnus de l'Ordre de Malte, by Pierre Pasleau "de Charnay", Liege 1986. This work includes a bitter attack on the SMHOM which the author claims was created by the Pope in 1802/3.

[69] Other accomplices sentenced with him were Emile van Huynegem, who received two years imprisonment and 80,000 B.Frs fine, and several French citizens named as M. Verdoya, two years imprisonment and 50,000 B.Frs fine, M. Taboutin, twenty months imprisonment and 30,000 B.Frs fine, M. Ricquier, one year in prison and 5000 B.Frs fine, to brothers named Genet, eighteen months in prison and 30,000 B.Frs fine and M. Chiraqui, one year in prison and 10,000 B.Frs fine. This information in the False Orders Newsletter no.9 (Op.cit.).

[70] His attorney in the case was a Mr Gerard Zwirm.

[71] New York Observer, October 1993, "Dungeons and Dragons for Grown-Ups: Knights of Malta Joust with Impostor".

[72] Although he had actually joined the Petrucci group.

[73] 2804 Hawthorne, Independence, Missouri 64052; tel: 816-254-8744.

[74] Of 7111 No Cosby Drive, Kansas City, Missouri 64151 and 13001 St Andrews Drive, Kansas City, Missouri 64145, respectively. Stinson's address as of a more recent date is given as 15305 H.H. Highway, Platte City, Missouri 64079, tel: 816-858-5305. .

[75] 201 Ellington Drive, Franklin, Tennessee 37064.

[76] Telephone 603-992-3151. Recent recruits among his Roanoke parish include a Dr John L Harris and his wife and Mr W. Densmore (a lawyer) and his wife, parishioners of Bishop Rutherfoord.

[77] For a history of this group, see Formhals' own work, Op.cit., pp.139-184.

[78] See Formhals, Op.cit., p.139.

[79] When Formhals published his study, he was "Grand Master", Vladimir D-Eletsky was "Grand Marshal" and George Teasdale was "Grand Treasurer".

 

 

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