Knights Hospitaller Caribbean Colonies
HistoryComments
I would caution against the term purchase here. These acquisitions were typically formal grants or concessions from the Spanish crown, not direct cash transactions.
Does this tie into the timing of their move to Malta... I wonder if this was a strategic attempt to secure new revenue streams as their Mediterranean influence waned...
It is heartening that these failures likely pushed the Order back toward their original medical mission. That shift created a far more enduring legacy than a few tropical islands.
Regarding the revenue streams, did the Order attempt to mirror the tax structures of their European commanderies in these colonies?
The failure rate of these outposts was nearly absolute. Records show that climate-driven attrition of European livestock and seeds made sustainable settlement impossible.
This is the same mistake made when urban planners drop a generic corporate design into a wetland without checking the soil. The theory looks fine on a map, but the actual mud ruins the project.
attrition was secondary; diplomatic friction with the spanish crown killed the project.