Chiesa di San Giovanni di Malta

Medieval Venetian church with a history spanning the Knights Templar and Order of Malta, today the Grand Priory of Malta.

San Giovanni di Malta sits in the quiet eastern reaches of the Castello sestiere in Venice, well away from the main tourist circuits. Founded in the 11th century, the church fell under the influence of the Knights Templar before passing to the Knights Hospitaller — later the Order of Malta — after the Templars were dissolved in 1312. Its current form dates from around 1565. The complex includes several buildings around a tranquil garden courtyard, which serves as the Grand Priory of the Order of Malta in Venice. The church is rarely crowded, offering unusual quiet in the middle of the city.