Raymond du Puy de Provence

Blessed Fra ' Raymond du Puy or Raymond of Le Puy (Latin Raimundus puteanus or Ramon de Podio ) (* 1083, † 1158-1160 ) was a French nobleman from the county of Provence and the second Grand Master of the Knights Hospitaller.

He probably came from Le Puy -en -Velay. In the Holy Land he was called in 1120 for the second Grand Master of the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, shortly Hospitallers of St. John or elected. He held this position for forty years, until his death in 1158 /60 by holding. From 1157 he was also Grand Master of the Order of St. Lazarus.

He accepted the eight-pointed Amalfi cross as the official symbol of the Order, which later became known after the establishment of the Order of Malta, as the Maltese Cross.

Raymond established the first significant Hospitaller a hospital near the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. During his tenure, the field of activity of the Hospitaller of pure accommodation and care of pilgrims, the poor and sick was expanded along the lines of the company founded in 1119 by the Knights Templar on their military protection. These divided Raymond the Order in ecclesiastical, military, and serving brothers. 1131 King Fulk confided to the Order to protect the town of Beersheba to Jerusalem. 1136 earned the Order of the castle Beit Gibelin and 1142 the Crac des Chevaliers. With his order troops Raymond also took part in the conquest of Ashkelon in 1153.

His exact date of death is unknown. The last time he has documented on October 25, 1158 in Verona, where he negotiated with the Emperor Frederick Barbarossa of the privileges of the order in which countries. On November 29, 1160, he had already died on this date his successor Auger de Balben is first mentioned in documents as the new Grand Master.