It is difficult to find a second great artist, like the Italian Caravaggio (Michelangelo Merissi da Caravaggio, 29 September 1571 – 18 July 1610), a talented but arrogant man whose life, mysterious and legendary, was always accompanied by danger, violence and death, and there are several pages of records of his security and interrogations. He once gathered thousands of favors and was a guest of honor for the noble bishops, but he was soon forced to die for the felony of murder, but he was blessed by misfortune and made an exception to join his long-desired Knights Hospitaller, but the good times did not last long, and two years later he was "cleaned up" because of the serious injury of his fellow members. He escaped several attempts from his enemies and died unexpectedly of fever at the age of 39 while winning a pardon from the Holy See.
Caravaggio
In this article, I don't want to list every story of Caravaggio's life' ups and downs, focusing on the ins and outs of the great painter's escape and joining the Knights.
Caravaggio became famous as a young man, arrogant and arrogant, he himself was aggressive and irritable, and he was blind to retribution, and after coming to Rome, he constantly provoked trouble. What is more remarkable is that Caravaggio is "strong in martial arts", and fights are often more than less than lose. In 1600 he defeated a mercenary in a duel and stabbed a young painter in the back in the same year, simply because the latter had criticized his painting skills. In 1604, Caravaggio got into a verbal altercation with the receptionist in a bar and smashed it with a plate, so he was imprisoned. Fortunately, Cardinal Del Monte intervened, and he was soon released. Soon after his release from prison, Caravaggio committed the crime of attacking the police with stones, followed by smashing the door of the landlady, arguing with prostitutes and injuring a notary next to him...
Caravaggio enjoyed getting acquainted with the three religions, and many of his female models were local prostitutes in Rome. Among his favorites were prostitutes named Lena and Fred. Felid works as a model for Caravaggio and is the mistress of Caravaggio's acquaintance Tomassoni. For the grumpy Caravaggio, this once awkward relationship was undoubtedly the bane.
Caravaggio's famous work "Our Lady of Loreto" is generally believed to be the model of the Virgin Mary as the prostitute Lena.
At dusk on May 28, 1606, a fierce battle broke out outside the tennis court near the Champ de Mars. The two sides of the showdown are Caravaggio and Tomassoni, each with three heavily armed partners. Rumor has it that the cause was a verbal altercation over a tennis match, but more people believe it stems from an old grudge of fighting for the wind. Caravaggio proved himself superior— Tomassoni fell to the ground, bleeding profusely, and died of his injuries a few minutes later. Although Caravaggio suffered a head injury, he realized that he had run into a catastrophe and fled immediately. Ironically, according to the evidence, Caravaggio had no intention of taking anyone's life, he just stabbed to Tomassoni's thigh with a knife, but the latter suddenly fell, the yin and yang were wrong, the blade stabbed into the lower abdomen, cutting off the artery...
Although Caravaggio was tired, this time he committed the murder, and even the cardinal could not help him. Moreover, a few years ago, the Pope resolutely beheaded the aristocratic maiden Beatriche in spite of the pleas of public opinion (readers who want to understand this story can refer to this article: Renaissance European "Dou'e" - the tragedy of the famous woman Beatrice's father), and the public still remembers it vividly, which cut off the possibility of the Holy See opening up to the great painters. In the past, Caravaggio also injured people in duels, but repeatedly reconciled with the other side through high compensation, but Tomassoni's family did not want to turn the gang into a jade, and they even offered Caravaggio a high price for his head. The Holy See is also openly wanted for this outlaw, and in the papal country anyone has the right to kill Caravaggio. The genius painter suffered the greatest crisis in his life. Fleeing, only by fleeing quickly can it be possible to save your life.
Caravaggio simply packed his bags (mainly some painting tools) and even brought his own dog with him, and he walked so hurriedly that he left behind a masterpiece he had just completed, The Death of the Virgin. He lurked in the south of Rome for some time, hoping that the wind would pass, but the Holy See showed no signs of a net, and he eventually had to go south to Naples to avoid trouble.
The Death of the Virgin
Naples at that time, as an important trading city in the Mediterranean, was far more enlightened and prosperous than Rome. The Neapolitans did not care about Caravaggio's status as a fugitive, but instead appreciated his artistic talent, and various orders poured in. His paintings even rose to the point of 2,000 silver coins. His masterpiece during the Neapolitan exile, Lashing Christ, took less than ten weeks and stunned the Neapolitans.
Flogging Christ
In 1607, despite being treated as a guest in Naples, Caravaggio made a surprising decision to cross the sea to the island of Malta, hoping to join the Knights Hospitaller (Knights of Malta) and promote himself to the ranks of knights.
Many people are puzzled that Caravaggio would rather give up the comfortable life of Naples and come to the relatively remote and cramped island of Malta. But in my opinion, this is quite in line with the painter's uninhibited and romantic-seeking personality. Founded during the Crusader era, the Knights Hospitaller has long played a mainstay in resisting the expansion of Islamic power. In the Great Siege of Malta in 1565, the Knights fought with absolutely inferior troops to repel the invasion of the Ottoman Turkish army, which was famous in Europe and was legendary. Caravaggio's membership in this holy community would mean supreme glory.
However, painters also face daunting challenges.
Valletta, the capital of Malta, is named after Valletta, a great regimental commander who performed well during the Great Siege of Malta in 1565.
The Knights Hospitaller essentially belonged to the Catholic Armed Friars, and its full members were divided into three classes: knights, soldiers, and clergy. They are somewhat similar to the "monks" of our country, and when they join the Knights, they need to make the "three wishes" of absolute wealth, absolute beauty, and absolute will (that is, to give up private wealth, renounce marriage, and obey orders), which is very difficult for a secular person like Caravaggio. The knightly class placed particular emphasis on the origins, requiring the participant to have aristocratic ancestry (even three or four generations up), while Caravaggio was just a commoner. Of course, for special talents, the Knights also have precedents for the recruitment of exceptions, that is, the so-called "Knights of Grace", but Caravaggio's title of "Murder Fugitive" makes it difficult for the Order's top brass to resist public opinion and give him "grace".
Portrait of Arlo de Wigner Courron
Caravaggio rose to the occasion and launched an "art diplomacy" offensive against alof de wignacourt (reigned 1601-1622), grand master of the Knights Hospitaller. Wignacour joined the Knights Hospitaller in 1564 at the age of 17, and the following year he took part in the arduous defence of Malta and rose to prominence. After nearly 40 years of experience, Wignacour, who was elected Grand Chancellor in 1601, was already an experienced and flexible veteran, under his administration, Malta's defense system was further strengthened, the Maltese Navy became a force to be reckoned with in the Mediterranean, and the island of Malta took advantage of the conditions of natural deep-water ports to vigorously develop commercial trade and become increasingly prosperous. In this context, the grand leader is eager for talents and hopes to make achievements in the cultural field. Caravaggio's self-nomination met the needs of the Knights. In just three months, the painter created a beautiful full-body portrait of Arlo de Wignacourt, a masterpiece that completely impressed the regimental commander. At the end of 1607, Wignacour personally wrote to the Pope, asking for an amnesty for "a man of special virtue" and permission for the Knights to be admitted as a member, although "he had committed a felony of murder in a brawl"—the sage of the Grand Master's mouth was naturally caravaggio, who had caused Rome a headache. As the leader of the prestigious Catholic Order, Wignacour's place in the hearts of the Pope speaks for itself, and the latter made an unexpected exception. Caravaggio got his wish and went from fugitive to Knights of Hospitaller", but the newcomer also had a one-year "probationary period".
In order to repay the appreciation of the Knights, Caravaggio, in addition to painting portraits of the knight brothers, also began the creation of giant church altarpieces with great enthusiasm. The subject he chose was the martyrdom of John the Baptist (St. John was also the patron saint of the Knights Hospitaller). The scene shows a heart-wrenching scene in which the executioner clumsily wields a butcher's knife and cuts off st. John's head...
The Beheaded Saint John the Baptist
Caravaggio was so pleased with the painting (it was the only one with Caravaggio's autograph) that the Knights Hospitaller was so impressed that even François, the prince of Lorraine, who had come from afar, praised it after the visit and invited Caravaggio to create an anunciation (now in the Musée d'Arte étude des Beaux-Arts de Lorraine, france) by Caravaggio, who had come from afar, and invited Caravaggio to create an annunciation (now in the Musée d'Arte François, Lor The grand commander couldn't help but sigh: He hadn't looked at the wrong person after all.
Portrait of Antonio Martelli, head of the Messina branch of the Knights Hospitaller, painted by Caravaggio
Unfortunately, the good times did not last long. The Knights' rules soon began to annoy Caravaggio, and he once again reverted to his old ways. Fighting, picking flowers and grass, and speaking out, for Caravaggio, who loved freedom, was a part of life, but it aroused the suspicion and disgust of the Knights' colleagues. Soon after, a "scuffle" took place at the home of the Knights organist, and a senior knight was seriously injured. After an official investigation, it was found that the murderer was None other than Caravaggio. The rules of the Order were quite strict, and the members of the order were forbidden to fight each other, not to mention that the injured member of the regiment belonged to the "Knight of Righteousness", whose status was much higher than that of a special "Knight of Grace" like Caravaggio. The Grand Commander decided to kill a hundred people, rectify the regimental wind, and throw Caravaggio into prison. When the members of the Knights celebrated the unveiling of Caravaggio's altarpiece, the painter himself suffered in a tight prison, and it is no wonder that Caravaggio could not bear it.
The Prison of the Knights Hospitaller is known for being heavily guarded throughout the Mediterranean, however, Caravaggio took advantage of the night to complete the plot of the American drama "Prison Break". He broke through the barriers, escaped without the guards noticing, and boarded the receiving ship (Caravaggio was not short of dead parties). By the time the Knights woke up, Caravaggio had landed safely in the Sicily port of Syracuse. For the Grand Master, this was nothing less than a resounding slap.
Wignacourt was furious and sent his men around to investigate, hoping to capture the traitor and return to the island. However, Caravaggio had a wealth of anti-reconnaissance experience, and he was helpless against the Turkish knights. Eventually, under Caravaggio's st. John's altarpiece, the Order tried him in absentia, declaring that "this man has been expelled from the Knights of Malta, who is a rotten and sick lamb".
During his pursuit by the Knights, Caravaggio was also afraid, and it is said that he slept with a dagger next to him every day, and specially kept a watchdog named "Crow". He also regretted his desertion and created Salome and St. John's Head as a gift to Arlo de Wignacourt to beg for forgiveness, but the Grand Master had lost patience and was unmoved. In his short life at the age of 39, the two-year Knighthood career was not long, but it also left a deep imprint. No matter how controversial, Caravaggio was one of the most accomplished members of the Knights Hospitaller's 900-year history, and that should go unpunished. Ironically, the Order was forced to leave Malta after Napoleon's invasion in 1799 and now owns only two buildings in Rome, Italy, as the last "homeland", while Caravaggio's only signature work, "The Beheaded Saint John the Baptist", is still intact in the Church of St. John the Baptist in Valletta, Malta, for visitors from all over the world to commemorate.
The beheaded St. John the Baptist