Komandoria
It is a part of Poznań and at the same time an area unit of the City Information System.
Originally, Komandoria was a settlement formed around the church of St. Michael, later renamed the church of St. John of Jerusalem outside the walls. The name comes from the Order of Knights of Malta, which was established in 1178 by Mieszko III at the church. In the Diplomatic Code of Wielkopolska it was mentioned as the easternmost part of the Poznań settlement. Agricultural production developed here, and probably farming as well. There was a mill in operation. The hospital served a large population traveling east and south on the tracts. In 1925 it was incorporated into the city.
The Church of St. John of Jerusalem Outside the Wall
“Outside the walls" refers to the location outside the medieval city fortifications. Two names of Poznań districts are connected with the Order of Knights of Malta:Komandoria (the former area of the settlement given to the Order) and Malta (the area of the lands given to the Hospitallers as a contribution to maintain the hospice).
The Church of St. John of Jerusalem Outside the Walls was originally located behind the gates of medieval Poznań, on the right bank of the Warta river near the road leading east of the city. It is surrounded by a former church cemetery fenced with a brick wall, with Warszawska Street in the north and the area around Lake Malta in the south.
The first church in this place was erected at the end of the 11th century under the invocation of Saint Michael the Archangel near the fork in the road leading to Giecz and Śrem. Prince Mieszko III the Old founded a hospital and a shelter for pilgrims on the spot where St John of Jerusalem Church stands today.
A few years later, the Order of the Knights of Malta, who fought during the Crusades, but also organized a network of hospitals, settled here. Inside, valuable elements of equipment have been preserved, including the late Gothic main altar and a stone baptismal font
The church is one of the most interesting monuments of the Piast Route. Built in the Romanesque style, it was one of the first religious buildings to be constructed not of stone but of brick.
Today, the Knights of Malta still reside near St. John's Church, but they are only involved in charitable work. The most famous artificial lake in Poznań owes its name to the former knights of St. John.
