In 1191 A.D., having reached a position of great respect and admiration throughout the known world, the Sovereign Order of Saint John of Jerusalem was recognized as a sovereign power by King Richard I of England (Richard the Lion-Hearted leader of the Third Crusade). Similar recognition by the other monarchs of the principal nations of Europe, North Africa and the Middle East quickly followed.

Following its formal recognition, and particularly due to its charitable service to all of Christendom, the Order quickly became so loved and respected that gifts and properties flowed to it in great number. Thus, by the year 1200, as recorded by the Bishop of Acre, "It possessed principalities, cities, towns and villages, both in Asia and Europe; and enumerated within the bounds of Christendom no less than 19,000 manors."