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The British Association

In Great Britain the Order has a long connection with the Hospital of St. John and St. Elizabeth which is in St. John's Wood, London, and is so named because it was an ancient manor of the Order. Founded in 1875, the British Association of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta (BASMOM), as part of the OSJCT (Orders of St John Care Trust), participates in the operation of homes for the aged, in Lincolnshire, Wiltshire, Arundel, Gloucestershire and Oxfordshire. Currently there are 74 homes, with some 3,300 residents, the Order being part of the organisation which is the largest provider of protected accommodation in the UK . The Delegation of Scotland and the Northern Marches provides mini-buses for the Order of Malta Dial-a-Journey Service for the disabled. BASMOM also sponsors a leprosy centre in Uganda and a medical centre in Tanzania. The various Associations cooperate in organising pilgrimages to Lourdes and Fatima as well as to other places.

The Order has some 300 British members, many of whom are descended from recusant Catholic families and martyrs. Membership is by invitation, usually after work for the Order. The President of the British Association is Charles Weld.

In Britain the Order has two auxiliary bodies, the Order of Malta Volunteers in England and the Companions of the Order. They are closely associated with the work of the Order, organising pilgrimages to Lourdes and Walsingham and various fund raising events.

The Grand Priory and offices of the British Association are at Fortescue House, 58 Grove End Road, London NW8 9NE.