To this day, the reigining British monarch serves as “sovereign head” of the Knights of St. John. The queen’s cousin, Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester, serves as “grand prior,” or chief executive.

starnewsonline.com | Nov 17, 2008

By Ben Steelman

He doesn’t have a suit of armor, he doesn’t carry a sword, and you don’t have to call him “Sir.” Nevertheless, Thomas H. Van Arsdale of Wilmington is a real, live, honest-to-goodness knight - and he has the medal and parchment to prove it.

Retired banker Thomas H. Van Arsdale of Wilmington is a newly minted knight of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St. John of Jerusalem. The ancient order is a modern-day charity, and the knighthood is an honor for community work.

Van Arsdale became an official knight of grace in the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St. John of Jerusalem in an investiture ceremony Nov. 8 at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.

Since Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain is the “sovereign head” of the order, Van Arsdale’s new title officially was published in The London Gazette, the British court’s official journal of record. He received his knighthood in Her Majesty’s name from the head of the order’s priory, or chapter, for the United States.

Full story