Of all the building erected by the Knights of the Order of St. John, the Holy Infirmary is undoubtedly one of the most impressive for its architectural beauty and grandeur; but it is no less renowned for its contribution, throughout its decades of existence, to the health of the people of Malta, to many foreign visitors and to the ailing soldiers of France in the interlude of 1798 - 1800 and of Great Britain for over a century from 1800 to 1920.