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Footnote: The title of “Barone di San Giovanni” was
granted to the Maltese Citizen Serafino Ciantar by Ferdinand I. King of the Two Sicilies,
by a patent given at Palermo on the 16th July 1777. The title did not originate
in Malta but in Sicily. At Maltese Law it is only a foreign title and, as such,
it can be considered for the purposes of precedence if registration or Magistral recognition has been achieved in accordance with
the rules of 1739 and 1795 as enacted by Grand Masters Despuig
and Rohan.
In this case, the grant relative to “Barone di San Giovanni”
appears to have been duly registered in the Cancelleria
of the Order.
VALUE OF REGISTRATION/MAGISTRAL RECOGNITION
From the records of the Cancelleria it
appeared that the titles so granted were registered in virtue of a rescript from
the Grand Master, on an application by the party concerned. The Royal
Commissioners of 1878 remarked that they were prone to believe that the Grand
Master would not have given his assent to registration without any
investigation. From the start, however, the Commissioners pointed out that the Despuig/Rohan Rules on the matter did not deny nobility to
a Titolato who failed to duly register
his title, but only assigned him no place insofar as precedence was concerned.
See:- “Correspondence
and Report of the Commission appointed to enquire into the claims and grievances
of the Maltese Nobility”, May 1878, presented to both Houses of
Parliament by Command of Her Majesty (C.-2033.) (See Report Paras.
101-102). It is also noteworthy that the Commissioners did not consider all the
titles which were registered in the Cancelleria:
For example the title of Conte granted to Baldassare
Fenech Bonnici on the 11
June 1798 by Pope Benedict XIV, which was duly registered under Archives of the
Order of Malta (554, f. 176) as well as the Archives of the Inquisition of
Malta (102m f. 32) was not considered by the Report. It appears that no
descendant of this grantee made any claim to the Commissioners.
In regard to the new title of “Barone di San Giovanni”
granted to Ciantar, another title with the same name
was enjoyed previously by other members of his family. It appears that the
latter title became extinct and that this is what motivated Ciantar
to ask for a grant anew. (See:- “Correspondence and Report of the Commission appointed
to enquire into the claims and grievances of the Maltese Nobility”, May
1878, presented to both Houses of Parliament by Command of Her Majesty
(C.-2033.) (See Report Paras. 223-224).
The actual report says the following:
This title,
which is the last in order of date among those conferred by foreign sovereigns,
is claimed by the Conte Serafino Ciantar.
It was originally granted by the Viceroy of Sicily to Dr. Vincenzo
Abela and to the heirs of his body by a patent given
at Messina on the 20th August 1657. This grant (to which the Viceroy attached
the condition that the title should be inheritable by persons to be,
according to circumstances, nominated) having been determined by the death
of the said Dr Vincenzo Abela
without issue, was renewed by Ferdinand I. King of the Two Sicilies, by a patent given at Palermo on the 16th July
1777, in favour of Serafino Ciantar
(who was a relation of the said Abela) and of his
descendants.
The grant made to Serafino Ciantar was, in
accordance with the law then in force, registered in the Cancelleria, and the gentleman who claims the present
title is the first-born surviving descendant of the original grantee, consequently he has the right to bear
the title of “Barone:” besides that of “Conte”
and will be referred to in the list appended to this Report as “Conte Serafino descendible to the firstborn (N.B. should read “Conte
Giorgio Serafino”) Ciantar
Baron di San Giovanni.
It is to be
remarked that there is no mention of what “circumstances” allow for
a nomination. Moreover, the implications of a nomination of this title, being
of a foreign origin, may be different to those which originated in
Malta.