Fra' Ludwig Hoffmann von Rumerstein (; 21 January 1937 – 13 December 2022) was a Grand Commander of the

Sovereign Military Order of Malta The Sovereign Military Order of Malta (SMOM), officially the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta ( it, Sovrano Militare Ordine Ospedaliero di San Giovanni di Gerusalemme, di Rodi e di Malta; ...

. He was acting head of the order for some months in 2017.

Early life

Hoffmann-Rumerstein was the son of Ernst Hoffmann von Rumerstein and of his wife, Baroness Pia Riccabona von Reichenfels.''Genealogische Handbuch des Adels'', Adelige Häuser B, 2002. He was baptised with the names ''Ludwig Franz Xaver Irenäus Joseph Peter Raimund Maria''. Hoffmann-Rumerstein studied law at the

University of Innsbruck The University of Innsbruck (german: Leopold-Franzens-Universität Innsbruck; la, Universitas Leopoldino Franciscea) is a public research university in Innsbruck, the capital of the Austrian federal state of Tyrol, founded on October 15, 1669. ...

graduating in 1962.Grand Commander
/ref> He then studied philosophy at the

Pontifical Gregorian University The Pontifical Gregorian University ( it, Pontificia Università Gregoriana; also known as the Gregorian or Gregoriana,) is a higher education ecclesiastical school ( pontifical university) located in Rome, Italy. The Gregorian originated as ...

. After he completed his military service, he practised as a lawyer in Innsbruck from 1970 to 2002.

Order of Malta

Hoffmann-Rumerstein’s work with the Sovereign Military Order of Malta began as a volunteer. In 1968, he co-founded the Order’s Austrian volunteer corps in

North Tyrol North Tyrol, rarely North Tirol (german: Nordtirol), is the main part of the Austrian state of Tyrol, located in the western part of the country. The other part of the state is East Tyrol, which also belongs to Austria, but does not share a bord ...

. In 1970, he joined the Order as a Knight of Honour and Devotion. From 1971 to 1979 he led the Order’s group of volunteers in Innsbruck. From 1979 to 1986 he was a member of the board of directors of the Malteser Hospitaldienst Austria ( de). In 1984, Hoffmann-Rumerstein took vows as a

Knight of Justice The Knights of Justice or Professed Knights, form the first of the three classes of members of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta together with the professed conventual chaplains. They make vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. "They are re ...

. That same year he was elected a member of the Order’s Sovereign Council. He served as Grand Commander of the Order from 1994 to 2004. He was re-elected Grand Commander in 2014. From the end of January until the end of April 2017, Hoffmann-Rumerstein was the acting head of the Order, as Lieutenant ''ad interim'', after the resignation of Fra'

Matthew Festing Fra' Robert Matthew Festing GCStJ OBE TD DL (30 November 1949 – 12 November 2021) was an English Roman Catholic official who was the Prince and Grand Master of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta from 2008 until his resignation on 28 Ja ...

as Prince and Grand Master. He retained this office until 29 April 2017, when the Complete Council of State elected Fra'

Giacomo dalla Torre del Tempio di Sanguinetto Fra' Giacomo dalla Torre del Tempio di Sanguinetto (9 December 1944 – 29 April 2020) was the Prince and 80th Grand Master of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta. Born in Rome to a noble family with extensive ties to the Vatican, he co ...

as Lieutenant of the Grand Master for a period of one year.

Personal life and death

Hoffmann-Rumerstein died in Innsbruck, Tyrol on 13 December 2022, at the age of 85.

Honours

* 1989: Grand Decoration of Honour in Silver with Sash of the Republic of Austria * 1990: Grand Officer of the

Order of Merit of the Italian Republic The Order of Merit of the Italian Republic ( it, Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana) is the senior Italian order of merit. It was established in 1951 by the second President of the Italian Republic, Luigi Einaudi. The highest-ranking ...

* 1994: Grand Decoration of Honour in Gold with Sash of the Republic of Austria * 1994: Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic * 1998:

Order of the White Double Cross The Order of the White Double Cross ( sk, Rad Bieleho dvojkríža) is the highest state decoration of the Slovak Republic. The Order was instituted on 1 March 1994 after Slovakia became independent on 1 January 1993. It continues the Czechoslova ...

, 2nd Class, of the Republic of Slovakia * 1999:

Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas The Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas is the Lithuanian Presidential Award which was re-instituted to honour the citizens of Lithuania for outstanding performance in civil and public offices. Foreign nationals may also be awarded this O ...

* 2009: Grand Cross of the

Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary The Hungarian Order of Merit ( hu, Magyar Érdemrend) is the fourth highest State Order of Hungary. Founded in 1991, the order is a revival of an original order founded in 1946 and abolished in 1949. Its origins, however, can be traced to the O ...

* 2000: Honorary Companion with Breast Star of the

National Order of Merit (Malta) The National Order of Merit is a state order of the Republic of Malta. The order is divided into four grades that may be awarded to Maltese citizens. The grade of Companion of Honour of the National Order of Merit is the highest honour that the ...

* 2004: Decoration of Honour of the State of Tyrol * 2016: Grand Cross of the

Order of the Star of Romania The Order of the Star of Romania (Romanian: ''Ordinul Steaua României'') is Romania's highest civil Order and second highest State decoration after the defunct Order of Michael the Brave. It is awarded by the President of Romania. It has five r ...

* Grand Cross of the

Order of Pope Pius IX The Order of Pope Pius IX ( it, Ordine di Pio IX), also referred as the Pian Order ( it, Ordine Piano), is a papal order of knighthood originally founded by Pope Pius IV in 1560. Currently, it is the highest honor conferred by the Holy See (being ...

* Grand Officer of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon, ...

References

, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Hoffmann-Rumerstein, Ludwig 1937 births 2022 deaths 20th-century Austrian lawyers Austrian Roman Catholics Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Pope Pius IX Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic Grand Crosses of the Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas Grand Officiers of the Légion d'honneur Lieutenants of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta Bailiffs of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta Austrian nobility People from Innsbruck Pontifical Gregorian University alumni University of Innsbruck alumni