The hospitable of San Tomaso di Majano was founded at the end of the 12th century by the knights of St. John of Jerusalem (later known as the "Knights of Malta"), during the period of the Crusades, as shown in the original 1199 founding parchment of the "Portis". It was an important stop on the Via del Tagliamento on the ancient Via di Allemagna, which connected Europe up to the Baltic countries with the ports of the Adriatic.
The hospitables were part of an efficient European network, organized on the "Benedictine Rule of Reception", ensured during the apex of feudalism free hospitality, care and assistance to travelers and pilgrims on their way to the Holy Land, Santiago de Compostela or Rome through the Romea and Francigena roads . They constituted the first major experimental institution of free hospitality services.
The complex of San Giovanni, almost completely restored, with the Casa del Prior and the church of San Giovanni, is a prime witness of the essential function of the Via d'Allemagna, the preferential "historical corridor" of communication and cultural exchange between a nascent Europe, the Mediterranean and Jerusalem.
