Karel Eduard Paar, emeritus Grand Prior of the Order of Malta, dies at 92

Karel Eduard Paar, the emeritus Grand Prior of the Czech Grand Priory of the Sovereign Order of Malta, has died at the age of 92. He passed away on Friday morning at the St. Charles Borromeo Hospital of the Sisters of Mercy in Prague following long-term health issues.

Born in 1934 into one of Europe’s oldest noble families, Paar’s family had roots in Bechyně dating back to 1760. Following the communist takeover in 1948, the family was forced into exile after their property was seized. Paar, who was already in Switzerland for health reasons, eventually reunited with his family there.

Paar joined the Order of Malta in the late 1950s and served in its hospital services from 1962 to 1978. He held the position of Grand Prior during two terms: from 1981 to 1988 and again from 2004 to 2011. He returned to Czechoslovakia in 1985 and permanently resettled in the country in 1990, after which his family successfully reclaimed and subsequently sold their former castle. In his later years, he resided in Prague, where he supported the Order’s activities and worked with youth with disabilities.