They subsequently entered negotiations with Spanish Emperor Charles V who offered them Tripoli and the islands of Malta and Gozo as their new base.

A delegation sent by the Hospitallers produced a report which stated that these locations were unfavourable, and they were reluctant to accept both Tripoli and the Maltese Islands because of the distance between them and the considerable expenses that would be necessary to maintain them.

[1] The Hospitallers eventually accepted Tripoli, Malta and Gozo as a fief on 23 March 1530, and they took control of the city on 25 July.

[2] At one point, Tajura's ruler Aydın Reis built a fortress known as the el-Cadi tower about 1 mile (1.6 km) outside the walls of Tripoli, but this was captured and destroyed by Hospitaller forces led by Governor Georg Schilling.

The Order's plans to move to Tripoli ceased after the galley La Catarinetta which had been carrying 7000 scudi intended to pay for the city's new fortifications was captured by the Turkish corsair Dragut.

The city surrendered on 15 August, and Governor Gaspard de Vallier and the knights were allowed to leave on vessels provided by the French ambassador.

De Valette, who became the Order's Grand Master in 1557, still hoped to retake the city and in 1559 an invasion force was assembled for this purpose but it was defeated in the Battle of Djerba in 1560.