MALTA

Malta, officially known as republic of Malta, is a southern European country formed by an archipelago of seven islands in the Mediterranean Sea. The country covers just over 316 squared km, making it one of the world's smallest and most densely populated countries. The capital of Malta is Valletta, which is also the smallest capital in the  European Union. 

Malta has two official languages: Maltese and English.

Malta is a popular tourist destination with its warm climate, numerous recreational areas, and architectural and historical monuments, including nine Unesco World Heritage Sites: Hal Saflieni Hypogeum, Valletta, and seven megalithic temples, which are some of the oldest free-standing structures in the world.

The history of Malta is a long and colourful one dating back to the dawn of civilisation.

The Maltese islands went through a golden neolithic period, the remains of which are the mysterious temples dedicated to the goddess of fertility. Later on, the Phoenicians, the Carthaginians, the Romans and the Byzantines, all left their traces on the islands.

In 60 a.d. St. Paul was shipwrecked on the island while on his way to Rome and brought Christianity to Malta.

The Arabs conquered the islands in 870 a.d. and left an important mark on the Maltese language.

Until 1530 Malta was an extension of Sicily: the Normans, the Aragonese and other conquerors who ruled over Sicily also governed the Maltese islands.

It was Charles V who bequeathed Malta to the sovereign military order of st. John of Jerusalem who ruled over Malta from 1530 to 1798. The Knights took Malta through a new golden age, making it a key player in the cultural scene of 17th and 18th century Europe. The artistic and cultural lives of the Maltese islands were injected with the presence of artists such as Caravaggio, Mattia Preti and Favray who were commissioned by the Knights to embellish churches, palaces and auberges.

In 1798, Napoleone Bonaparte took over Malta from the Knights on his way to Egypt. The French presence on the islands was short lived, as the English, who were requested by the Maltese to help them against the French, blockaded the islands in 1800.

British rule in Malta lasted until 1964 when Malta became independent. The Maltese adapted the British system of administration, education and legislation. 

Modern Malta became a republic in 1974 and joined the European Union (EU)  in May 2004.

WHAT TO VISITGARDENS GARDJOLA GARDENS

It was the Grand Master De La Sengle in 1551 to design the great arrangement of Gardjola Gardens.

The gardens offer a panoramic view of the bay of Marsa , Valletta, the Grand Harbour and Fort St. Angelo . The sentry box located on top of the bastion , " the - Gardjola " , plays the role of the fortifications around the harbor.On the sentry box are carved numerous symbols of vigilance : the eye , the ear , and the crane. The inscription in Latin assures the inhabitants of the port they’ll be able to sleep well , because the tower stands guard against any hostile force that wants to get closer to the coast of Malta.

 

HASTINGS GARDEN

Hastings Garden is a small but attractive garden situated on the ramparts of Valletta from where you can admire Manoel Island and Msida Creek . The garden also houses a monument built by the Hastings family in honour of Francis , Marquis of Hastings and governor of Malta.

ENTERTAINMENT

TA’LIESSE

Ta' Liesse is a stunning location in Valletta situated just beneath the bastions surrounding the World Heritage City. It is a stone-throw away from the sea and overlooks the magnificent view of the Grand Harbour and the Three Cities.

HISTORICAL SITESAUBERGE D’ITALIE

Originally designed by Girolamo Cassar, the Auberge d’Italie in Merchants Street, Valletta is one of the finest buildings in the city.

It has a symmetrical facade, rectangular in plan and surrounded by streets on three sides. It is built around an arcaded courtyard and was considerably altered in the 17th century. Nowadays this building is used to house the Head Office of the Malta Tourism Authority.

AUBERGE DE CASTILLE

The Auberge de Castille was the official seat of the knights of the League of Castille, León and Portugal. The Knights of this League were responsible for the defence of part of the fortifications of Valletta, known as the St Barbara Bastion. The Auberge is situated at the highest point of Valletta and originally looked out on the rolling countryside beyond, giving it a unique vantage-point unsurpassed by any other building in the city. The original Auberge was built in 1574. It was extensively re-modelled and virtually rebuilt in 1741, the present plan of the imposing structure attributed to Andrea Belli.

SALUTING BATTERY

The Old Saluting Battery stands on the lower part of the St. Peter and St. Paul Bastion. Originally built in the 16th century, it remained in continuous use up to 1960. The battery functioned as a master time keeper, as the gun shots at sunrise and sunset marked the beginning and end of the working day, as well as the opening or closing of the town gates.

The noon gun was fired to signal to mariners in the harbour the exact hour of mid-day, which was necessary for the regulation of watches on board ships for accurate navigation. The Saluting Battery was restored in 2005, complete with eleven original British 24-pounder cannons from the mid-late 19th century and volunteers dressed in uniforms of the time, representing the Royal Malta Artillery.

RELIGIOUS SITESST. PAUL’S ANGLICAN CATHEDRAL

At the end of Archbishop Street in Valletta is St. Paul's Anglican Cathedral. It was built between 1839 and 1844 and funded by Queen Adelaide, widow of King William IV.

During her visit in 1838-39 she discovered that there was not an Anglican church in Malta and ordered one to be built. The cathedral was finally built on the site where the Auberge d'Allemagne, home to the German knights, used to stand but was knocked down to make way for the new cathedral. The cathedral was dedicated to St. Paul and has a huge steeple of 65m (210ft) which stands out marking the capital's skyline.

COLLEGIATE PARISH CHURCH OF ST. PAUL'S SHIPWRECK

Another church was constructed in 1609 but was demolished in 1639. The facade was rebuilt in 1885 to the design of Nicola Zammit. St. Paul is considered to be the spiritual father of the Maltese. His shipwreck is popularly considered as the greatest event in the nation's history. For this reason, St. Paul's Collegiate Church is one of the most important in Malta.

The church hosts fine artistic works, including the magnificent altarpiece, the choir and dome, the paintings , and the titular statue. One can also view the treasured relic of the right wrist-bone of St. Paul, and part of the column on which the saint was beheaded in Rome.

MEGALITHIC SITES

The Megalithic Temples of Malta are in average prehistoric temples, some of which are UNESCO World Heritage Sites, built during three distinct time periods approximately between 3600 BC and 700 BC in Malta. They have been classified as the oldest free-standing structures on Earth. Archaeologists believe that these megalithic complexes are the result of local innovations in a process of cultural evolution.

GGANTIJA

Situated in Gozo, the Ġgantija temples stand at the end of the Xagħra plateau, facing towards the south-east. It is a Neolithic, megalithic temple complex. The Ġgantija temples are older than the pyramids of Egypt. Their makers erected the two Ġgantija temples during the Neolithic Age (c. 3600-2500 BC), which makes these temples more than 5500 years old.The temples were possibly the site of a Fertility cult; archeologists believe that the numerous figurines and statues found on site are connected with that cult. According

to local Gozitan folklore, a giantess who ate nothing but broad beans and honey bore a child from a man of the common people. With the child hanging from her shoulder, built these temples and used them as places of worship.The temples are built in the typical clover-leaf shape. The temple, like other megalithic sites in Malta, faces southeast. The southern temple reaches a height of six metres. At the entrance sits a large stone block. The five apses contain various altars; the finding of animal bones in the site suggests the site was used for animal sacrifice.

TA’HAGRAT

The Ta' Ħaġrat temple in Mġarr is on the eastern outskirts of the village, only one kilometer from the Ta' Skorba temples. The remains consist of a double temple, made up of two adjacent complexes. The two parts are both less regularly planned and smaller in size than many of the other neolithic temples in Malta, and no block is decorated. Sir Temi Żammit excavated the site in 1925-27.

HAGAR QIM

Ħaġar Qim stands on a crest two kilometers far from the villages of Qrendi and Siġġiewi. Its builders used the soft limestone that caps the ridge to construct the temple. Everyone can clearly see the effects of this choice in the esternal south oriented wall, where the great orthostats (pieces of rocks put agains a wall as decoration) are exposed to the sea-winds.

The temple’s facade is typical, with a trilithon entrance, a bench and orthostats. It has a wide forecourt, through which a passage runs through the middle of the building. This entrance passage follows the common, though considerably modified, Maltese megalithic design. 

MNAJDRA

L-Imnajdra temples lie 500 metres from Ħaġar Qim. It is another complex site in its own right, and it is centred on a near circular forecourt. Three adjacent temples overlook it from one side, while a terrace separates them from a steep slope that proceedes down to the sea. The first buildings on the right are small irregular chambers, similar to the fences in Ħaġar Qim. Then there is a small clover-shape temple, with pitted decorations. Its unusual triple entrance was used on a larger scale in the second temple. The middle temple was actually the last to be built. The third temple, built early, opens on the court at a lower level. It has a concave facade, with a bench, orthostats and trilithon entrance. The southern temple is oriented astronomically with the rising sun during solstices and equinoxes; during the summer solstice the first rays of sunlight light up the edge of a decorated megalith between the first apses, while during the winter solstice the same effect occurs on a megalith in the opposite apse. During the equinox, the rays of the rising sun pass straight through the principal doorway to reach the innermost central niche.

FORTIFICATIONS AND PROTECTION WALLS

FORT SAINT ELMO

Is a fortification in Valletta. It was the scene of heroic resistance during the Great Siege of 1565. At the end of the siege , the Knights victorious rebuilt the Fort St. Elmo and it further reinforced the defenses. The fort was used continuously for centuries to the present day. In addition, the fort is now the scene of two historical plays : "Watch " and " Alarm " . They consist of military parades in period costumes held throughout the year except for the peak summer months .

FORT SAINT MICHEAL

Fort Saint Michael, later known as Saint Michael Cavalier, was the fortification of the city of Senglea in Malta. It was built in the 1550 by the Order of Saint John. The fort, along with the rest of Senglea's fortifications, was partially destroyed except for the outer bastions which can still be seen to this day.