About the sites being visited
Valletta
Built after the Great Siege of 1565 by the Knights of St John, Valletta is a jewel of Baroque architecture. The capital of the Islands is designed in a grid-iron pattern of streets decked with palaces and grand buildings including the Auberges built to house the knights of each of the eight langues that the Knights were organised in.
St John’s co-Cathedral
 Rarely, if ever, will you enter a church as splendid as this.
St Johns Co-Cathedral was built as the conventual church of the Knights of St John between 1573 and 1578 and sports a very severe exterior in an almost military style which contrasts with the ornate internal redecoration undertaken during the height of the Baroque period.
The Grand Masters and several knights donated gifts of high artistic value and made enormous contributions to enrich it with only the best works of art not least of which are the two paintings by Caravaggio, the Beheading of St John the Baptist, his largest and only signed painting considered to be his masterpiece, and the St Jerome. The splendid marble tombstones of the knights make up the entire floor of the Cathedral and a magnificent collection of Flemish Tapestries made to the cartoons of Reubens adorn the museum.
The Grandmaster's Palace
The Grandmaster’s palace, built in the 16th Century to house the Grandmaster, today is the House of Parliament and the offices of the President of the Republic. Of particular interest are the Armoury and the stunning Gobelin tapestries, featuring tropical scenes set in South America, the Caribbean, India and Africa. The tapestries were given to the Order by Grand Master Ramon Perellos in 1710.
 The Armoury, housing one of the finest collections of weapons of the period of the Knights of Malta in all of Europe, runs the width of the back of the palace. Spears, swords, shields, heavy armour and other weapons, including Dragut's sword are on display.
Of all the rooms the most magnificent is the Hall of St Michael and St George, also known as the Throne Room, decorated with a cycle of 12 frescos, vividly portraying the 1565 Siege of Malta. The artist was Matteo Perez d'Aleccio, an engraver and painter who once helped Michelangelo with the Sistine Chapel.
The Hall of the Ambassadors was originally the Grand Master's audience chamber. Known also as the Red Room, this is decorated in crimson with Louis XV furniture and a high frieze recalling episodes from the early history of the Order when it still had bases in Jerusalem, Cyprus and Rhodes.
Mdina
 Mdina is a medieval walled town situated on a hill in the centre of the island of Malta and was the capital until the arrival of the Knights of St John in 1530. Mdina was inhabited and possibly first fortified by the Phoenicians around 700 BC. Tradition holds that the Apostle St. Paul resided in the city after his historical shipwreck on the islands. The Normans surrounded the city with thick defensive fortifications and widened the moat.
The strong earthquake of 1693 which effected many parts of Sicily and Malta led to the introduction of Baroque design within the cityscape. The Knights of Malta rebuilt the cathedral, to the designs of Maltese architect Lorenzo Gafa. Palazzo Falson, the Magisterial Palace and major restoration works are other projects undertaken by the Knights.
Known as the Silent City, the atmosphere of the city is magical.
Mnajdra Temple
 The Mnajdra Temples is a complex of three Neolithic temples surrounding an oval courtyard, the oldest having been built during the Ġgantija phase (3600-3200 BC), while the other two date from the early and mid Tarxien phase (3150-2500 BC). It has been stated by numerous historians that part of the Mnajdra Temples are the oldest free standing buildings in the world, much older than Stonehenge.
Birgu - Cittą Vittoriosa
 Birgu, one of the Three Cities to the south east of the Grand Harbour, has provided a secure anchorage for thousands of years and has been inhabited since prehistoric times. The city occupies a promontory with Fort St Angelo at its end. On their arrival in Malta in 1530, the Knights of St John occupied Birgu and commenced its fortification to provide protection to their fleet and against the predicted attacks of the Ottoman Turks. First they built the Aubege's and fine buildings and then, over the course of the years, palaces.
 Birgu was the seat of power of the Order and the focus of attacks during the Great Siege of Malta by the Turks in 1565during which was exposed the weakness of the Three Cities, exposed from the higher ground. On the lifting of the siege for winter, the order went out for the building of a city on the higher ground across the water, later to be called Valletta in honour of Grand Master Jean de La Valette.
Today you can walk the streets of Birgu, more of a lived in historic city than a museum, immersing yourself in its historic atmosphere, visit the Maritime Museum or relax in the cafes and restaurants with a view of the Super Yacht marina on the waterfront.
The Malta Experience
The 7000 year history of Malta is beautifully captured in the Malta Experience audio-visual show which allows you to understand the links between each phase of the islands' development. |