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79-488: Valletta , the capital of Malta, is located on the Sciberras Peninsula, as is its suburb Floriana . Some authors maintain that the name comes from the old Maltese family name Sciberras or Xiberras , who would have owned the land. Recent scholarly studies indicate that the phrase Xeberras is a Punic phrase which means the headland , or the middle peninsula , which is exactly the geographic characteristic of

158-605: A World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1980. The city has 320 monuments, all within an area of 0.55 square kilometres (0.21 sq mi), making it one of the most concentrated historic areas in the world. Sometimes called an "open-air museum", Valletta was chosen as the European Capital of Culture in 2018. Valletta was also listed as the sunniest city in Europe in 2016. The city is noted for its fortifications , consisting of bastions , curtains and cavaliers , along with

237-445: A Maltese surname as Sciberras. At one point the entire peninsula became known as Sceberras. [REDACTED] Hospitaller Malta 1566–1798 [REDACTED] French Republic 1798–1800 [REDACTED] Protectorate of Malta 1800–1813 [REDACTED] Crown Colony of Malta 1813–1964 [REDACTED] State of Malta 1964–1974 [REDACTED] Republic of Malta 1974–present Recent scholarly studies have however shown that

316-562: A dispute started with the Kingdom of Sicily under King Charles V . The dispute eventually ended a year later on 26 November 1754 when Sicily and the Order returned to normal relations. Despite this Sicily no longer had any control over the Maltese islands and Malta under the Order effectively became a sovereign state. In the last three decades of the eighteenth century, the Order experienced

395-729: A fight. The French then occupied Malta until 1800, when they were ousted by Maltese revolutionaries aided by Great Britain. Malta became a British protectorate and although the Treaty of Amiens stated that they should be handed back to the Order, nothing materialized. When the new Grandmaster Giovanni Tommasi demanded that the British Civil Commissioner Alexander Ball hand back the Grandmaster's Palace in Valletta , Ball replied that Britain

474-660: A media company. This company publishes the two market-leading newspapers, Times of Malta and The Sunday Times of Malta . The Valletta Campus of the University of Malta is situated in the Old University Building. It serves as an extension of the Msida Campus, especially offering international masters programmes. A church school , "St. Albert the Great", is also situated in Valletta. The Headmaster

553-763: A million visitors since opening. The Valletta International Baroque Festival is held every year in January. Jazz music in Malta was introduced in the Strait Street area, frequented by Allied sailors during both World Wars . Malta's Jazz Festival took place here. Strait Street is also known as The Gut . This area is undergoing a programme of regeneration. The city's dual band clubs are the " King's Own Band Club " ( Maltese : L-Għaqda Mużikali King's Own ) and "La Valette National Philharmonic Society" ( Maltese : Is-Soċjetà Filarmonika Nazzjonali La Valette ). Valletta

632-480: A public art installation, Kif Jgħid il-Malti (Maltese Sayings ), which featured a number of Maltese language proverb figured in gypsum, in order to engage linguistic heritage. Saint James Cavalier , originally a raised gun platform, was converted into a Centre of Creativity in the year 2000 as part of Malta's Millennium Project. It now houses a small theatre, a cinema, music rooms and art galleries. Various exhibitions are regularly held there. It has welcomed over

711-528: A rectangular grid plan , and without any collacchio (an area restricted for important buildings). The streets were designed to be wide and straight, beginning centrally from the City Gate and ending at Fort Saint Elmo (which was rebuilt) overlooking the Mediterranean; certain bastions were built 47 metres (154 ft) high. His assistant was the Maltese architect Girolamo Cassar , who later oversaw

790-559: A share of just under 50 percent of Malta. As in Malta as a whole, tourism is an important economic sector. The most important tourist zone is the area surrounding the Grand Harbour. For the cruise industry, after several years of planning, work began in 2002 to build the Valletta Waterfront Project, a cruise terminal, in the Grand Harbour. There is also a publishing house in Valletta, Allied Newspapers Ltd.,

869-526: A steady decline. This was a result of a number of factors, including the bankruptcy that was a result of Pinto's lavish rule, which drained the finances of the Order. Due to this, the Order also became unpopular with the Maltese. In 1775, during the reign of Francisco Ximénez de Tejada , a revolt known as the Rising of the Priests occurred. Rebels managed to capture Fort St Elmo and Saint James Cavalier , but

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948-468: A town began to form between the walls of Valletta and the Floriana Lines, and this evolved from a suburb of Valletta to Floriana , a town in its own right. In 1634, a gunpowder factory explosion killed 22 people in Valletta. In 1749, Muslim slaves plotted to kill Grandmaster Pinto and take over Valletta, but the revolt was suppressed before it even started due to their plans leaking out to

1027-409: Is Alternattiva Demokratika politician Mario Mallia. Valletta was designated European Capital of Culture for 2018. The year was inaugurated with an event called Erba' Pjazez (Four Squares), with shows focused in 4 plazas in the city – Triton Square , St. George's Square , St. John's Square , and Castille Square – along with other shows in other points. This was followed by the unveiling of

1106-723: Is the island's principal cultural center and has a unique collection of churches, palaces and museums and act as one of the city's main visitor attractions. When Benjamin Disraeli , future British Prime Minister, visited the city in 1830, he described it as "a city of palaces built by gentlemen for gentlemen," and remarked that "Valletta equals in its noble architecture, if it does not excel, any capital in Europe ," and in other letters called it "comparable to Venice and Cádiz " and "full of palaces worthy of Palladio ." Buildings of historic importance include St John's Co-Cathedral , formerly

1185-584: Is the scene of the Maltese Carnival , held in February each year, leading up to Lent . There were no carnival trucks in 2020 or 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic , but trucks returned in 2022. In 1823 the Valletta carnival was the scene of a human crush tragedy in which at least 110 boys perished. Valletta is twinned with: Malta International Airport is 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) from

1264-605: Is the worst natural disaster that ever occurred on Malta and one of the deadliest tornadoes in recorded history. In 1553, Charles V offered a third possession to the Order, the city of Mahdia in modern Tunisia . However, the Order refused to take control of the city since the commission that was set up decided that it would be too expensive to maintain. Therefore, the emperor ordered the Viceroy of Sicily, Juan de Vega , to destroy Mehdia to prevent Muslim occupation. De Vega burnt Mehdia, but retaliated against Malta for not accepting

1343-667: The Duke of Savoy , becoming the new sovereign of Malta until seven years later, when Treaty of The Hague reunited Naples and Sicily to the Emperor Charles VI . In 1735, during the War of the Polish Succession , Charles, Duke of Parma , defeated the occupying Austrians and became Charles VII of Naples and V of Sicily. From 1714 onwards, about 52 batteries and redoubts , along with several entrenchments, were built around

1422-592: The Grand Harbour . The Grand Harbour is Malta's major port, with unloading quays at nearby Marsa . A cruise-liner terminal is located along the old seawall of the Valletta Waterfront that Portuguese Grandmaster Manuel Pinto da Fonseca built. Valletta features a Mediterranean climate ( Köppen Csa ) with very mild, wet winters and warm to hot, slightly long, dry summers, with an average annual temperature above 23 °C (73 °F) during

1501-518: The Order's Langues , and these were complete by the 1580s. An eighth Auberge, Auberge de Bavière , was later added in the 18th century. In Antoine de Paule 's reign, it was decided to build more fortifications to protect Valletta, and these were named the Floriana Lines after the architect who designed them, Pietro Paolo Floriani of Macerata . During António Manoel de Vilhena 's reign,

1580-733: The Parliament House near the city's entrance since 2015: it was previously housed at the Grandmaster's Palace in the city centre. The latter palace still houses the Office of the President of Malta , while the Auberge de Castille houses the Office of the Prime Minister of Malta . The courthouse and many government departments are also located in Valletta. The Valletta peninsula has two natural harbours, Marsamxett and

1659-693: The Valletta Summit on Migration in which European and African leaders discussed the European migrant crisis . After that, on 27 November 2015, the city also hosted part of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting 2015 . Valletta was the European Capital of Culture in 2018. The Valletta Local Council was established by the Local Councils Act of 1993, along with the other local councils of Malta . The first election

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1738-598: The action of 28 September 1644 , or the Battle of the Dardanelles in 1656. They had also participated in the Battle of Lepanto in 1571 under the command of John of Austria . Corsairing also became an important part of the Maltese economy until the early 1700s. From 1530 to 1798 the Order of Malta waged a long-standing naval operation harassing Ottoman ships in the Mediterranean, reaching its peak from 1660 to 1675. It

1817-470: The 700 knights and 8,000 soldiers and expel them from Malta and gain a new base from which to possibly launch another assault on Europe. At first the battle went as badly for the Hospitallers as Rhodes had: most of the cities were destroyed and about half the knights killed. On 18 August the position of the besieged was becoming desperate: dwindling daily in numbers, they were becoming too feeble to hold

1896-642: The American Islands which had just been dissolved. The Order controlled the islands under the governorship of Phillippe de Longvilliers de Poincy until his death, and in 1665 the four islands were sold to the French West India Company . This marked the end of the Order's influence outside the Mediterranean. At the end of the War of the Spanish Succession , the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713 granted Sicily from Spain to

1975-582: The Baroque style was still going strong. Typical buildings from this era include Auberge de Castille and the Valletta Waterfront . In 1749, there was the Conspiracy of the Slaves , in which Turkish slaves were planning to revolt and assassinate Pinto, but this was suppressed before it started due to their plans leaking out to the Order. In 1753, Pinto proclaimed the sovereignty of the Order on Malta and

2054-634: The Conventual Church of the Knights of Malta . It has the only signed work and largest painting by Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio . The Auberge de Castille et Leon , formerly the official seat of the Knights of Malta of the Langue of Castille, Léon and Portugal, is now the office of the Prime Minister of Malta . The Grandmaster's Palace , built between 1571 and 1574 and formerly the seat of

2133-634: The French, and the islands became a British protectorate in 1800. Malta was to be returned to the Order by the Treaty of Amiens in 1802, but the British remained in control and the islands formally became a British colony by the Treaty of Paris in 1814. The Order of Saint John was expelled from its base in Rhodes during the Ottoman siege of 1522 . After seven years of moving from place to place in Europe,

2212-672: The Frenchman Jean Parisot de Valette , who succeeded in defending the island against an Ottoman invasion during the Great Siege of Malta . The city is Baroque in character, with elements of Mannerist , Neo-Classical and Modern architecture , though the Second World War left major scars on the city, particularly the destruction of the Royal Opera House . The city was officially recognised as

2291-698: The Grand Master of the Knights of Malta, used to house the Maltese Parliament, now situated in a purpose-built structure at the entrance to the city, and now houses the offices of the President of Malta . Admiralty House is a Baroque palace dating to the late 1570s. It was the official residence of the Commander-in-Chief of the Mediterranean Fleet during the British era from the 1820s onwards. From 1974 until 2016, it

2370-449: The Knights ' ), was a de facto state which existed between 1530 and 1798 when the Mediterranean islands of Malta and Gozo were ruled by the Order of St. John of Jerusalem . It was formally a vassal state of the Kingdom of Sicily , and it came into being when Emperor Charles V granted the islands as well as the city of Tripoli in modern Libya to the Order, following the latter's loss of Rhodes in 1522. Hospitaller Tripoli

2449-613: The Knights became established in 1530 when Emperor Charles V , as King of Sicily, gave them Malta, Gozo and the North African port of Tripoli in perpetual fiefdom in exchange for an annual fee of a single Maltese falcon , which they were to send on All Souls' Day to the King's representative, the Viceroy of Sicily . The Order settled in the town of Birgu and made it their capital. The ancient fortress known as Castrum Maris

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2528-545: The Knights to the island. The city took his name and was called La Valletta . The Grand Master asked the European kings and princes for help, receiving a lot of assistance due to the increased fame of the Order after their victory in the Great Siege. Pope Pius V sent his military architect, Francesco Laparelli , to design the new city, while Philip II of Spain sent substantial monetary aid. The foundation stone of

2607-411: The Order. Later on in his reign, Pinto embellished the city with Baroque architecture , and many important buildings such as Auberge de Castille were remodeled or completely rebuilt in the new architectural style. In 1775, during the reign of Ximenes , an unsuccessful revolt known as the Rising of the Priests occurred in which Fort Saint Elmo and Saint James Cavalier were captured by rebels, but

2686-536: The Ottoman fleet, was a serious blow. The Turkish commanders, Piyale Pasha and Mustafa Pasha , were careless. They had a huge fleet which they used with effect on only one occasion. They neglected their communications with the African coast and made no attempt to watch and intercept Sicilian reinforcements. On 1 September they made their last effort, but the morale of the Ottoman troops had deteriorated seriously and

2765-592: The Ottomans departed, the Hospitallers had but 600 men able to bear arms. The most reliable estimate puts the number of the Ottoman army at its height at some 40,000 men, of whom 15,000 eventually returned to Constantinople. The siege is portrayed vividly in the frescoes of Matteo Perez d'Aleccio in the Hall of St. Michael and St. George, also known as the Throne Room, in the Grandmaster's Palace in Valletta ; four of

2844-591: The Valletta-Floriana peninsula. Mount Sciberras is a hill in Valletta , Malta , which rises 56m above the Grand Harbour to the south and Marsamxett Harbour to the north. It is upon this hill that the Grand Master of the Order of Malta , Jean Parisot de Valette commissioned the construction of the new city of Valletta in 1566 after the Great Siege of Malta . This hill gives its name to

2923-525: The Xeberras phrase is of Punic origin and means 'the headland' and 'the middle peninsula' as it actually is. The building of a city on the Sciberras Peninsula had been proposed by the Order of Saint John as early as 1524. Back then, the only building on the peninsula was a small watchtower dedicated to Erasmus of Formia (Saint Elmo), which had been built in 1488. In 1552, the Aragonite watchtower

3002-472: The attack was feeble, to the great encouragement of the besieged who now began to see hopes of deliverance. The perplexed and indecisive Ottomans heard of the arrival of Sicilian reinforcements in Mellieħa Bay. Unaware that the force was very small, they broke off the siege and left on 8 September. The Great Siege of Malta may have been the last action in which a force of knights won a decisive victory. When

3081-488: The beauty of its Baroque palaces, gardens and churches. The peninsula was previously called Xagħret Mewwija (Mu' awiya – Meuia; named during the Arab period ) or Ħal Newwija. Mewwija refers to a sheltered place. Some authors state that the extreme end of the peninsula was known as Xebb ir-Ras (Sheb point), of which name origins from the lighthouse on site. A family which surely owned land became known as Sceberras , now

3160-403: The breaches, and the capture of Malta seemed more and more impossible. Many of the Ottoman troops in crowded quarters had fallen ill over the terrible summer months. Ammunition and food were beginning to run short, and the Ottoman troops were becoming increasingly dispirited by the failure of their attacks and their losses. The death on 23 June of skilled commander Dragut , a corsair and admiral of

3239-452: The city in August. Following these attacks, the Order tried to repopulate Gozo and strengthen the Grand Harbour fortifications. Several forts including Saint Elmo and Saint Michael were built, and the city of Senglea began to develop around the latter fort. Sometime between 1551 and 1556, a tornado hit Malta, destroyed at least four of the Order's galleys, and killed 600 people. This

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3318-405: The city in the town of Luqa . Malta's public transport system , which uses buses, operates mostly on routes to or from Valletta, with their central terminus just outside the city gate . Traffic within the city itself is restricted, with some principal roads being completely pedestrian areas. In 2006, a park and ride system was implemented in order to increase the availability of parking spaces in

3397-536: The city of Mdina was significantly remodelled in the Baroque style. Other significant Baroque structures built during de Vilhena's reign include Fort Manoel and the Manoel Theatre . The town of Floriana also began to be developed around this era between the Floriana Lines and Valletta, and it was given the title of Borgo Vilhena by the Grandmaster. During Pinto's reign, which lasted from 1741 to 1773,

3476-476: The city was laid by Grand Master de Valette on 28 March 1566. He placed the first stone in what later became Our Lady of Victories Church . In his book Dell'Istoria della Sacra Religione et Illustrissima Militia di San Giovanni Gierosolimitano (English: The History of the Sacred Religion and Illustrious Militia of St John of Jerusalem ), written between 1594 and 1602, Giacomo Bosio writes that when

3555-581: The city, and prohibited exportation of wheat to the island. To combat this, Grandmaster Sengle brought the engineer Vincenzo Vogo to Malta to upgrade the mills so the population would not starve. Authors such as Giovanni Francesco Abela claim that, following the Battle of Verbia in 1561, the Order may have gained a puppet state in Moldavia , which was ruled by the Malta native Iacob Heraclid until 1563; their assessment remains disputed. In 1565 Suleiman sent an invasion force of about 40,000 men to besiege

3634-402: The city. People can leave their vehicles in a nearby Floriana car park and transfer to a van for the rest of the trip. In 2007, a congestion pricing scheme was implemented to reduce long-term parking and traffic while promoting business in the city. An ANPR -based automated system takes photos of vehicles as they enter and exit the charging zone and vehicle owners are billed according to

3713-517: The coastal fortifications by building the Wignacourt towers , a series of six bastioned watch towers. During Grandmaster Lascaris ' reign, a number of smaller towers were also built. His successor de Redin once again built a series of similar towers . The last coastal tower to be built was Isopu Tower , which was constructed in 1667 during the reign of Nicolas Cotoner . In 1693, an earthquake damaged many buildings in Malta, particularly in

3792-611: The coasts of Malta and Gozo. Other major fortifications of the 18th century include Fort Chambray on Gozo, which was built between 1749 and the 1760s, and Fort Tigné in Marsamxett, which was built between 1792 and 1795. Throughout the eighteenth century, Baroque architecture was popular in Malta. This is mostly associated with the Grandmasters António Manoel de Vilhena and Manuel Pinto da Fonseca , both of whom were Portuguese. During de Vilhena's reign,

3871-510: The completion of his city. Originally interred in the church of Our Lady of the Victories, his remains now rest in St. John's Co-Cathedral among the tombs of other Grand Masters of the Knights of Malta . Francesco Laparelli was the city's principal designer and his plan departed from medieval Maltese architecture, which exhibited irregular winding streets and alleys. He designed the new city on

3950-431: The construction of the city himself after Laparelli's death in 1570. The Ufficio delle Case regulated the building of the city as a planning authority . The city of Valletta was mostly completed by the early 1570s, and it became the capital on 18 March 1571 when Grand Master Pierre de Monte moved from his seat at Fort St Angelo in Birgu to the Grandmaster's Palace in Valletta . Seven Auberges were built for

4029-437: The cornerstone of Valletta was placed, a group of Maltese elders said: " Iegi zimen en fel wardia col sceber raba iesue uquie " (Which in modern Maltese reads, " Jiġi żmien li fil-Wardija [l-Għolja Sciberras] kull xiber raba' jiswa uqija ", and in English, "There will come a time when every piece of land on Sciberras Hill will be worth its weight in gold"). De Valette died from a stroke on 21 August 1568 at age 74 and never saw

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4108-770: The day and 16 °C (61 °F). Valletta experiences a lack of precipitation during the summer months and most of the precipitation happens during the winter months. Winter temperatures are moderated by the surrounding sea, as a result, the city has very mild winters and a long seasonal lag. The official climate recording station in Malta is at Luqa Airport, which is a few miles inland from Valletta. Average high temperatures range from around 16 °C (61 °F) in January to about 32 °C (90 °F) in August, while average low temperatures range from around 10 °C (50 °F) in January to 23 °C (73 °F) in August. The architecture of Valletta's streets and piazzas ranges from mid-16th century Baroque to Modernism . The city

4187-474: The duration of their stay. Valletta is served by a fleet of electric taxis which transport riders from 10 points in Valletta to any destination in the city. As of 2021, an underground Malta Metro is being planned, with a projected total cost of €6.2 billion, centred on the Valletta urban area. Hospitaller Malta Hospitaller Malta , known in Maltese history as the Knights' Period ( Maltese : Żmien il-Kavallieri , lit.   ' Time of

4266-400: The expense of his own defences. A wrong decision could mean defeat and exposing Sicily and Naples to the Ottomans. He had left his own son with de Valette, so he could hardly be indifferent to the fate of the fortress. Whatever may have been the cause of his delay, the Viceroy hesitated until the battle had almost been decided by the unaided efforts of the Knights, before being forced to move by

4345-399: The former capital of Mdina . The cathedral , which had been built during the Norman occupation of Malta, was subsequently demolished and a new Baroque cathedral was built in its place starting from 1697. In the seventeenth and early eighteenth century, the Order's navy was at its peak. The Order, usually along with other European navies, engaged in naval battles against the Ottomans such as

4424-423: The indignation of his own officers. On 23 August came yet another grand assault, the last serious effort, as it proved, of the besiegers. It was thrown back with the greatest difficulty, even the wounded taking part in the defence. The plight of the Turkish forces, however, was now desperate. With the exception of Fort Saint Elmo , the fortifications were still intact. Working night and day the garrison had repaired

4503-433: The knight Mathurin Romegas was elected Grandmaster. Pope Gregory XIII sent the envoy Gaspare Visconti to settle the dispute, and la Cassière and Romegas were summoned to Rome to explain and plead the case. Romegas died within a week of arriving in Rome, and la Cassière was restored to his position as Grandmaster. However, he too died within a month in Rome thus ending the dispute. In January 1582, Hugues Loubenx de Verdalle

4582-449: The late seventeenth century, Fort Ricasoli was also built to protect the entrance to the Grand Harbour, while Fort Saint Elmo and Fort Saint Angelo were strengthened. Despite the significant fortifications in the harbour area, by the early seventeenth century, most of the remaining coastline was still largely undefended. In 1605, Garzes Tower was built on the island of Gozo. In the following years, Alof de Wignacourt continued upgrading

4661-404: The long line of fortifications. But when his council suggested the abandonment of Birgu and Senglea and withdrawal to Fort St. Angelo , Grand Master Jean Parisot de Valette refused. The Viceroy of Sicily had not sent help; possibly the Viceroy's orders from Philip II of Spain were so obscurely worded as to put on his own shoulders the burden of the decision whether to help the Knights at

4740-429: The mid-17th century, the Order was the de jure proprietor over some islands in the Caribbean, making it the smallest state to colonize the Americas . The Order began to decline in the 1770s, and was severely weakened by the French Revolution in 1792. In 1798, French forces under Napoleon invaded Malta and expelled the Order, resulting in the French occupation of Malta . The Maltese eventually rebelled against

4819-411: The original modellos , painted in oils by Perez d'Aleccio between 1576 and 1581, can be found in the Cube Room of the Queen's House at Greenwich, London . After the siege a new city was built, Valletta , which was named in memory of the Grand Master who had withstood the siege. It became the Order's headquarters in 1571 and remains Malta's capital city to this day. In 1574, the Roman Inquisition

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4898-401: The peninsula. This Malta -related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Valletta Valletta ( / v ə ˈ l ɛ t ə / və- LET -ə ; Maltese : il-Belt Valletta , pronounced [vɐlˈlɛttɐ] ) is the capital city of Malta and one of its 68 council areas . Located between the Grand Harbour to the east and Marsamxett Harbour to

4977-407: The port, built by the Knights as a magnificent series of bastions, demi-bastions, cavaliers and curtains, approximately 100 metres (330 ft) high, all contribute to the unique architectural quality of the city. Valletta contains a number of unofficial neighbourhoods, including: Eurostat estimates the labour force in 2015 for the greater Valletta area at around 91,000 people. This corresponds to

5056-410: The rest of the harbor area. The Royal Opera House , constructed at the city entrance in the 19th century, was one of the buildings lost to the raids. In 1980, the 24th Chess Olympiad took place in Valletta. The entire city of Valletta has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1980, along with Megalithic Temples of Malta and the Hypogeum of Ħal-Saflieni . On 11 November 2015, Valletta hosted

5135-420: The revolt was eventually suppressed. In 1798, the French invaded the island and expelled the Order. After the Maltese rebelled, French troops continued to occupy Valletta and the surrounding harbour area, until they capitulated to the British in September 1800. In the early 19th century, the British Civil Commissioner, Henry Pigot , agreed to demolish the majority of the city's fortifications. The demolition

5214-420: The revolt was suppressed and some of the leaders were executed while others were imprisoned or exiled. In 1792, the Order's possessions in France were seized by the state due to the French Revolution , which led the already bankrupt Order into an even greater financial crisis. When Napoleon landed in Malta in June 1798, the knights could have withstood a long siege, but they surrendered the island almost without

5293-413: The west, its population as of 2021 was 5,157. As Malta’s capital city, it is a commercial centre for shopping, bars, dining, and café life. It is also the southernmost capital of Europe , and at just 0.61 square kilometres (0.24 sq mi), it is the European Union 's smallest capital city. Valletta's 16th-century buildings were constructed by the Knights Hospitaller . The city was named after

5372-402: Was lost to the Ottoman Empire in 1551, but an Ottoman attempt to take Malta in 1565 failed. Following the 1565 siege, the Order decided to settle permanently in Malta and began to construct a new capital city, Valletta . For the next two centuries, Malta went through a Golden Age , characterized by a flourishing of the arts, architecture, and an overall improvement in Maltese society. In

5451-399: Was again proposed in the 1870s and 1880s, but it was never carried out and the fortifications have survived largely intact. Eventually building projects in Valletta resumed under British rule. These projects included widening gates, demolishing and rebuilding structures, widening newer houses over the years, and installing civic projects. The Malta Railway , which linked Valletta to Mdina ,

5530-399: Was an important source of income for the Order and employment for the local Maltese, profiting from plundered booty and the capture of Muslim slaves. The Order also took part in the colonization of the Americas . On 21 May 1651, it acquired four islands in the Caribbean: Saint Barthélemy , Saint Christopher , Saint Croix and Saint Martin . These were purchased from the French Company of

5609-432: Was authorised to continue basing troops on the island since some powers were still not recognising Malta's independence and that the government palace could not be vacated. Malta eventually became a British colony in 1813 and remained as such until independence in 1964 . The Order itself became dispersed throughout Europe, but in the early 19th century it redirected itself toward humanitarian and religious causes. In 1834,

5688-455: Was demolished and the larger Fort Saint Elmo was built in its place. In the Great Siege of 1565, Fort Saint Elmo fell to the Ottomans , but the Order eventually won the siege with the help of Sicilian reinforcements. The victorious Grand Master, Jean de Valette , immediately set out to build a new fortified city on the Sciberras Peninsula to fortify the Order's position in Malta and bind

5767-524: Was elected Grandmaster. Between 1610 and 1615, the Wignacourt Aqueduct was built to carry water from Dingli and Rabat to the capital Valletta. This aqueduct remained in use until the early 20th century, and most of its arches still survive. Throughout the course of the seventeenth century, Malta's fortifications were also improved. Large parts of Gozo's Cittadella were completely rebuilt between 1599 and 1622. The Grand Harbour area

5846-667: Was established in Malta when Pope Gregory XIII sent Pietro Dusina as mediator between the Grandmaster and the Bishop. This inquisition replaced the old medieval inquisition in Malta that had been run by the Bishop of Palermo . In 1581, there was a crisis between the General Convent of the Order and the Grandmaster, Jean de la Cassière . This escalated into a mutiny in which la Cassière was confined in Fort St Angelo and

5925-474: Was held on 20 November 1993. Other elections were held in 1996, 1999, 2002, 2005, 2008, 2013, 2017. The present local council was elected in 2019. The local council is housed in a building in South Street. The following people have served as Mayors of Valletta: Valletta is the capital city of Malta, and is the country's administrative and commercial hub. The Parliament of Malta has been housed at

6004-513: Was officially opened in 1883. It was closed down in 1931 after buses became a popular means of transport. In 1939, Valletta was abandoned as the headquarters of the Royal Navy Mediterranean Fleet due to its proximity to Italy and the city became a flash point during the subsequent two-year long Siege of Malta . German and Italian air raids throughout the Second World War caused much destruction in Valletta and

6083-722: Was rebuilt as Fort Saint Angelo , the town's defences were strengthened, and many new buildings were constructed. The Order soon began to mint its own coins as it settled in Malta. The Hospitallers continued their actions against the Muslims and especially the Barbary pirates . Although they had only a few ships, they quickly drew the ire of the Ottomans , who were unhappy to see the order resettled. In July 1551, Ottoman forces attempted to take over Fort Saint Angelo and later Mdina but saw that they were outnumbered and invaded Gozo several days later. They sailed to Tripoli and captured

6162-620: Was strengthened by the construction of the Floriana Lines and Santa Margherita Lines in the 1630s and 1640s, which encircled the land front of Valletta and that of Birgu and Senglea. Later on, the Cottonera Lines were built around the Santa Margherita Lines between 1670 and 1680. Due to a lack of funds, the Santa Margherita and Cottonera Lines remained unfinished for many years before being completed. In

6241-629: Was the site of the National Museum of Fine Arts . The Manoel Theatre ( Maltese : Teatru Manoel ) was constructed in just ten months in 1731, by order of Grand Master António Manoel de Vilhena , and is one of the oldest working theatres in Europe. The Mediterranean Conference Centre was formerly the Sacra Infermeria . Built in 1574, it was one of Europe's most renowned hospitals during the Renaissance. The fortifications of

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