Malta: Facts & History
The Country comprises of an archipelago located in Southern Europe, in the Mediterranean Sea, with only three of the largest islands inhabited namely ; Malta, Gozo and Comino, and has a total square area of 316sqm.
Population : Approx. 400,000 inhabitants.
Religion : 98% Roman Catholic
Language : Bi Lingual - Maltese and English.
Capital : Valletta
Climate : Mediterranean, with mild rainy winters and dry, hot summers.
Malta may be small, but it has a wealth of history that far exceeds most expectations. From some of the earliest recorded temples anywhere in the world, to over two centuries of rule under the legendary Knights of the order of St.John and its unforgettable role as an island fortress during World War II.
Malta’s Prehistory dates back from 5,000B.C – is a period still shrouded in mystery but offers the first evidence of habitation in Malta. The island’s fascinating temples at several locations including Tarxien and Hagar Qim, dating around 3500BC are some of the
earliest examples known to archaeologists.
Throughout the centuries, Malta’s attraction to the many armies that have tried – often unsuccessfully – to conquer it can usually be attributed to its strategic location in the middle of the Mediterranean, 60miles south of Sicily. The Phoenicians, the Carthaginians, the Romans, Arabs and Spaniards, even briefly the French under Napoleon, all at some time ruled Malta.
One of the most informative periods in Malta’s history started in the first half of the 16th century. In 1530, the knights of the Order of St.John, made the Maltese Islands their home, as they were offered to them by Charles V of Spain, after they were ousted out of Rhodes by the Turks. This move ultimately led to one of Christendom’s greatest triumphs over Islam. – The Great Siege of Malta – 1565.
Malta’s Capital City, Valletta with its magnificent bastions was built as a result of The Great
Siege. Over two centuries of peace and prosperity followed under the rule of the Knights of St John, and to date many Palaces, gardens and treasures can be still seen today. The Knights surrendered to the French in 1798, but the tables turned swiftly as the Maltese rebelled. Helped by a blockade of the island by the British and Russian Powers, the French were ousted. Malta was then controlled by the British and survived both World Wars. Malta gained its Independence in 1964 and then became a Republic in 1974. Malta joined the European Union in 2004.