The Queen has a special affection for Malta (see “The Queen and Malta”, below), a feeling reciprocated by many Maltese. But Malta gained its independence half a century ago. As a proud, independent republic with a strong culture, how much has it retained of the nation that ruled it for more than 150 years?
Heading from the airport, the British connection is immediately apparent: Malta drives on the left. To either side of its streets, the warm local limestone glows honey-yellow in the Mediterranean sun. It could hardly be less British, until there is a flash of red – the incongruous sight of an iconic British red letter box or phone booth. Stopping for a bottle of Kinnie (Malta’s more interesting version of Coke), we find that everyone speaks English – sometimes even among themselves.
There are traces of the British legacy all over the island. In the delightful little capital Valletta, narrow alleys are overhung by characteristic painted wooden balconies. Huge fortifications surround the city, and the spires of some of Malta’s multitudinous Catholic churches peek above the bastion walls. Dominating the skyline is one high dome – the Anglican Cathedral, built by Dowager Queen Adelaide (the Queen’s great great great aunt) in 1839 after she found Anglicans praying in a side room of the Grand Master’s Palace.
• The Queen’s favourite hotels
Valletta is the Knights’ city, built after they almost lost the island to the Ottoman Turks in the Great Siege of 1565. When the Knights were driven out by Napoleon, and he in turn by the British, the new rulers took over the Knights’ buildings. The Grand Master’s Palace became the office of the British Governor, San Anton Palace his summer retreat (and birthplace of one of the Queen’s cousins), and Malta’s fortresses British bases.
The British role in Malta is well documented at the new National War Museum. Archive footage and interactive displays tell the stories of British women who came in search of officer husbands, as well as outlining the crucial role Malta played in the Second World War. Among the exhibits is the proudly held George Cross awarded to the whole population in 1942 by the Queen’s father.
• Row in Malta over Queen's crumbling former home
The British military presence outlasted independence and its remains are still visible at Fort Rinella (see “Military Malta”, below) and the Malta Maritime Museum, whose British architect apparently modelled the façade on Windsor Castle; will the Queen notice?
The last troops left Fort St Angelo in 1979 (see below). Malta’s oldest fort and HQ of the Royal Navy for more than a century, St Angelo has under-gone a huge restoration. It will open to the public late this year but will first play host to the Queen and other dignitaries as the venue for CHOGM.
Military Malta: where to find traces of the British
Harbour tour
Get a Royal Navy perspective with a harbour boat trip. Valletta’s vast fortifications are all the more awesome from the water. Tour both of Valletta’s harbours on a tourist boat with English commentary (Captain Morgan Cruises: http://ift.tt/1HpmVhc) or take a turn around the Grand Harbour in a brightly painted wooden dghajsa (A&S Water Taxis: maltesewatertaxis.com), traditional harbour transport that once ferried hundreds of sailors a day from ship to shore and back again.
Upper Barracca Gardens
Take the lift – a recent replacement for a British-era one – up the fortifications from water level to the gardens atop the bastion walls offering panoramic views of the Grand Harbour. Built by the Knights, the gardens were enthusiastically adopted by the British, and British cannon still fire from the saluting battery (salutingbattery.com) at noon to the accompaniment of British martial music.
• The world according to Prince Philip
Royal Piazza Theatre (City Gate, Valletta)
Malta’s National Opera House, designed by Edward Middleton Barry, architect of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, was the place to see and be seen in Valletta – until it was bombed in the Second World War. It sat as a ruin for 60 years until the just-completed redesign of the City Gate area by Renzo Piano (architect of the London Shard). Now, a modern open-air theatre sits within the columned Neoclassical remains. See the theatre’s website for performance schedules (pjazzateatrurjal.com).
Fort St Angelo
First recorded in the 13th century, Fort St Angelo was the Knights’ first base in Malta when they arrived in 1530, and at the heart of the Great Siege. When the Knights moved to Valletta, St Angelo became their prison and Caravaggio ended his brief career as a Knight in a dank cell here after a brawl (fortunately not before he painted his masterpiece, The Beheading of St John the Baptist, in the Oratory of Valletta’s St John’s Co-Cathedral). Refurbished in the 18th century, St Angelo became a key British fort. Known as HMS St Angelo during the war, it was repeatedly reported sunk by the Italians. In 1998, the modern Knights of Malta (the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Malta) came full circle and occupied the top floor.
Fort St Elmo and the National War Museum
This newly restored, star-shaped fort on the tip of the Valletta peninsula has been guarding the entrance to the Grand Harbour since the 16th century. It was the first place to be attacked by the Turks in the Great Siege of 1565 and, under the British, the first to take casualties in the Second World War. It has just been opened to the public (free to enter the grounds) and is now home to the excellent new National War Museum which covers Malta at war from before the Great Siege to today, including lots of British memorabilia and archive footage (http://ift.tt/1HpmVhe).
Malta At War Museum
A museum of the Second World War, but also a remarkable tour around one of Malta’s largest underground bomb shelters – complete with birth room – cut from solid rock by engineers and stonemasons as war began. Up to 500 people sheltered here during the worst of the bombing. Also on show is the 1942 British propaganda film, Malta GC, voiced by Lawrence Olivier – both a museum piece of political film-making and a treasure trove of footage of Malta in wartime (maltaatwarmuseum.com).
Fort Rinella
Built by the British to add high-tech firepower to the Knights’ forts at the entrance to the Grand Harbour, this 19th-century gun battery has been fully restored and stages regular re-enactments of Victorian soldiery. Its rare 100-ton gun – weirdly (but authentically) painted in pink camouflage – still points out to sea (fortrinella.com).
Lascaris War Rooms
Deep beneath the Upper Barracca Gardens lie rock-carved rooms that were once quarters of the Knights’ galley slaves before becoming the secret headquarters of the Allied forces in the Med. Still-equipped ops, comms and map rooms whisk you back to when Malta was the base of the Allied Mediterranean Fleet, a key listening post, and a command centre for the invasion of Sicily (lascariswarrooms.com).
Getting there
Malta is three hours’ flying time from the UK. Direct flights depart from several London and regional airports. Air Malta (0845 607 3710; airmalta.com) and British Airways (0344 493 0787; ba.com) offer flights to Malta daily, as do easyJet (0843 104 5000; easyjet.com) and Ryanair (0871 246 0000; ryanair.com). It is no more than an hour’s drive from Malta airport to pretty much anywhere on the main island.
Staying there
Hotel Phoenicia
Malta’s first five-star hotel, built under the British in the Thirties, was where Princess Elizabeth stayed when she first visited Malta. Its long garden along the bastion walls of Valletta leads to a swimming pool and views over Marsamxett harbour. Rooms from £85 per night (http://ift.tt/1HpmWll).
Corinthia Palace Hotel & Spa
Opposite San Anton Gardens and the president’s palace, this is a calm, comfortable hotel away from the tourist trail. Built around a British-era villa – now the main restaurant – it has a pleasant garden with a large swimming pool, below, as well as an indoor pool and spa. From £67 (http://ift.tt/1XsQyjG).
Barrakka Suites
One of a new breed of historic properties converted into contemporary accommodation. These four self-catering apartments, sleeping from two to four, and each with a kitchenette, have views over the Upper Barracca Gardens. From £60 per night low season, £77 high season (barrakkasuites.com).
More information
Juliet Rix’s expert guide to Malta is at http://ift.tt/1XsQAYA and is also available free on the Telegraph travel app (http://ift.tt/1pwJPtd). A fully updated 2016 edition of her guidebook, Malta & Gozo (Bradt Guides) will be available on December 1.
0 nhận xét:
Đăng nhận xét