Malta is chiefly composed of
limestone with no hills higher than 300 metres and no rivers. On the South-West
side it is guarded by high cliffs whilst on the North-East side the shore is
indented with sheltered harbours. These proved to be very attractive to the
sailors and navigators that sailed the Mediterranean.
The origin of Maltese history goes
back to some 4500 years BC, when some people from the neighbouring island of
Sicily, who could see the island lying on the horizon, decided to cross the
narrow waters to investigate. This obviously could not have happened unless
these people had skills in sailing or rowing some form of craft which was large
enough to carry with them their belongings, which included such animals as
sheep, goats and cattle, as well as seeds like wheat and barley.
These people settled on the island
and sheltered in the many caves which exist there. The earliest inhabited cave
is called 'Ghar-Dalam', the cave of darkness, where remains of these people and
their artefacts give us an insight into their way of life. They cultivated the
land, growing wheat and barley and practised animal husbandry.
Around 1200 BC Phoenicia started to
expand her empire. The Phoenicians were traders and great mariners who sailed
their ships along the shores of the Mediterranean. They sailed to England where
they traded tin. It is said that they circumnavigated the continent of Africa.
They settled on the North coast of Africa and established a city called
Carthage. They also settled on the West coast of Sicily and in Malta. Indeed,
the name 'Malta' is said to be derived from the Phoenician word 'Maleth',
meaning refuge. Their stay in Malta was to last for 320 years. Conceivably the
roots of the Maltese language derive from this Phoenician period. The
Phoenicians also introduced glass making and weaving and built temples were
they could worship their gods.
Meanwhile, the city of Carthage grew
in size and strength and eventually carved out an empire which covered the
North African coast to the west of Carthage, and included Spain, Sardinia,
Western Sicily and Malta. The Carthaginians got into difficulties with the
Greeks in Eastern Sicily and with the arrival of Rome on the political scene
during the 3rd century BC it was inevi
table that the two nations would wage war for mastery of the area. Three wars, known as the Punic Wars, were fought from 264 to 146 BC ending with the fall of Carthage, and with Rome becoming supreme in the Central and Western Mediterranean. Malta became part of the Roman Empire during the 2nd Punic War (c. 218 BC) and remained part of the empire till the Vandals raided the islands in AD 395. One event of great importance to the Maltese took place in AD 5 8, when St. Paul, who was on his way to Rome as a prisoner, was shipwrecked on the Island. He stayed for three months during which time he introduced Christianity to the people. The Maltese take great pride in saying that they were one of the first nations to accept Christianity as their faith - but that is another story.
We now enter a dark period in
Maltese history, the period from AD 395 to 535. No records exist as to what
happened during that time. Rome fell the Vandals in AD 455 and it is quite
likely that towards the end of the 4th century, Malta too became part of the
Ostrogothic Kingdom centred in Rome In AD 535, Malta was conquered by General
Belissarius the Byzantine to form part of the Eastern Roman or Byzantine
Empire, till the arrival of the Arabs.
Unfortunately, very little
documentation relating to the two centuries of Arab rule in Malta survives
today. Indeed, Arab influence in Malta lasted much longer, since the Normans,
who invaded in 1090 and took over the island from the Arabs, were indeed
enlightened people and they tolerated the presence of the Arabs in the island.
In fact, Count Roger never garrisoned the islands. Arab influence remained more
or less unrestricted till about 1224, when the Muslims were finally expelled.
The chief legacy of the Arab occupation in Malta must be the Maltese language
itself, which has many elements of Arabic.
Legends about the coming of Count
Roger and the Normans to Malta are numerous, but most probably unfounded. Count
Roger is said to have given Malta her flag based on the Hauteville colours. He
is reputed to have re-Christianised the Maltese, established churches,
re-appointed a bishop and even expelled the Arabs. All of this is doubtful. However,
the Normans' presence opened the door for the re-Europeanisation of the Maltese
people. The so-called Norman Period lasted till 1194 and though the Normans
left many treasures and architecture in Sicily, hardly any relics of this
period exist in Malta.
Following the death of King Roger II
in 1154, a series of political struggles ensued. William the Good died
childless in 1189 and a dispute arose over his successor. The rightful heir was
the daughter of Roger 1, Constance, who was married to Henry VI, son of the
German Emperor, Frederick Barbarossa. However, the Pope had other ideas.
Fearing the penetration of the Germans in Sicily and Southern Italy, the church
threw its support with Tancred. He was crowned king in 1190. However, he did
not last long because Henry VI, through a series of intrigues within Tancred's
court, acquired Sicily in 1194. Thus Malta became part of the German Kingdom
under Frederick II - the Hohenstaufen rule. The Arabs were finally expelled
from Sicily and Malta after an uprising in 1224.
Following the death of Frederick II
in 1250, the Hohenstaufen dynasty declined very rapidly. Many of Frederick's
enemies, including the church, were keen to rid Sicily and Southern Italy of
the Germans. Sixteen years of plots and counterplots eventually brought a new
master to Malta. In 1266, Pope Clement finally achieved his objective and
proclaimed Charles of Anjou as King of Sicily.
Although the period of Angevin rule
over Malta was short-lived (1266-1283), it is from this point onward that Malta
shifted into the European scheme of government and administration. Because of
high taxation, moves were made in Sicily to restore the island to Aragon, the
rightful heirs to the crown of Sicily. Things came to a head in 1282 with the
Sicilian uprising against the French, known as the Sicilian Vespers, which led
to a bloody massacre of the French. The Aragonese took immediate advantage and
installed Peter of Aragon as ruler of Sicily and Malta.
The Aragonese period in Malta was to
last for 130 years. During that time the Maltese people suffered the indignity
of having their island handed from one noble to another as a fief for various
services rendered to the king. These individuals increased taxation which led
to local unrest amongst the people. Malta remained at the mercy of these
powerful Sicilian magnates, like the Alagonas and the Moncadas. It was not till
1397 that the local council for Malta and Gozo, the Universita, made a strong
petition to the crown for the islands to be restored to direct rule by the
King.
In 1412, Ferdinand de Antequera was
elected King of Aragon, Castille and Sicily, the first Castillian to ever
occupy the throne. In 1421, King Alfonso granted the Maltese islands and all
the revenue from them to Don Antonio Cardona in exchange for a loan of 30,000
gold florins. He then transferred his right over Malta and Gozo to Don Gonsalvo
Monroy. The Maltese disagreed with this arrangement. After five years they
finally rebelled. In 1426 they pillaged Monroy's house in Mdina and laid siege
to his castle at Birgu. The Maltese bought back the island for 30,000 florins.
They also insisted on radical reforms including one that said that the islands
wore never to be ceded again by the crown. Alfonso agreed to these reforms and
finally ratified them in a Royal Charter in 1428.
In 1479, Ferdinand II married
Isabella of Castille. Their daughter Joanna married Philip Archduke of Austria.
In 1518, the Habsburg dynasty was consolidated when their son Charles V, became
the Holy Roman Emperor. Through the intercession of Pope Clement VIII, he
granted Malta, Gozo and Tripoli to the homeless Order of St. John in 1530.
As time went by, however, the Order
began to decline. The haughtiness and despotism of some of the Grandmasters
upset the Maltese, leading to the famous Rebellion of the Priests, led by
Mannarino in 1775 during the magistery of Ximenes de Texada. After the death of
Grandmaster de Rohan (1797) the Order elected Ferdinand von Hompesch as its
leader.
The situation in Europe at the time
was explosive. The French revolution had changed the face of Europe and through
the influence of Napoleon Bonaparte, 'The Directory' gave him permission to
invade Egypt and take Malta in the process. In 1798 he invaded Malta and
expelled the Order. Thus ended 268 years of rule by the Order of St. John.
French rule in Malta lasted only two
years. The Maltese rebelled within three months of their arrival, besieging
them in Valletta, from where, with the help of the British, they were finally
ousted in 1800. The British occupied the island and for the next fifteen years
the fate of Malta was undecided. The Maltese did not want the knights back and
Britain was quite undecided as to whether it wanted to stay in Malta, but
equally Britain did not want either the French or the Russians, who had their
eyes on Malta for quite a while, to occupy the islands. The Maltese finally
made up their mind and asked the British to stay. In the treaty of Paris, the
occupation of Malta by the British was finally recognised. This was legalised in
1815 at the Congress of Vienna.
The Maltese got used to British rule
but it was not long before the Maltese appealed to the British for equal
participation in the running of their island. Mitrovich and Sceberras made
extraordinary efforts for this cause, as a result of which a Council of
Government was set up in 1835, a small beginning along the road to
representative government.
Despite slow progress in the field
of constitutional reform, Malta moved ahead, particularly in defence and
imperial strategy. Malta benefited from increased defence spending by Britain.
The dockyards were enlarged with five new dry docks being completed by 187 1.
Malta prospered.
The Crimean War (1854-56) again
brought considerable military activity to the island and Malta's importance as
a supply station and as a naval base was unquestionable. When steam replaced
sails, and after the opening of the Suez canal, Malta thrived. She was now on
the highway between Europe and the East. With every ship calling, the grand
harbour became a beehive of activity from which everybody benefited.
As usual the island's prosperity was
quickly reflected in a dramatic rise in the population. This would continue
well into the 20th century. From 114,000 in 1842, the population rose to
124,000 by 1851. Twenty years later it would reach 140,000 and it would more
than double by the advent of World War II. With each increase, the problem of
congestion, especially in the urban areas of Valletta and the Three Cities,
would become serious. Attempts were made to encourage the people to move to the
newer suburbs and the older towns and villages. Despite the prosperity,
employment for the ever increasing work force would not always be available.
Emigration schemes were introduced which initially were not successful.
However, towards the end of the century, with the trade boom on the decline and
Malta's fortune ebbing, the Maltese started to emigrate, mainly to North
Africa.
The political situation in Malta
before World War I was increasingly overshadowed by the economic gloom that
engulfed the island. The position deteriorated over a long time due to
competition from other well-equipped ports in the Mediterranean. Government
revenue from the slower activities in Malta's ports was falling steeply. It
became clear that Malta's dependence on Britain's military spending was a
severe handicap. Whenever there was a cut in defence spending, the people
suffered.
The winds of change in Europe and
the gathering clouds of war also weighed heavily over Malta, and when World War
I broke out, the people rallied to the allied cause. The naval dockyards again
came into their own - but at the close of the war Malta had to once more face
reality. There were to be severe cutbacks in defence spending. Much hardship
and distress followed. Men were discharged from the army and naval
establishments, unemployment soared and inflation ate its way into the
miserable pay packets. There were strikes and protests. On the 7th June 1919 a
huge and angry crowd gathered in Valletta for one of the meetings of the
assembly. The pent-up frustration of the people suddenly exploded into a riot.
The mob got out of control and caused much damage. Troops were called in and
they opened fire. Five men were killed.
In 1921 Malta achieved responsible
government. Under a new constitution she was to have a legislative assembly
composed of 32 elected members and an upper house of 16 members. All internal
domestic affairs were to be in the hands of the Maltese with Britain retaining
responsibility for foreign affairs and defence.
Germany started the Second World War
in September 1939. Malta was soon in the thick of it, once again coveted for
its great strategic position in the Mediterranean. She was bombed very heavily
by the Italian and German air forces and after two and a half years of
never-ending air raids, the bravery, heroism and sacrifice of its people were
recognised when King George VI awarded the Maltese people the George Cross
Medal.
After the war Britain started the
process of decolonisation. Malta too was part of that process, but her path to
independence was slow and often uncertain. Self-government was restored in
1947, but the decision of the British Government to dismiss workers from the
dockyards caused massive unemployment. Consequently, there began a great exodus
of Malta's people to the United States, Canada and Australia, where work was
available.
Ten years later, Parliament enacted
important changes to the constitution and on the 13th December 1974, Malta was
declared a Republic within the Commonwealth and appointed Sir Anthony Mamo as
the first Maltese President of the Republic of Malta. Five years later, the
last of the British troops on the island left Malta and on 31 March 1979 the
Union Jack was finally lowered. Malta had at last reached the goal for which
its people had striven for many centuries - the ability to make decisions on
their own for their own good and the good of their own people, without any
interference from outside powers. Malta is represented at the United Nations,
takes an active part in European affairs and has finally taken its rightful
place amongst the nations of the world.
