Upon discovering Malta in 1785, the archaeologist Brochtorff supposedly said that it was Malta which best justifies the expression “a faith to move mountains”. Indeed, Malta and Gozo boast around 30 spectacular megalithic sites. These temples are believed to have been built between 5,000 and 2,000 BC, in other words, well before the Egyptian pyramids of Gizeh (around 2,800 BC). These rank among the first stone temples built in the world. The stones often weigh several tons, and some of them measure 6 metres in height. The Hypogeum (troglodytic temple) of Hal Saflieni is one of the most amazing prehistoric buildings in the world: its rooms are located 12 meters below the ground and the archaeologists have discovered numerous human remains there, in addition to stone altars and a statue of a goddess, proving that this was at once a collective burial site and place of worship. We know very little about the people who built these temples, other than that they came from Sicily, and that they used rudimentary implements including sharpened flints and wooden tools. Each of these construction projects must have taken them several decades!

Valetta OT Malte

Upon discovering Malta in 1785, the archaeologist Brochtorff supposedly said that it was Malta which best justifies the expression “a faith to move mountains”. Indeed, Malta and Gozo boast around 30 spectacular megalithic sites. These temples are believed to have been built between 5,000 and 2,000 BC, in other words, well before the Egyptian pyramids of Gizeh (around 2,800 BC). These rank among the first stone temples built in the world. The stones often weigh several tons, and some of them measure 6 metres in height. The Hypogeum (troglodytic temple) of Hal Saflieni is one of the most amazing prehistoric buildings in the world: its rooms are located 12 meters below the ground and the archaeologists have discovered numerous human remains there, in addition to stone altars and a statue of a goddess, proving that this was at once a collective burial site and place of worship. We know very little about the people who built these temples, other than that they came from Sicily, and that they used rudimentary implements including sharpened flints and wooden tools. Each of these construction projects must have taken them several decades!

Megaliths OT Malte

The Order of Malta was derived from the monastic Order of the Hospitallers of Saint John of Jerusalem, founded during the first crusade in 1113 in order to care for pilgrims. The hospitallers’ mission was widened to include the protection of western Christians threatened by Muslims. Knights from all over Christian Europe were engaged in the struggle. They wore a white uniform decorated with the famous cross, which would go on to become the Maltese cross, the universally recognised symbol of the order. The flag of Malta, (red and white embellished with a cross) would be the oldest in the world. From 1530 onwards, the date on which Charles the Fifth gave the island to the knights, the order set up its headquarters in Malta and afterwards bore the name, the Order of Malta. The knights defended the West against the Ottoman Turks, who they fended off during the siege of Valletta in 1565. For two centuries, the order’s fleet protected Christian traders in the Mediterranean. The order also carried out impressive construction work on the island, including palaces, fortifications, etc, and succeeded in turning Malta into a key crossroads for Mediterranean trade until the 18th century. The order remained in Malta until the island was taken by Bonaparte in 1798. It subsequently relocated to Rome, and today has approximately 11,500 knights and more than one million associated members. It still carries out various activities, including hospital and ambulance services.

The order of Malta OT Malte

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