Valletta, Malta 6/28/24

 Valletta, Malta


Valletta, Malta was a WOW from the moment we entered the bay! We have been before, but entering is still magical and was a real trat as we sailed in.  


Valletta has been built on a peninsula in the central eastern part of Malta and has a population of just over 6000 people. Valletta is named after the French Grandmaster Jean Parisot De La Valette who headed the defense of Malta from the Ottoman invasion in 1565. The entire city of Valletta has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Valletta boasts many buildings from the 16th century, mostly baroque architecture that was built by the Knights of St. John. 
 The Knights came to Malta in 1530 after they were evicted from their earlier home on Rhodes by the Turks in 1522 and were noblemen from the most important families of Europe, with their mission to protect the Catholic faith against the Muslim forces. Using Malta as their new base, the Knights continued to fight against the Turks and especially the Barbary pirates. Unhappy to see the order resettled, Ottoman Sultan, Suleiman the Magnificent, sent an invasion force of about 40,000 men to besiege Malta. Despite having a small army of 6,000 soldiers, half of which are civilians and only 500 or so were Knights, the Turks were unable to siege the island. After defending Malta from the Ottomans, the Knights turned Malta into a fortress that befitted a military Order and built a new capital city worthy of noblemen. 




One of the most magnificent baroque buildings in Valletta is the Co-Cathedral of St. John. St. John’s Cathedral is as impressive as St. Marks Basilica on the inside, but the outside is so plain that we weren’t sure if we were at the right place at first glance. It was the religious seat for the Knights of St. John, who enriched it with the finest artifacts of that time. The cathedral's interior is extremely ornate, with carved stone walls, painted vaulted ceiling and side altars with scenes from the life of John the Baptist. The most impressive is the marble floor which is composed of nearly 400 tombstones of Knights and officers of the Order. Each tombstone is inlaid by a colored, marble slab bearing the crest, coat-of-arms and epitaph of the noble knight.





Just strolling around - no tours since we have been here before.



This is Casa Rocco Piccola a 16th century Palazzo, built for a Knight of Malta.  It is the ancestral home of the 9th Marquis of de Piro and his family.  We actually got to meet a gentleman who was one f his descendants and he walked us through parts of the palace.



Such a pretty boy outside on the terrace.



Valletta is one of the ports that will always be at the top of my favorite cities. It is fabulous for history, culture, and food, but the people are its biggest asset in my opinion. They are friendly and don’t make you feel like they resent the tourists, they make you feel just the opposite, like they appreciate you! A lovely day just taking in the sights, but it got quite hot in the afternoon.  Another 15,000+ steps in today...

On to Siracusa, Sicily tomorrow.







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