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Marsamxett Harbour
Marsamxett Harbour (), historically also referred to as Marsamuscetto, is a natural harbour on the island of Malta. It is located to the north of the larger Grand Harbour. The harbour is generally more dedicated to leisure use than the Grand Harbour. Description The harbour mouth faces north east and is bounded to the north by Dragut Point and Tigné Point. Its northwest shore is made up of the towns of Sliema, Gżira and Ta' Xbiex. The harbour then extends inland to Pietà, Malta, Pietà and Msida. Off Gżira lies Manoel Island, now connected to the mainland by a bridge. The south eastern shore of the harbour is formed by the Sciberras peninsula, which is largely covered by the town of Floriana and the city of Valletta. At its tip lies the 16th century Fort Saint Elmo. The Sciberras peninsula divides Marsamxett from the larger parallel natural harbour, Grand Harbour. Along its partner the Grand Harbour, Marsamxett lies at the centre of gently rising ground. Development has gro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Local Councils Of Malta
Since June 30, 1993, Malta has been subdivided into 68 localities, governed by local councils, , meaning municipalities or boroughs, and considered by the Maltese as the equivalent to basic villages or towns, where appropriate. These form the most basic type of local government and are subdivisions of the country's first-level Regions of Malta, regions. According to the Local Councils Act (Chapter 363 of the Laws of Malta), Art. 3: (1) Every locality shall have a Council which shall have all such functions as are granted to it by this Act ... (5) Each locality shall be referred to by the name as designated in the Second Schedule and any reference to that locality shall be by the name so designated. List of Maltese local councils Political affiliation of mayors List of Maltese and Gozitan local communities councils Elections for these administrative committees were first ever held 2010 Maltese local elections, 27 March 2010, in the first 8 hamlets listed in this list, th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the world's countries participated, with many nations mobilising all resources in pursuit of total war. Tanks in World War II, Tanks and Air warfare of World War II, aircraft played major roles, enabling the strategic bombing of cities and delivery of the Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, first and only nuclear weapons ever used in war. World War II is the List of wars by death toll, deadliest conflict in history, causing World War II casualties, the death of 70 to 85 million people, more than half of whom were civilians. Millions died in genocides, including the Holocaust, and by massacres, starvation, and disease. After the Allied victory, Allied-occupied Germany, Germany, Allied-occupied Austria, Austria, Occupation of Japan, Japan, a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fort Tigné
Fort Tigné () is a polygonal fort in Tigné Point, Sliema, Malta. It was built by the Order of Saint John between 1793 and 1795 to protect the entrance to Marsamxett Harbour. It is one of the oldest polygonal forts in the world. The fort, extensively altered by the British in the 19th century, remained in use by the military until 1979. Fort Tigné was restored in the early 21st century, and it is now in good condition. It has been on Malta's tentative list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites since 1998, as part of the Knights' Fortifications around the Harbours of Malta. History Background and failed proposals A watch post existed on ''Punta di Santa Maria'' (now known as Tigné Point after the fort) in 1417. The post was probably a small unfortified structure, which was manned by three persons. The peninsula played a significant role during the Great Siege of Malta in 1565, when the invading Ottomans built a battery on it in order to bombard, and eventually take, Fort Saint El ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fort Manoel
Fort Manoel ( or ''Fortizza Manoel'') is a star fort on Manoel Island in Gżira, Malta. It was built in the 18th century by the Order of Saint John, during the reign of Grand Master António Manoel de Vilhena, after whom it is named. Fort Manoel is located to the north west of Valletta, and commands Marsamxett Harbour and the anchorage of Sliema Creek. The fort is an example of Baroque architecture, and was designed with both functionality and aesthetics in mind. After a brief French occupation which began in 1798, the British military took over the fort in 1800, and it remained in their use until 1964. The fort was severely damaged in World War II, but it was restored in the early 21st century and is now in good condition. Fort Manoel has been on Malta's tentative list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites since 1998, as part of the Knights' Fortifications around the Harbours of Malta. History Background and failed proposals In the 16th century, the Marsamxett Harbour was on ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lazzaretto Of Manoel Island
The Lazzaretto () is a former quarantine facility and hospital on Manoel Island in Gżira, Malta. It is a complex of various buildings dating back to between the 17th and 19th centuries. Most of the structures still exist, although they are in a bad state due to damage sustained during World War II and over 30 years of abandonment. It is planned that the Lazzaretto be restored. History From 1526 onwards, Marsamxett Harbour began to be used for quarantine purposes. During the plague of 1592–93, a temporary lazzaretto was constructed on the island in the middle of the harbour, then known as the ''Isolotto'' and now called Manoel Island. Some warehouses and a chapel dedicated to Saint Roch were also built at this point, but they were demolished in the late 18th century. The island was also used to isolate patients during a minor plague outbreak in 1623. In 1643, the Grand Master of the Order of St. John, Giovanni Paolo Lascaris, decided to build a permanent lazzaretto due to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dragut
Dragut (; 1485 – 23 June 1565) was an Ottoman corsair, naval commander, governor, and noble. Under his command, the Ottoman Empire's maritime power was extended across North Africa. Recognized for his military genius, and as being among "the most dangerous" of corsairs, Dragut has been referred to as "the greatest pirate warrior of all time", "undoubtedly the most able of all the Turkish leaders", and "the uncrowned king of the Mediterranean". He was nicknamed "the Drawn Sword of Islam". He was described by a French admiral as "a living chart of the Mediterranean, skillful enough on land to be compared to the finest generals of the time" and that "no one was more worthy than he to bear the name of king". Hayreddin Barbarossa, who was his mentor, stated that Dragut was ahead of him "both in fishing and bravery". In addition to serving as Admiral and Corsair in the Ottoman Empire's Navy under Suleiman the Magnificent, Dragut was also appointed Bey of Algiers and Djerba, Beyle ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Great Siege Of Malta
The Great Siege of Malta (Maltese language, Maltese: ''L-Assedju l-Kbir'') occurred in 1565 when the Ottoman Empire attempted to conquer the island of Malta, then held by the Knights Hospitaller. The siege lasted nearly four months, from 18 May to 8 September 1565. The Knights Hospitaller had been Hospitaller Malta, headquartered in Malta since 1530, after being driven out of Rhodes, also by the Ottomans, in 1522, following the Siege of Rhodes (1522), siege of Rhodes. The Ottomans first attempted to take Malta in 1551 but failed. In 1565, Suleiman the Magnificent, the Ottoman Sultan, made a second attempt to take Malta. The Knights, who numbered around 500 together with approximately 6,000 footsoldiers, withstood the siege and repelled the invaders. This victory became one of the most celebrated events of sixteenth-century Europe, to the point that Voltaire said: "Nothing is better known than the siege of Malta." It undoubtedly contributed to the eventual erosion of the European ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Siege Of Tripoli (1551)
The siege of Tripoli was a successful Ottoman siege of the North African city of Tripoli, then held by the Knights Hospitaller, in August 1551. The attack, which was led by Sinan Pasha and Dragut, appears to have been launched in retaliation for the capture of Mahdia by the Spanish and Hospitallers the previous year. The siege followed a brief Ottoman attack on the Kingdom of Sicily and Hospitaller Malta, during which the island of Gozo was invaded and sacked and some 5,000 to 7,000 inhabitants were taken as slaves. The Ottoman forces then sailed to North Africa, where they were bolstered by local forces from Tajura led by Murad Agha. Tripoli was besieged and the city's governor Gaspard de Vallier capitulated after six days of bombardment. Through the intervention of French ambassador Gabriel d'Aramont, the Hospitaller knights and part of the garrison were allowed to depart Tripoli for Malta, while the rest of the garrison was massacred or enslaved. Murad Agha was a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mdina
Mdina ( ; ), also known by its Italian epithets ("Old City") and ("Notable City"), is a fortifications of Mdina, fortified city in the Western Region, Malta, Western Region of Malta which served as the island's former capital, from antiquity to the medieval period. The city is still confined within its walls, and has a population of 250. A natural redoubt, the area of the city has been inhabited since prehistory. A Phoenician Phoenician colonization, colony known as Ann (, ) was established around the sharing its name with the island and presumably acting as its capital. During the Punic Wars, the town was acquired by the Roman Republic, Romans and renamed Melita (ancient city), Melita (, ) after the Greek and Latin language, Latin name for the island, probably taken from the Punic port at Cospicua on the Grand Harbour. Greco-Roman Melite was larger than present-day Mdina. It was reduced to its present size during the period of Byzantine Malta, Byzantine or History of Islam ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Knights Hospitaller
The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem, commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), is a Catholic military order. It was founded in the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem in the 12th century and had headquarters there until 1291, thereafter being based in Kolossi Castle in Cyprus (1302–1310), the island of Rhodes (1310–1522), Malta (1530–1798), and Saint Petersburg (1799–1801). The Hospitallers arose in the early 12th century at the height of the Cluniac movement, a reformist movement within the Benedictine monastic order that sought to strengthen religious devotion and charity for the poor. Earlier in the 11th century, merchants from Amalfi founded a hospital in Jerusalem dedicated to John the Baptist where Benedictine monks cared for sick, poor, or injured Christian pilgrims to the Holy Land. Blessed Gerard, a lay brother of the Benedictine order, became its head when it was established. After the Christian conquest of Jerusalem in 1099 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Invasion Of Gozo (1551)
The invasion of Gozo, also known as the siege of Gozo (), was an Ottoman Empire, Ottoman invasion of the island of Gozo, then part of Hospitaller Malta, in July 1551. The attack, which was led by Sinan Pasha (Ottoman admiral), Sinan Pasha, Dragut, Kambil Bey and Salah Rais, appears to have been launched in retaliation for the Capture of Mahdia (1550), capture of Mahdia by the Habsburg Spain, Spanish and Knights Hospitaller, Hospitallers the previous year. The Ottoman force briefly attacked Sicily before landing on the Malta (island), main island of Malta on 18 July, where the city of Mdina was briefly besieged and some villages were plundered. They then abandoned Malta and landed on nearby Gozo, where the Cittadella (Gozo), Castello was bombarded for two days before its garrison capitulated on 26 July. The fortress was sacked and between 5,000 and 7,000 people – the majority of the island's population – were enslaved and taken to North Africa or Constantinople. The same Ottom ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
