1.
Birgu
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Birgu, also known by its title Città Vittoriosa, is an old fortified city on the south side of the Grand Harbour in the South Eastern Region of Malta. The city occupies a promontory of land with Fort Saint Angelo at its head, Birgu is ideally situated for safe anchorage, and over time it has developed a very long history with maritime, mercantile and military activities. Birgu is a very old locality with its origins reaching back to medieval times, in fact, it served as the base of the Order of Saint John and de facto capital city of Malta from 1530 to 1571. Birgu is well known for its role in the Great Siege of Malta of 1565. In the early 20th century, Birgu had a population of over 6000 people, over the years this decreased, and the population stood at 2,629 in March 2014. Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, Arabs, Normans, the Angevines, the Aragonese, after being driven out of Rhodes by the Ottoman Empire, the Order of Saint John were granted Malta as their new home. In 1526, the Order sent a commission made up of eight knights to Malta and they described Birgu as a small defenceless town with old houses in poor condition. When they arrived in 1530, they decided to make Birgu the capital city of Malta, since the capital, Mdina, was inland. The city was fortified in the 1530s and strengthened in the 1550s in preparation for an attack by the Ottoman Empire and this included the construction of the Castle of St Angelo, a large fortification separated from the city by a narrow channel, instead of the ancient Castrum Maris. The castle was connected to the city by means of a drawbridge, Birgu was the site of major battles between the Knights and the Ottoman Empire during the Great Siege of Malta in 1565. After four months of defence by the Knights, the city was almost captured by the Ottoman army in August. Reinforcements from Sicily arrived a month later, and the siege was abandoned by the Ottomans, after this, a new capital city was built on Mount Sceberras, bearing the name Valletta. In 1571, the Knights transferred their convent and seat to the new capital, despite this, after the Siege, Birgu was given the title Città Vittoriosa, Italian for victorious city. After the taking of Malta by Napoleon in 1798, French forces were garrisoned in the city, soon after the Maltese rebelled and the Grand Harbour area was blockaded by Maltese rebels aided by Britain, Portugal and Naples. The French eventually capitulated in September 1800, and Malta became a British protectorate, the Royal Navys Mediterranean Fleet established its base in Birgu, and British forces remained stationed in Birgu until 1979. Birgu was heavily bombed during World War II due to its proximity to the Malta Dockyard, a number of historic buildings were destroyed, including the Birgu Clock Tower and the Auberge dAllemagne. In recent years, due to an agreement made by the Maltese Government with Sovereign Military Order of Malta and this agreement, which has a duration of 99 years, grants the Knights of Malta the exclusive use of Fort St Angelo in Birgu. Birgu is the location of several tourist attractions, the historic Vittoriosa Waterfront contains the former Palace of the General of the Galleys and the Order of St Johns treasury
2.
Malta
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Malta, officially known as the Republic of Malta, is a Southern European island country consisting of an archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea. It lies 80 km south of Italy,284 km east of Tunisia, the country covers just over 316 km2, with a population of just under 450,000, making it one of the worlds smallest and most densely populated countries. The capital of Malta is Valletta, which at 0.8 km2, is the smallest national capital in the European Union, Malta has one national language, which is Maltese, and English as an official language. John, French and British, have ruled the islands, King George VI of the United Kingdom awarded the George Cross to Malta in 1942 for the countrys bravery in the Second World War. The George Cross continues to appear on Maltas national flag, the country became a republic in 1974, and although no longer a Commonwealth realm, remains a member state of the Commonwealth of Nations. Malta was admitted to the United Nations in 1964 and to the European Union in 2004, in 2008, Catholicism is the official religion in Malta. The origin of the term Malta is uncertain, and the modern-day variation derives from the Maltese language, the most common etymology is that the word Malta derives from the Greek word μέλι, meli, honey. The ancient Greeks called the island Μελίτη meaning honey-sweet, possibly due to Maltas unique production of honey, an endemic species of bee lives on the island. The Romans went on to call the island Melita, which can be considered either as a latinisation of the Greek Μελίτη or the adaptation of the Doric Greek pronunciation of the same word Μελίτα. Another conjecture suggests that the word Malta comes from the Phoenician word Maleth a haven or port in reference to Maltas many bays, few other etymological mentions appear in classical literature, with the term Malta appearing in its present form in the Antonine Itinerary. The extinction of the hippos and dwarf elephants has been linked to the earliest arrival of humans on Malta. Prehistoric farming settlements dating to the Early Neolithic period were discovered in areas and also in caves. The Sicani were the tribe known to have inhabited the island at this time and are generally regarded as being closely related to the Iberians. Pottery from the Għar Dalam phase is similar to found in Agrigento. A culture of megalithis temple builders then either supplanted or arose from this early period, the temples have distinctive architecture, typically a complex trefoil design, and were used from 4000 to 2500 BCE. Animal bones and a knife found behind an altar stone suggest that temple rituals included animal sacrifice. Tentative information suggests that the sacrifices were made to the goddess of fertility, the culture apparently disappeared from the Maltese Islands around 2500 BC. Archaeologists speculate that the builders fell victim to famine or disease
3.
Maritime museum
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A maritime museum is a museum specializing in the display of objects relating to ships and travel on large bodies of water. A subcategory of maritime museums are museums, which focus on navies. Most museums exhibit interesting pieces of ships, ship models, and miscellaneous small items associated with ships and shipping, like cutlery, uniforms, there are thousands of maritime museums in the world. Many belong to the International Congress of Maritime Museums, which coordinates efforts to acquire, preserve. There is a risk too many maritime museums might dilute the experience for the public. A recent activity of maritime museums is to build replicas of ships, since there are few survivors that have not already been restored and put on display. Another is operating a museum harbour, most notably in Germany and the Netherlands but elsewhere too, that offers mooring to privately owned historical vessels, remains of ancient and historic ships and boats can be seen in museums around the world. Where a ship is in a state of preservation it can sometimes act as a museum in its own right. Many museum ships, such as HMS Victory are popular tourist attractions, some ships are too fragile to be exposed outdoors or are incomplete and must be preserved indoors. The remains of the Mary Rose for example are kept in a designed building so that conservation treatment can be applied. Thomas, U. S. Virgin Islands Dossin Great Lakes Museum, Detroit, Michigan, US Florida Maritime Museum, Cortez, Florida, US Great Lakes Floating Maritime Museum, Duluth, Minnesota, US H. C. S. A pictorial treasury of the museums of the world, A guide to the maritime collections, restorations, replicas. The Daily Telegraph Guide to Britains Maritime Past, evans, M. H. & West, J. Maritime museums, A guide to the collections and museum ships in Britain and Ireland. Great maritime museums of the world, new York, Balsam Press in association with H. N. Abrams. Smith, R. H. Smiths guide to maritime museums of North America, stammers, M. Discovering maritime museums and historic ships. Aylesbury, Shire Publications Stanford, J. M, sea historys guide to American and Canadian maritime museums. Old ships, boats & maritime museums, ICMM website Nauticus Norfolk, VA Maritime and Naval Museums in Britain and Ireland USA museum list Non-USA museum list Maritime Museums worldwide Maritime Museums in Europe
4.
Mediterranean Fleet
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The British Mediterranean Fleet was part of the Royal Navy. The first Commander-in-Chief for the Mediterranean Fleet may have named as early as 1665. Though the British had maintained a presence in the Mediterranean before. The British also used Port Mahon, on the island of Minorca, however, British control there was only temporary, Minorca changed hands numerous times, and was permanently ceded to Spain in 1802 under the Treaty of Amiens. In 1800, the British took Malta, which was to be handed over to the Knights of Malta under the Treaty of Amiens, when the Napoleonic Wars resumed in 1803, the British kept Malta for use as a naval base. Following Napoleons defeat, the British continued their presence in Malta, victoria sank within fifteen minutes, taking 358 crew with her. Vice-Admiral Sir George Tryon, commander of the Mediterranean Fleet, was among the dead, of the three original Invincible-class battlecruisers which entered service in the first half of 1908, two joined the Mediterranean Fleet in 1914. They and Indefatigable formed the nucleus of the fleet at the start of the First World War when British forces pursued the German ships Goeben, a recently modernised Warspite became the flagship of the Commander-in-Chief and Second-in-Command, Mediterranean Fleet in 1926. Malta, as part of the British Empire from 1814, was a station and was the headquarters for the Mediterranean Fleet until the mid-1930s. Due to the threat of air-attack from the Italian mainland. In 1940, the Mediterranean Fleet carried out an aircraft carrier attack on the Italian Fleet at Taranto by air. Other major actions included the Battle of Cape Matapan and the Battle of Crete, the Fleet had to block Italian and later German reinforcements and supplies for the North African Campaign. In October 1946, Saumarez hit a mine in the Corfu Channel, the channel was cleared in Operation Recoil the next month, involving 11 minesweepers under the guidance of Ocean, two cruisers, three destroyers, and three frigates. In May 1948, Sir Arthur Power took over as Commander-in-Chief Mediterranean, when later that year Britain pulled out of the British Mandate of Palestine, Ocean, four destroyers, and two frigates escorted the departing High Commissioner, aboard the cruiser Euryalus. The force stayed to cover the evacuation of British troops into the Haifa enclave, when a NATO naval commander, Admiral Robert B. Carney, C-in-C Allied Forces Southern Europe, was appointed, relations with the incumbent British C-in-C, in 1956, ships of the fleet, together with the French Navy, took part in the Suez War against Egypt. In this capacity, he had to employ considerable diplomatic skill to good relations with Dom Mintoff. Eric Groves, in Vanguard to Trident, details how by the mid-1960s the permanent strength of the Fleet was reduced to a small escort squadron
5.
Prehistory
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Prehistory means literally before history, from the Latin word for before, præ, and Greek ιστορία. Neighbouring civilisations were the first to follow, most other civilisations reached the end of prehistory during the Iron Age. The period when a culture is written about by others, but has not developed its own writing is known as the protohistory of the culture. By definition, there are no records from human prehistory. Clear techniques for dating were not well-developed until the 19th century and this article is concerned with human prehistory as defined here above. There are separate articles for the history of the Earth. However, for the race as a whole, prehistory ends when recorded history begins with the accounts of the ancient world around the 4th millennium BC. For example, in Egypt it is accepted that prehistory ended around 3200 BC, whereas in New Guinea the end of the prehistoric era is set much more recently. The three-age system is the periodization of prehistory into three consecutive time periods, named for their respective predominant tool-making technologies, Stone Age Bronze Age Iron Age. The notion of prehistory began to surface during the Enlightenment in the work of antiquarians who used the word primitive to describe societies that existed before written records, the first use of the word prehistory in English, however, occurred in the Foreign Quarterly Review in 1836. The main source for prehistory is archaeology, but some scholars are beginning to more use of evidence from the natural and social sciences. This view has been articulated by advocates of deep history, human population geneticists and historical linguists are also providing valuable insight for these questions. Human prehistory differs from history not only in terms of its chronology, restricted to material processes, remains and artifacts rather than written records, prehistory is anonymous. Because of this, reference terms that use, such as Neanderthal or Iron Age are modern labels with definitions sometimes subject to debate. Palaeolithic means Old Stone Age, and begins with the first use of stone tools, the Paleolithic is the earliest period of the Stone Age. The early part of the Palaeolithic is called the Lower Palaeolithic, evidence of control of fire by early humans during the Lower Palaeolithic Era is uncertain and has at best limited scholarly support. The most widely accepted claim is that H. erectus or H. ergaster made fires between 790,000 and 690,000 BP in a site at Bnot Yaakov Bridge, Israel. The use of fire enabled early humans to cook food, provide warmth, Early Homo sapiens originated some 200,000 years ago, ushering in the Middle Palaeolithic
6.
Mediterranean Sea
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The sea is sometimes considered a part of the Atlantic Ocean, although it is usually identified as a separate body of water. The name Mediterranean is derived from the Latin mediterraneus, meaning inland or in the middle of land and it covers an approximate area of 2.5 million km2, but its connection to the Atlantic is only 14 km wide. The Strait of Gibraltar is a strait that connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea and separates Gibraltar. In oceanography, it is called the Eurafrican Mediterranean Sea or the European Mediterranean Sea to distinguish it from mediterranean seas elsewhere. The Mediterranean Sea has a depth of 1,500 m. The sea is bordered on the north by Europe, the east by Asia and it is located between latitudes 30° and 46° N and longitudes 6° W and 36° E. Its west-east length, from the Strait of Gibraltar to the Gulf of Iskenderun, the seas average north-south length, from Croatia’s southern shore to Libya, is approximately 800 km. The Mediterranean Sea, including the Sea of Marmara, has an area of approximately 2,510,000 square km. The sea was an important route for merchants and travelers of ancient times that allowed for trade, the history of the Mediterranean region is crucial to understanding the origins and development of many modern societies. In addition, the Gaza Strip and the British Overseas Territories of Gibraltar and Akrotiri, the term Mediterranean derives from the Latin word mediterraneus, meaning amid the earth or between land, as it is between the continents of Africa, Asia and Europe. The Ancient Greek name Mesogeios, is similarly from μέσο, between + γη, land, earth) and it can be compared with the Ancient Greek name Mesopotamia, meaning between rivers. The Mediterranean Sea has historically had several names, for example, the Carthaginians called it the Syrian Sea and latter Romans commonly called it Mare Nostrum, and occasionally Mare Internum. Another name was the Sea of the Philistines, from the people inhabiting a large portion of its shores near the Israelites, the sea is also called the Great Sea in the General Prologue by Geoffrey Chaucer. In Ottoman Turkish, it has also been called Bahr-i Sefid, in Modern Hebrew, it has been called HaYam HaTikhon, the Middle Sea, reflecting the Seas name in ancient Greek, Latin, and modern languages in both Europe and the Middle East. Similarly, in Modern Arabic, it is known as al-Baḥr al-Mutawassiṭ, in Turkish, it is known as Akdeniz, the White Sea since among Turks the white colour represents the west. Several ancient civilisations were located around the Mediterranean shores, and were influenced by their proximity to the sea. It provided routes for trade, colonisation, and war, as well as food for numerous communities throughout the ages, due to the shared climate, geology, and access to the sea, cultures centered on the Mediterranean tended to have some extent of intertwined culture and history. Two of the most notable Mediterranean civilisations in classical antiquity were the Greek city states, later, when Augustus founded the Roman Empire, the Romans referred to the Mediterranean as Mare Nostrum
7.
Senglea
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Senglea, also known by its title Città Invicta, is a fortified city in the South Eastern Region of Malta. It is one of the Three Cities in the Grand Harbour area, the citys title Città Invicta was given because it managed to resist the Ottoman invasion at the Great Siege of Malta in 1565. The name is Senglea since the grandmaster who built it, Claude de la Sengle, the island on which Senglea lies was joined by a land bridge to Cospicua during the time of the Knights of St. John and as a result, it became peninsular in shape. During the time of the Knights of St. John, Senglea was also used as a hunting area, in 1311 St. Julians church or chapel was founded in Isola. This was the first building to be constructed on what later became Senglea, on 8 May 1552 the foundation stone of Fort St. Michael was laid. Work on the fort, which was designed by Architect Pedro Pardo, was completed in 1553, construction of walled town Senglea took place during the following decade. The area, which had until the 1550s been known as Isola di San Giuliano or Isola di San Michele, was given city status by Grand Master Claude De La Sengle and was named after him. Senglea played an important role in the Siege of Malta in 1565, the city was given the title Civitas Invicta by Grand Master Jean Parisot de Valette. In 1581 Senglea became a Parish dedicated to the Nativity of Our Lady, the donation of the statue of Our Lady, popularly known as Il-Bambina, is estimated to have occurred in 1618. Many inhabitants of the city were killed in an outbreak of plague which affected Malta in 1676, in 1789 Senglea was involved in the blockade against French forces, who were ousted from Malta in 1800. The city narrowly escaped being hit by another plague in 1813, the parish church was bestowed with the title of Basilica by Pope Benedict XV in 1921. Senglean-born Ignazio Panzavecchia was elected as the first Prime Minister of Malta in the first Self Government Constitution in the same year, because of his ecclesiastical status he decided not to take up the position. Following Panzavecchias refusal Joseph Howard was appointed as Prime Minister, during the Second World War Senglea suffered heavy bombardments which devastated most of the city and killed many of its citizens. On 16 January 1941 a blitz by the Luftwaffe on HMS Illustrious, docked at the nearby Corradino, caused 21 fatalities, king George VI visited the devastated city on 20 June 1943. The newly built Basilica was consecrated by Archbishop Sir Michael Gonzi on 24 August 1957, the following day the Basilica resumed its normal functions after almost 16 years and the statue of Marija Bambina was placed inside its new temple amongst huge celebrations. Pope John Paul II visited Senglea in May 1990, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Luftwaffe bombing of the city, a monument which honours the local victims of both World Wars was unveiled besides the Basilica on 5 September 1991. The first Local Council of Senglea was formed after an election on 3 March 1994, the first mayor of the city was Stephen Perici. The Italian city of Cassino became a city with Senglea in 2003
8.
Arsenal
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An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury or armory are mostly regarded as synonyms, although differences in usage exist. A sub-armory is a place of storage or carrying of weapons and ammunition. From Italian, arsenale, and French, arsenal, from Arabic, دار تعبئة, dār a-tabiya, in a second-class arsenal, the factories would be replaced by workshops. The situation of an arsenal should be governed by strategic considerations. If of the first class, it should be situated at the base of operations and supply, secure from attack, not too near a frontier, the importance of a large arsenal is such that its defences would be on the scale of those of a large fortress. The usual subdivision of branches in a great arsenal is into storekeeping, under construction, Gun factory, carriage factory, laboratory, small-arms factory, harness and tent factory, powder factory, etc. In a second-class arsenal there would be instead of these factories. Frederick Taylor introduced command and control techniques to arsenals, including the U. S. s Watertown Arsenal, armorer Dresden Armory Halifax Armoury Harpers Ferry Armory Kremlin Armoury Royal Arsenal Royal Armouries Springfield Armory Zeughaus Magazine
9.
Navy of the Order of Saint John
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The navy of the Order of Saint John, also known as the Maltese Navy after 1530, was the first navy of a chivalric order. It was established in the Middle Ages, around the late 12th century, the navy reached its peak in the 1680s, during the reign of Grand Master Gregorio Carafa. It was disbanded following the French invasion of Malta in 1798, the Knights Hospitaller were established in around 1099 to take care of pilgrims in the Holy Land. The Order was sanctioned by a bull in 1113. By the mid-12th century, the Order had purchased its first transport ships, eventually, it began building its own ships, and had a shipyard in Acre. In the 1280s, the Order sent some ships to support the Aragonese Crusade, following the loss of Acre in 1291, the Hospitallers moved to Cyprus. Pope Nicholas IV encouraged the Hospitallers and other orders such as the Knights Templar to build their own fleets. The first reference to an admiral of the Hospitaller fleet dates back to 1299, by 1306, the Order had drastically adapted to naval warfare, and it was beginning to become a maritime power. The Order captured the island of Rhodes from the Byzantine Empire in 1309, since the Order was now based on an island, its navy became an essential component for defence. The Order lost Rhodes to the Ottoman Empire after a long siege in 1522. After a couple of years of moving from place to place in Europe, Emperor Charles V offered the Order possession of the islands of Malta and Gozo, and the port of Tripoli. The Order arrived in Malta on 26 October 1530 on a number of ships, including the San Giovanni, Santa Croce, San Filippo, and the flagship Santa Anna. While based in Malta, the Order and its navy participated in a number of battles against the Ottoman Navy or the Barbary pirates. The Order sent a carrack and four galleys to support the Spanish Empire and it also participated in the Battle of Preveza, the Algiers expedition and Battle of Djerba, in which the Ottomans were victorious over the Christian forces. Four of the Orders galleys, Santa Fè, San Michele, San Filippo and San Claudio and they were replaced with funds sent from Spain, the Papal States, France and the Prior of St. Giles. One galley was built at the expense of Grand Master Claude de la Sengle, when the city of Valletta began to be built in the 1560s, there were plans to build an arsenal and mandracchio for the Orders navy. The arsenal was never built, and while work started on the mandracchio, it stopped, eventually, an arsenal was built in Birgu in 1597. A dock was built in Vallettas ditch in 1654, but it closed in 1685, three of the Orders ships participated in the Battle of Lepanto of 1571, which was a decisive victory for the Holy League
10.
Windsor Castle
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Windsor Castle is a royal residence at Windsor in the English county of Berkshire. It is notable for its association with the English and later British royal family. The original castle was built in the 11th century after the Norman invasion of England by William the Conqueror, since the time of Henry I, it has been used by the reigning monarch and is the longest-occupied palace in Europe. Inside the castle walls is the 15th-century St Georges Chapel, considered by the historian John Martin Robinson to be one of the achievements of English Perpendicular Gothic design. Gradually replaced with stone fortifications, the castle withstood a siege during the First Barons War at the start of the 13th century. Edwards core design lasted through the Tudor period, during which Henry VIII and Elizabeth I made increasing use of the castle as a royal court and centre for diplomatic entertainment. Windsor Castle survived the period of the English Civil War, when it was used as a military headquarters for Parliamentary forces. At the Restoration of the monarchy in 1660, Charles II rebuilt much of Windsor Castle with the help of the architect Hugh May, Queen Victoria made a few minor changes to the castle, which became the centre for royal entertainment for much of her reign. Windsor Castle was used as a refuge for the family during the Luftwaffe bombing campaigns of the Second World War. It is a popular tourist attraction, a venue for hosting state visits, today, more than 500 people live and work in Windsor Castle, making it the largest inhabited castle in the world. Windsor Castle occupies 13 acres, and combines the features of a fortification, a palace, the present-day castle was created during a sequence of phased building projects, culminating in the reconstruction work after a fire in 1992. It is in essence a Georgian and Victorian design based on a medieval structure, since the 14th century, architecture at the castle has attempted to produce a contemporary reinterpretation of older fashions and traditions, repeatedly imitating outmoded or even antiquated styles. Although there has some criticism, the castles architecture and history lends it a place amongst the greatest European palaces. At the heart of Windsor Castle is the Middle Ward, a formed around the motte or artificial hill in the centre of the ward. The motte is 50 feet high and is made from chalk originally excavated from the surrounding ditch, the Round Tower is in reality far from cylindrical, due to the shape and structure of the motte beneath it. The western entrance to the Middle Ward is now open, the eastern exit from the ward is guarded by the Norman Gatehouse. Wyatville redesigned the exterior of the gatehouse, and the interior was later converted in the 19th century for residential use. The Upper Ward of Windsor Castle comprises a number of major buildings enclosed by the bailey wall
11.
Valletta
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Valletta is the capital city of Malta, colloquially known as Il-Belt in Maltese. The historical city has a population of 6,444, while the area around it has a population of 393,938. Valletta is the southernmost capital of Europe and the second southernmost capital of the European Union after Nicosia, Valletta contains buildings from the 16th century onwards, built during the rule of the Order of St. John also known as Knights Hospitaller. The City of Valletta was officially recognised as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1980, the official name given by the Order of Saint John was Humilissima Civitas Valletta—The Most Humble City of Valletta, or Città Umilissima in Italian. The building of a city on the Sciberras Peninsula, originally called Xaghriet Mewwija, had proposed by the Order of Saint John as early as 1524. Back then, the building on the peninsula was a small watchtower dedicated to Erasmus of Formia. In 1552, the watchtower was demolished and the larger Fort Saint Elmo was built in its place, in the Great Siege of 1565, Fort Saint Elmo fell to the Ottomans, but the Order eventually won the siege with the help of Sicilian reinforcements. The victorious Grand Master, Jean de Valette, immediately set out to build a new fortified city on the Sciberras Peninsula to fortify the Orders position in Malta, the city took his name and was called La Valletta. The Grand Master asked the European kings and princes for help, pope Pius V sent his military architect, Francesco Laparelli, to design the new city, while Philip II of Spain sent substantial monetary aid. The foundation stone of the city was laid by Grand Master de Valette on 28 March 1566 and he placed the first stone in what later became Our Lady of Victories Church. De Valette died from a stroke on 21 August 1568 at age 74, originally interred in the church of Our Lady of the Victories, his remains now rest in St. Johns Co-Cathedral among the tombs of other Grand Masters of the Knights of Malta. Francesco Laparelli was the principal designer and his plan departed from medieval Maltese architecture. He designed the new city on a grid plan. The streets were designed to be wide and straight, beginning centrally from the City Gate and ending at Fort Saint Elmo overlooking the Mediterranean and his assistant was the Maltese architect Girolamo Cassar, later oversaw the construction of the city himself after Laparellis death in 1570. The Ufficio delle Case regulated the building of the city as a planning authority, seven Auberges were built for the Orders Langues, and these were complete by the 1580s. An eighth Auberge, Auberge de Bavière, was added in the 18th century. During António Manoel de Vilhenas reign, a town began to form between the walls of Valletta and the Floriana Lines, and this evolved from a suburb of Valletta to Floriana, a town in its own right. In 1749, Muslim slaves plotted to kill Grandmaster Pinto and take over Valletta, in 1798, the Order left the islands and the French occupation of Malta began
12.
Victualling Commissioners
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Under Elizabeth I, a General Surveyor of Victuals had been appointed in 1550 a principal officer of the Navy Board to oversee contracts for food and other provisions for the Navy. At first the Victualling Office was accommodated in the Tower of London, the complex included storehouses, ovens, brewhouses and bakeries. By the time of the Anglo-Dutch Wars, however, the system was breaking down, as a result of this, a salaried Board of Commissioners was established in 1683, and this body retained oversight of victualling for the next 150 years. Though nominally under the direction of the Navy Board, the Victualling Board was effectively independent, the Victualling Board took over certain functions, including medical services, from the Transport Board on its dissolution in 1817. In 1862 transport duties passed to a separate Transport Department and in 1869 the office of Comptroller of Victualling was abolished, there were seven Commissioners, the aforementioned six, plus the Chairman. In 1725, the Victualling Commissioners, the Navy Board, the Sick and Hurt Commissioners, by 1739 the various Victualling Office facilities cost the state £16,241 to maintain, in addition to expenses for the purchase of victuals. In 1747, during the War of the Austrian Succession, this had risen to £30,393, in due course facilities were consolidated into Victualling Yards each with several processes and related storehouses accommodated on a single site. The Yards had deep-water wharves and were accessible from the major anchorages used by the Fleet, under normal circumstances, ships due to set sail were expected to come to the nearest Yard to be loaded up with provisions. These would include preserved foodstuffs designed to last weeks or even months, ships biscuit, salted beef, salted pork, pease, oatmeal, butter, cheese and beer. Most of these items were transported and stored in casks, which were manufactured by the Board in large numbers at its on-site cooperages. In addition, the Victualling Yards provided fresh meat, bread, there was ongoing awareness of the need to stamp out corruption and improve quality. The reason so much of the process took place in-house was to guarantee a level of quality. It was far easier to gauge the quality of raw materials than it would have been to evaluate finished product bought in from other providers, therefore the Commissioners oversaw not only supply, but manufacture, of beer from hops, of flour from grain, of meat from livestock. Though by no means perfect the system improved, if the food was of poor quality. Modern research has shown that the diet during the mid-eighteenth century contained nearly twice as many calories per day than was available to men on shore or in the British Army. The single largest contributor of calories was beer, of which the Victualling Board purchased sufficient quantity that each sailor could consume a ration of one gallon per day. Food - principally bread, pork, beef, peas and oatmeal - was provided by the Board as stores for up to six months at a time, by the late 1750s this diet was supplemented with portable soup. The quality of food was also improved, by the period of the Napoleonic Wars only about 1% of supplies were actually condemned as unfit to eat
