Tuesday, April 24, 2018, Valletta, Malta (St. John Cathedral)

The history of Malta is a long and colorful one dating back to the dawn of civilization. The Maltese islands went through a golden Neolithic period, the remains of which are the mysterious temples dedicated to the goddess of fertility. Later on, the Phoenicians, the Carthaginians, the Romans, and the Byzantines, all left their traces on the islands. In 60 AD St. Paul was shipwrecked on the island while on his way to Rome and brought Christianity to Malta. The Arabs conquered the islands in 870 AD and left an important mark on the language of the Maltese. Until 1530 Malta was an extension of Sicily: The Normans, the Aragonese, and other conquerors who ruled over Sicily also governed the Maltese Islands. It was Charles V who bequeathed Malta to the Sovereign Military Order of St. John of Jerusalem who ruled over Malta from 1530 to 1798. The Knights took Malta through a new golden age, making it a key player in the cultural scene of 17^th and 18^th century Europe.

Long a crossroads of Mediterranean trade and culture, the island of Malta has been shaped by countless civilizations. But it was the Knights of St. John who built Valletta, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. His baroque wonder is one of Europe’s first cities planned and constructed from scratch, cut from the island’s honey-colored limestone. The humble facades of its churches and palaces hide extravagant interiors of marble, tapestries, and paintings. A stroll around the massive, intact walls and bastions affords a magnificent bird’s-eye view of the cityscape and the spectacular Grand Harbor.

Valletta is the capital city of Malta. We visited this UNESCO World Heritage Site and learned about its ties to the Knights Hospitaller. With a local guide, we explored this mighty fortress city, viewing the auberges built to house the knights of the Order of St. John. We saw St. John’s Co-Cathedral, one of Europe’s finest examples of high baroque architecture, in which 375 of the order’s knights and grandmasters are buried. The Cathedral’s most famous work, Caravaggio’s The Beheading of Saint John the Baptist, hangs in the Oratory. We walked the bustling cobblestone streets past the Magisterial Palace of the Grandmaster and the Auberge de Castile, the Prime Minister’s residence.

The following "water" pictures were taken from our starboard side stateroom as we entered the Maltese Harbor. It is the largest harbor in the Mediterranean Sea.

Our first stop on today's shore excursion was at the Maltese War Memorial. Malta suffered heavy bombing and destruction by the Axis Powers during World War II.

Bust of Winston Churchill.

The Auberge de Castille is an auberge in Valletta, Malta. It was originally built in the 1570s to house knights of the Order of Saint John from the langue of Castile, León and Portugal. The present building dates back to the 1740s, when it was completely rebuilt during the magistracy of Manuel Pinto da Fonseca. The new auberge was built in the Baroque style, and it has been called "probably the finest building in Malta." It now houses the Office of the Prime Minister of Malta.

The auberge is located at Castille Place, close to Saint James Cavalier, the Malta Stock Exchange and the Upper Barrakka Gardens. It is situated at the highest point of Valletta and overlooks Floriana and the Grand Harbour area.

The name Castille (or Kastilja in Maltese) is often used as a metonym to refer to the Prime Minister and his office, in a similar sense to how the White House is used to refer to the Executive Office of the President of the United States.

The Royal Opera House, also known as the Royal Theatre, was an opera house and performing arts venue in Valletta, Malta. It was designed by the English architect Edward Middleton Barry and was erected in 1866. In 1873 its interior was extensively damaged by fire but was eventually restored by 1877. The theatre received a direct hit from aerial bombing in 1942 during World War II. Prior to its destruction, it was one of the most beautiful and iconic buildings in Valletta. After several abandoned plans to rebuild the theatre, the ruins were redesigned by the Italian architect Renzo Piano and in 2013 it once again started functioning as a performance venue, called Pjazza Teatru Rjal.

For a detailed explanation of its post World War II political debate regarding its lack of action for rebuilding, please see Royal Opera House recent history

In the 15th century, the eight points of the four arms of the later called Maltese Cross represented the eight lands of origin, or Langues of the Knights Hospitaller: Auvergne, Provence, France, Aragon, Castille and Portugal, Italy, Germany, and England (with Scotland and Ireland).

The eight points also symbolize the eight obligations or aspirations of the knights:

· to live in truth

· to have faith

· to repent one's sins

· to give proof of humility

· to love justice

· to be merciful

· to be sincere and wholehearted

· to endure persecution

Both the Order of Saint John and the Venerable Order of St John teach that the eight points of the cross represent the eight Beatitudes. The Venerable Order's main service organization, St John Ambulance, has applied secular meanings to the points as representing the traits of a good first aider:

· Observant ("that he may note the causes and signs of injury")

· Tactful ("that he may without thoughtless questions learn the symptoms and history of the case, and secure the confidence of the patients and bystanders")

· Resourceful ("That he may use to the best advantage whatever is at hand to prevent further damage, and to assist Nature's efforts to repair the mischief already done")

· Dextrous ("that he may handle a patient without causing unnecessary pain, and use appliances efficiently and neatly")

· Explicit ("that he may give clear instructions to the patient or the bystanders how best to assist him")

· Discriminating ("that he may decide which of several injuries presses most for treatment by himself, what can best be left for the patient or bystanders to do, and what should be left for the medical men")

· Persevering ("that he may continue his efforts, though not at first successful")

· Sympathetic ("that he may give real comfort and encouragement to the suffering")

The Maltese cross as defined by the constitution of the Order of St. John remains the symbol of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, of the Order of Saint John and its allied orders, of the Venerable Order of Saint John, and of their various service organizations. In past centuries, numerous other orders have adopted the eight-pointed cross as part of their insignia (the Order of Saint Lazarus, for example, uses a green eight-pointed cross). In Australia, the eight-pointed cross is part of the state emblem of Queensland.

Grand Master's Palace

St John's Co-Cathedral is a Roman Catholic co-cathedral in Valletta, Malta, dedicated to Saint John the Baptist. It was built by the Order of St. John between 1572 and 1577, having been commissioned by Grand Master Jean de la Cassière as the Conventual Church of Saint John.

The church was designed by the Maltese architect Girolamo Cassar, who designed several of the more prominent buildings in Valletta. In the 17th century, its interior was redecorated in the Baroque style by Mattia Preti and other artists. The interior of the church is considered to be one of the finest examples of high Baroque architecture in Europe.

For the first century of its existence, the church's interior was modestly decorated. However, in the 1660s, Grand Master Raphael Cotoner ordered the redecoration of the interior so as to rival the churches of Rome. Calabrian artist Mattia Preti was in charge of the embellishment, and effectively completely transformed the interior in the Baroque style. The annexes on the side of the cathedral were added later and feature the coat of arms of Grand Master António Manoel de Vilhena who reigned from 1722 to 1736.

St. John's remained the conventual church of the Order until the latter was expelled from Malta with the French occupation in 1798. Over time, the church grew to equal prominence with the archbishop's cathedral at Mdina. In the 1820s, the Bishop of Malta was allowed to use St John's as an alternative see and it thus formally became a Co-Cathedral.

In 1831, Sir Walter Scott called the cathedral a "magnificent church, the most striking interior [he had] ever seen." Later on in the 19th century, Giuseppe Hyzler, a leader of the Nazarene movement, removed some of the Baroque art of the cathedral, including the ornate altar in the Chapel of the Langue of France.

The cathedral's exterior was slightly damaged by aerial bombardment in 1941, during World War II, barely escaping total destruction. The contents of the cathedral had been transferred elsewhere before the bombardment, so no works of art were lost.

The cathedral was restored between the late 1980s and the early 1990s. In 2001, the St. John's Co-Cathedral Foundation was set up to administer and conserve the cathedral and its museum. The sides of the cathedral were restored between 2008 and 2010, and a complete restoration of the exterior began to be carried out in July 2014. This restoration is being directed by architect Jean Frendo and eight restorers. Restoration of the central part of the façade was completed in September 2015, and project completion was expected in 2017.

Today, the cathedral is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Malta, and it is listed on the National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands.