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Malta, officially known as the Republic of Malta, is a small island nation comprising an archipelago of seven islands (Malta, Gozo (Għawdex) Comino (Kemmuna) Filfla, Cominotto (Kemmunett) Manoel, Selmunett (St.Paul's Islands)) in the Mediterranean Sea. A country of Southern Europe, Malta lies south of Sicily, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The country's official languages are Maltese and English. Roman Catholicism is the most practised religion. The islands constituting the Maltese nation have been ruled by various powers and fought over by many states for centuries. Malta has been a member state of the European Union (EU) since 2004 and it is currently the smallest EU country both in population and in area.
Selected Article
Jean Parisot de Valette (born in 1494[?]; died in Malta, 21 August 1568) was born into a noble family in Quercy. He was a Knight of St. John all his adult life, joining the order in the Langue de Provence, and fought with distinction against the Turks at Rhodes and again at Malta. He became Grand Master of the Knights Hospitaller on 21 August 1557.Universally referred to as "La Valette," he was never actually called that during his lifetime. He was simply Jean de Valette, nicknamed Parisot.(The mistake arose some decades after his death when people began to confuse him with the city named in his honor, "La Citta Valletta.") Although his birth year is usually given as 1494, both chroniclers of the Great Siege of Malta, Francisco Balbi di Correggio and Hipolito Sans, say he was 67 at the time, implying that he was born in 1498. In his history of the Order of St John, the 18th-century historian, the Abbe Vertot (whose history is largely based on - but often confuses - the earlier one of Giacomo Bosio), indicates that Valette was indeed the same age as both Suleiman I and Lala Mustafa (the commander of the Ottoman land forces), which would mean that he was actually 70 years old at the time of the Siege. (more...) Selected Locality Sliema (or Tas-Sliema) is a town located on the northeast coast of Malta. It is, relatively speaking, a modern town. It is a center for shopping, restaurants and café life. Sliema is also a major commercial and residential area and houses several of Malta's most recent hotels. Sliema, which means 'peace, comfort', was once a quiet fishing town on the peninsula across Marsamxett Harbour from Valletta. Sliema and the coastline up to neighbouring St. Julian's constitutes Malta's main coastal resort. (more...) Selected PicturePhoto credit: Memecry
The Second Siege of Malta was a significant military event in the Mediterranean Theatre of World War II that occurred between 1940 and 1943 on the island of Malta. The siege was conducted by Italian and German (Axis) military aircraft and ships. Malta was one of the most intensively-bombed areas during war – a total of 3,000 raids occurred during the two years of the siege. The Siege Bell Memorial was constructed to commemorate the victory of the Allied forces in this siege. Did you know
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