Popularly known as il-Festa ta’ Santa Maria, this feast is celebrated on 15th August as a public holiday in many countries, including Lebanon, Italy, Belgium, Portugal, France, Spain, Greece, Chile and MALTA.
The Maltese people have a special veneration for this feast as they consider that the Holy Virgin was always there in their hour of need. This is especially so when in August, 1942, Malta was at the verge of its resistance to the Axis forces which had been bombarding the Island for days on end – 24 hours a day. The Maltese people were starving from lack of food, ammunition for the cannons defending the island was all but finished and fuel was no longer available. The Allies had made several attempts to send supplies to Malta through convoys escorted by British warships but they never reached Malta. In the end a massive convoy was sent to succour the island. The operation, nicknamed Operation Pedestal was bombarded throughout its journey and many ships were lost. Those that made it to the island arrived on 15th August, bringing enough provisions to keep the war in Malta going. Whether by coincidence or not, the Maltese have considered that this happened with the intercession of the Holy Virgin.
The photos which I captured from others - in Malta very famous – show the crippled tanker ‘Ohio’ entering Grand Harbour. It was the last ship to arrive, assisted by warships to keep it afloat, days after the bulk of the arrivals.
thank goodness the supplies came through to the Maltese people! Grrat information and photos Dione. Hope all is well with JP, he hasn't posted a photo for a while
