Valletta, Malta’s capital city was built by the Knights of St John, immediately after the Great Siege of 1565. The first stone was laid in 1570. There was a rush to finish the outer fortification because of strong rumours of an imminent assault by the Ottomans even bigger than that of 1565. The new city was named after the greatest Grand Master of the Order, Jean Parisot de La Valette who led the defence of the Island in 1565. Until the advent of the aircraft the city walls were considered impregnable. In fact the French under Napoleon took Malta in 1798 not through an attack but through a cunning ruse. When Lord Nelson and the British fleet in the Mediterranean were requested to help besiege Valletta from the sea side (the Maltese had forced the French to shut themselves within the city walls and besieged them from the landward side) they did not dare try to capture the city because of the fear of being unsuccessful.
These ramparts in the picture are on the Marsamxett side, facing Sliema.
Tomorrow, God willing, I will start posting a series of pictures of our visit to England and Wales.
