Buildings from the Knight’s Period

St John's Co-Cathedral

St John's Co-Cathedral – Vallettais a Roman Catholic co-cathedral  dedicated to Saint John the Baptist. It was built by the Order of St. John between 1572 and 1577,The church was designed by the Maltese architect Girolamo Cassar, its interior is made 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.]

You can also find the famous painting The Beheading of St.John the Baptist as well as a self portrait by the well known Italian painter Caravaggio. The marble pavement consists of 350 tomb stones each made of intricately inlaid marble.

The Manoel Theatre The Manoel Theatre was built under the Grand Master Manoel De Vilhena of Portugal in the Baroque style of the time. The designer was Romano Carapecchia. It is the third oldest theatre in all of Europe that is still in use today.During the Second World War it was used to give shelter during aerial bombardments.For a short time it was also used as a movie theatre.

Selmun Castle Selmun Castle -  Mellieħa is an example of 18th century military architecture. It sits at the top of a hill. Made under the reign of Grandmaster De Rohan. It was built as a country villa for the Order of the Knights, however it still had to be fortified in case of an attack.

Sagra Infermeria Sagra Infermeria - VallettaThe hospital of the Order, it was planned as soon as Valletta was built. It was constructed near the sea to facilitate bringing the wounded up from the galleys in the grand harbour.Unlike the original Sagre Infermeria built in Birgu which only looked after male patients this hospital in Valletta would accept all patients.It was regarded as one of the best in all of Europe in its time.Today is the Mediterranean Conference Center or MCC.

Verdala PalaceVerdala Palace –Rabat. Built by Grand Master Verdala. It is built on high grounds overlooking Buskett. It was built as a country retreat but was fortified making it look like a castle. It is used as the summer residence for the president of Malta. The architect is Girolamo Cassar and the inside frescos are by Filippo Paldini.

Grand Masters Palace Grand Masters Palace – VallettaBuilt by the architect Girolamo Cassar, it was the official residence of the head of the Order. Of note is a permanent collection of tapestries called ‘The Marvels of the Indies’ made at the famous Gobelin factory in Paris.

San Anton Palace San Anton Palace – AttardContains an important collection of Majolica. It is the official residence of the President of Malta. Originally this Palace was built as a summer residence by the Knight Fra Antoine De Paul at the beginning of the 17th century. When he became the 13th Grand Master of Malta in 1623, he added to the original building and enlarged the gardens around the palace

Bibliotheca – VallettaThe National Library of Malta, often known as The Bibliotheca. It is situated in the Queen’s square. The oldest document in the library dates back to 1109. The Sicilian architect Stefano Ittar designed it. It was built during the time of the Grand Master de Rohan .

Seven AubergesWhen the Knights moved to Valletta from Vittoriosa they built seven magnificent houses known as auberges each to house the different languages of the Order. These were the headquarters of the different ethnic groups into which the knights were divided. These were built between 1571-1590 by the Maltese architect Girolamo Cassar.

Four of these auberges are still in use today but some were destroyed during the war.

Auberge de Castille

Auberge D’Aragon

Auberge D’Italie

Auberge De Provence

1. Auberge D’Allamagne was demolished to make room for the Anglican Cathedral of St. Paul.

2.Auberge D’Auvergne was demolished during the war and it has now been replaced with the law courts.3. Auberge De France was also demolished during the war and it has now been replaced by the Workers Memorial Building.

*4. Auberge de Castille is the most magnificent of the seven, today houses the Office of the Prime Minister. It is a classic example of Baroque Architecture.

*5. Auberge D’Aragon, just opposite the former Auberge de Allemagne today houses the Minister of Finance.

*6. Auberge D’Italie Until recently, it housed the Malta Tourism Authority. It has now been converted to host the National Museum of Fine Arts, which is known by the name MUŻA.

*7. Auberge De Provence today houses the National Museum of Archaeology.

Instructions: Once you have read through each of the 15 buildings. Find a partner and check to see how much you can recall about each, aim for 3-4 facts about each. Things like architect, location, style of architecture, unique features, historic role or present usage.Then quiz each other by describing aspects and trying to guess which building you are speaking of.