A history of Malta's political parties (1800-1971) - 1

Abstract

Political parties in Malta may be said to begin about a century ago in the 1880's. Committees, groups, factions and alignments that existed before this date. especially during the time of the Italian risorgimento. did not have the character of parties. But after the increased strategic importance of Malta following the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 and the unification of Italy, at a time when great power rivalry in the Mediterranean and elsewhere became known as ·'the new imperialism", more defined rival groupings emerged to contest political elections as parties. These had a manifesto, a recognisable leadership and base of support. party organs in the form of newspapers. They made electoral battle in the name of the party: candidates contested elections no longer as individuals but as party candidates. Briefly, there were two parties : the so-called Reform Party and the so-called Partite Antiriformista (or Anti-Reform Party). The former was reformist in an anglophile direction, the latter conservative in a patriotic sense. The difference between the parties may be gleaned to some extent from the different type of leader or mentor each had.