Malta and Gozo : the cradle of Mediterranean civilisation

Abstract

Malta, an archipelago of five islands is situated in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea. Put together it is one third the size of the Australian Capital Territory, with nearly 400,000 people. However, there are about 1.1 million Maltese and Gozitans around the world, namely in Australia (400,000), New Zealand (1,000) the United States of America (200,000), Canada (180,000), the United Kingdom (120,000), the rest of Europe (100,000) and the rest found all around the world. Over the centuries the Maltese Islands have been dominated by ten powers; the Sicilians, the Phoenicians and the Carthaginians (700 BC), the Romans (218 BC), the Byzantines (535 AD), the Arabs (890), the Normans (1127), the Swabians (1194), the Angevians (1266) and the Aragonese (1282). In 1530 the archipelago passed under the Knights Hospitallers of Saint John of Jerusalem and after a brief French interlude (1798), the British took over in 1800 until Malta gained independence in 1964. Each people left its mark in the people, culture, and history. [excerpt]