Malta 25 Birgu or Citta Vittoriosa1

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Malta
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Birgu, or Cittá Vittoriosa 
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Birgu, or Cittá Vittoriosa is one of the oldest
city on the Island, and it played an important
role in the Siege of Malta in 1565. Birgu was
once a main city and has a long history of
military and maritime activities. Birgu is
ideally situated for safe anchorage, and over
time it has developed a very long history with
maritime, mercantile and military activities.
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The Three Cities offer an intriguing insight into
Malta and its history. Left largely unvi-sited,
these cities are a slice of authentic life as
well as a glimpse into Malta's mari-time
fortunes.   The Three Cities can rightly claim to
be the cradle of Maltese history, as Vittoriosa,
Senglea and Cospicua have provided a home and
fortress to almost every people who settled on
the Islands
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  Their harbour inlets have been in use since
Phoenician times the docks always providing a
living for local people, but also leaving them
vulne-rable when Malta's rulers were at war. As
the first home to the Knights of St. John, the
Three Cities' palaces, forts, churches and
bastions are far older than Valletta's. The
Three Cities are on the opposite side of the
Grand Harbour to Valletta, one can see the
peninsulas beautifully from any-where on the
south side of the capital facing the water
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Birgu, also known by its title Città Vittoriosa,
is an old fortified city on the south side of the
Grand Harbour in the South Eastern Region of Malta
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Birgu is ideally situated for safe anchorage, and
over time it has developed a very long history
with mercantile, maritime and mili-tary
activities. Birgus position in the Grand
harbour was of great impor-tance and several
military leaders wanted to take over the city.
Birgu was the site of major battles bet-ween the
Knights and the Ottoman Empire during the Great
Siege of Malta in 1565
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Birgu
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The Three Cities seen from the Saluting Battery
at the Upper Barrakka Gardens, Pjazza Kastilja in
Valletta
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Fort St Angelo
Birgu is a very old locality with its origins
reaching back to medieval times. Prior to the
establishment of Valletta as capital and main
city of Malta, military powers that wanted to
rule the Maltese islands would need to obtain
control of Birgu due to its significant position
in the Grand Harbour. In fact, it served as the
base of the Order of Saint John and de facto
capital city of Malta from 1530 to 1571
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Fort St. Angelo, centre of Malta's defensive
system
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In recent years, due to an agreement made by the
Maltese Government with Sovereign Military Order
of Malta, this Catholic Order of Knighthood has
returned to the Island. This agreement, which
has a duration of 99 years, grants the Knights of
Malta the exclusive use of Fort St Angelo in Birgu
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Fort Saint Angelo at the tip of Vittoriosa as
seen from Valletta from across the Grand Harbour
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Birgu Vittoriosa Cottonera Marina
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Birgu Vittoriosa Cottonera Marina
Having been a Phoenician/Carthaginian settlement
as well as a Greek trading post, Birgu is
probably older than Mdina. In the early 20th
century, Birgu had a population of over 6000
people. Over the years this decreased, and the
population stood at 2,629 in March 2014 The part
of Birgu which faces Isla, also known as Senglea
(the second of the 'Three Cities', after Birgu)
has been developed into a yacht marina
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The Collegial Parish Church of St Lawrence
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The Collegial Parish Church of St Lawrence
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The Freedom Monument by Anton Agius (1933
2008) stands directly in front of the Parish
Church of St. Lawrence, at the Dockyard Creek. It
should symbolize the removal of the last British
troops from Malta. On the 31st March 1979 the
last frigate left the harbor of Malta. That
marked the end of 180 years ongoing
military-presence on the island. The statues
should represent Maltese saying good-bye to the
British
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The Freedom Monument by Anton Agius (1933
2008)
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Opuntia ficus indica
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Opuntia ficus indica  Indian fig opuntia, Barbary
fig, cactus pear, spineless cactus, or prickly
pear
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 In Malta, a liqueur called bajtra (the Maltese
name for prickly pear) is made from this fruit,
which can be found growing wild in most every
field
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Admiralty gate at Vittoriosa, Passage to the
former military port
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Admiralty gate
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Admiralty gate
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This gate was built by the British Admiralty in
1860 to facilitate traffic to Dockyard Creek
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Due to its proximity to the Malta Dockyard the
entire area was devastated by Nazi bombers during
WWII, and so much of the towns are rebuilt
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Church of St Lawrence 1530, destroyed by fire,
rebuilt 1692, completely finished 1913
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Church of St Lawrence
Natalie
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The monument to Vittoriosa war victims on the
site where they lost their lives on January 16,
1941
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Thirty-five inhabitants of Vittoriosa who were
sheltering in the crypt of St. Lawrence's Parish
church were killed when the church suffered a
direct hit
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St.Joseph Oratory
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Oratory of St. Joseph, altar with the icon of Our
Lady of Damascus
Oratory of the Holy Crucifix (and behind it St.
Joseph's Oratory)
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St.Joseph Oratory built in 1832
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In 1806, Birgu's gunpowder magazine exploded,
killing over 200 people
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Pjazza Vittoriosa (Victory Square) in the centre
of Vittoriosa (Birgu)
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Pjazza Vittoriosa (Victory Square) in the centre
of Vittoriosa (Birgu)
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Statue of St. Lorenz was constructed in 1880
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Statue of St. Lorenz
Statue celebrating the 1565 victory
Victory Monument built in 1705
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Victory Monument built in 1705
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in Main Gate Street memorial to St. Dominic,
founder of the Dominican order
St. Dominic
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Text Internet Pictures Sanda Foisoreanu
Gabriela Cristescu
Internet All copyrights belong to
their respective owners Presentation Sanda
Foisoreanu
2017
Sound Mary Spiteri - Malta Renato - Ma
Nichdek Qatt