Malta
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Malta 
Throughout much of its history, Malta's location in the Mediterranean Sea has had strategic importance. Malta was conquered and ruled by a sequence of powers including the Phoenicians, Romans, Fatimids, Knights of St John and English. Malta gained its independence from the United Kingdom in 1964 and is currently a member of the European Union, which it joined in 2004. It is also a member of the Commonwealth of Nations and the United Nations.
The island is commonly associated with the Knights Hospitaller who ruled it from the 16th through the 18th Centuries. Along with the historic Biblical shipwreck of St. Paul on the island, this ingrained a strong Roman Catholic legacy responsible for Catholicism being the official and dominant religion in Malta today.
The country's official languages are Maltese and English, although there are strong historical ties to the Italian language on the islands.
Etymology
The origin of the term "Malta" is uncertain, though the modern day variation is from the Maltese language. The more common etymology is that it comes from the Greek word μέλι (meli) ('honey'). The Greeks called the island Μελίτη (Melite) meaning "honey" or "honey-sweet" possibly due to Malta's unique production of honey; an endemic species of bee lives on the island, giving it the common nickname the "land of honey". Not only was there Greek influence on the island as early as 700 BCE,[ but the island was later governed by the Greek-speaking Byzantine Empire from 395 to 870.Another etymology is the Phoenician word Maleth meaning "a haven," in reference to Malta's many bays and coves.
[edit] Ancient civilizations
The Maltese islands were first settled in 5200 BC by stone age farmers who had arrived from the larger island of Sicily, possibly the Sicani. The extinction of the dwarf hippos and dwarf elephants has been linked to the earliest arrival of humans on Malta.
The Sicani were the only known tribe known to have inhabited the island at this time and are generally regarded as related to the Iberians[15]. The population on Malta grew cereals, raised domestic livestock and, in common with other ancient Mediterranean cultures, worshiped a fertility figure represented in Maltese prehistoric artifacts as exhibiting the large proportions seen in similar statuettes, including the Venus of Wille
Pottery from the Għar Dalam phase bares similarities with pottery found in Agrigento, Sicily. This earliest period of Maltese civilization was either supplanted by, or gave rise to, a mysterious culture of megalithic temple builders. The surviving monuments they constructed on Malta and Gozo the the oldest standing stone structures on Earth. The temples were used from 4000–2500 BCE and were constructed with a distinctive architecture, typically a complex trefoil design.
There is some evidence that their rituals included animal sacrifice, however accurate information from this period is tentative. The culture appears to have disappeared from the Maltese Islands around 2500 BCe. Historians and archeologists speculate that the temple builders fell victim to famine or disease. War is discounted as a likely cause and archeological digs on Malta have yielded little or no evidence of weapons.
During 3500 BC, these people built some of the oldest free-standing structures in the world in the form of the megalithic Ġgantija temples on Gozo, other early temples include those at Ħaġar Qim and Mnajdra. Thereafter, the Maltese Islands were depopulated for several decades until the arrival of a new influx of Bronze Age immigrants, a culture that cremated its dead and introduced smaller megalithic structures called dolmens to Malta.
Around 700 BC, the Ancient Greeks settled on Malta, especially around the area now occupied by Valletta. A century later, Phoenician traders, who used the islands as stop on their trade routes from the eastern Mediterranean Sea to Cornwall, joined the natives on the island.
After the fall of Phoenicia, in 400 BC the area came under the control of Carthage, a former Phoenician colony.During this time the people on Malta mainly cultivated olives and carobs, and produced textiles.
During the First Punic War of 218 BC, tensions lead the Maltese people to rebel against Carthage and turn control of their garrison over to the Roman Republic consul Sempronius. Malta remained loyal to Rome during the Syracusan revolt and the Romans rewarded it with the title Foederata Civitas, a designation that meant it would enjoy some autonomy although it fell within the jurisdiction of Sicilia province. The island, then known as Melita, had its capital located in the centre and this carried the same name; the city's present name is Mdina.
In 117 BC, the Maltese Islands were a thriving part of the Roman Empire, being promoted to the status of Municipium under Hadrian. During 60 AD, in the north of the island at Saint Paul's Bay, one of the apostles of Jesus Christ named Saint Paul was shipwrecked on the shores. Tradition holds he stayed in Malta for three months, introducing Christianity and performing various miracles.This is documented in the Bible in the Acts of the Apostles.
When the Roman Empire split into Eastern and Western divisions in the 4th century, Malta fell under the control of the Greek speaking Byzantine Empire which was ruled from Constantinople. Although Malta was under Byzantine rule for four centuries, not much is known from this period. There is evidence that Germanic tribes, including the Goths and Vandals, briefly took control of the islands before the Byzantines launched a counter attack and retook Malta.
[edit] Middle Ages
The Norman period was productive; Malta became part of the newly formed Kingdom of Sicily which also covered the island of Sicily and the southern half of the Italian Peninsula. The Catholic Church was re-instated as the state religion with Malta under the See of Palermo and much Norman architecture sprung up around Malta especially in its ancient capital Mdina. Tancred of Sicily, the last Norman monarch, made Malta and Gozo a feudal lordship or fief within the kingdom and a Count of Malta instated. As the islands were much desired due to their strategic importance, it was during this time the men of Malta were militarised to fend off capture attempts; the early counts were skilled Genoese corsairs.The kingdom passed on to the House of Hohenstaufen from 1194 until 1266. It was under Frederick I that all remaining Muslims were expelled from Malta (in 1229) and the entire Christian male population of Celano in Abruzzo was exported to Malta.
For a brief period the kingdom passed to the Capetian House of Anjou, however high taxes made the dynasty unpopular in Malta, due in part to Charles of Anjou's war against the Republic of Genoa and the island of Gozo was sacked in 1275. A large revolt on Sicily known as the Sicilian Vespers followed these attacks, that saw the Peninsula separating into the Kingdom of Naples; the Kingdom of Sicily, including Malta, then fell under the rule of the Aragonese. Relatives of the kings of Aragon ruled the island until 1409, when it passed to the Crown of Aragon. Early on in the Aragonese reign the sons of the monarchy received the title, "Count of Malta". It was also during this time that much of the Maltese nobility sprang up. However by 1397 the bearing of the title "Count of Malta" reverted to a feudal basis with two families fighting over the distinction, which caused much distress. This led the king to abolish the title. Dispute over the title returned when the title was reinstated a few years later and the Maltese, led by the local nobility, rose up against Count Gonsalvo Monroy. Although they opposed the Count, the Maltese voiced their loyalty to the Sicilian Crown, which so impressed Alfonso IV that he did not punish the people for their rebellion but promised never to grant the title to a third party, instead incorporating it back into the crown. The city of Mdina was nicknamed Città Notabile as a result of this sequence of events.
Knights of Malta and Napoleon
In 1530 Charles I of Spain gave the islands to the Order of Knights of the Hospital of St John of Jerusalem in perpetual lease. These knights, a military religious order now known as the Knights of Malta, had been driven out of Rhodes by the Ottoman Empire in 1522. They withstood a full-blown siege by the Ottoman Turks in 1565, at the time the greatest naval power in the Mediterranean. The knights, fighting alongside the Maltese, were victorious and speaking of the battle Voltaire said, "Nothing is more well known than the siege of Malta".[31]
After this they decided to increase Malta's fortifications, particularly in the inner-harbour area, where the new city of Valletta, named in honour of Grand Master Jean de la Valette, was built. They also built watchtowers along the coasts - the Wignacourt, Lascaris, and de Redin towers - named after the Grand Masters who ordered the work. The Knights' presence on the island saw the completion of many architectural and cultural projects, including the embellishment of Città Vittoriosa, the construction of new cities including Città Rohan and Città Hompesch and the introduction of new academic and social resources.
The Knights' reign ended when Napoleon captured Malta on the way to Egypt during the French Revolutionary Wars in 1798. As a ruse, Napoleon asked for safe harbour to resupply his ships and then turned his guns against his hosts once safely inside Valletta. Grand Master Ferdinand von Hompesch zu Bolheim capitulated and Napoleon stayed in Malta for a few days, during which time he systematically looted the movable assets of the island and established an administration controlled by his nominees. He then sailed for Egypt, leaving a substantial garrison in Malta.
The occupying French forces were deeply unpopular with the Maltese, due particularly to their negative attitude towards religion. Their financial and religious reforms did not go down well with the citizens and the Maltese rebelled, forcing the French to take cover behind the city fortifications. Great Britain, along with the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, sent ammunition and aid to the Maltese and Britain also sent her navy, which blockaded the islands.
The isolated French forces, under General Claude-Henri Belgrand de Vaubois, surrendered in 1800 and the island became a British Dominion, presented by several Maltese leaders to Sir Alexander Ball. The Maltese people created a Declaration of Rights in which they demanded to come "under the protection and sovereignty of the King of the free people, His Majesty the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland". The Declaration also stated that "his Majesty has no right to cede these Islands to any power...if he chooses to withdraw his protection, and abandon his sovereignty, the right of electing another sovereign, or of the governing of these Islands, belongs to us, the inhabitants and aborigines alone, and without control."
British rule and World War II
In 1814, as part of the Treaty of Paris, Malta officially became a part of the British Empire and was used as a shipping way-station and fleet headquarters. Malta's position half-way between Gibraltar and the Suez Canal proved to be its main asset during these years and it was considered an important stop on the way to India. In 1919 a rally protesting new taxation was shot upon by British troops, killing four Maltese men. This lead to increased resistance and support for the pro-Italian parties that had disputed the English presence on the island. The event, known as Sette Giugno (Italian for 7th June), is commemorated every year.
In the early 1930s the British Mediterranean Fleet, which was at that time the main contributor to commerce on the island, was moved to Alexandria as an economic measure. Malta played an important role during World War II, owing to its proximity to Axis shipping lanes. The bravery of the Maltese people in their long struggle against enemy attack moved HM King George VI to award the George Cross to Malta on a collective basis on April 15, 1942 "to bear witness to a heroism and devotion that will long be famous in history". Some historians argue that the award caused Britain to incur disproportionate losses in defending Malta, as British credibility would have suffered if Malta was surrendered, as Singapore had been. A replica of the George Cross now appears in the upper hoist corner of the Flag of Malta. The collective award remained unique until April 1999, when the Royal Ulster Constabulary became the second – and, to date, the only other – recipient of the collective George Cross.
Independence
Following the war, after the Labour Party's unsuccessful attempt at integration with Britain, Malta was granted independence on September 21, 1964 (Independence Day). Under its 1964 constitution, Malta initially retained Queen Elizabeth II as Queen of Malta, with a Governor-General exercising executive authority on her behalf. On December 13, 1974 (Republic Day) Malta became a republic within the British Commonwealth, with the President as head of state. A defence agreement signed soon after independence (and re-negotiated in 1972) expired on March 31, 1979 (Freedom Day) when the British military forces were withdrawn and the Union Flag was lowered for the last time by Admiral Sir John Hamilton GBE, Commander in Chief of the Eastern Mediterranean fleet. Malta adopted an official policy of neutrality in 1980 and was a member of the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries until 2004. In 1989 Malta was the venue of an important summit between US President George H.W. Bush and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, their first face-to-face encounter, which signaled the end of the Cold War.
Malta joined the European Union on May 1, 2004. Following the European Council of 21 June to 22 June 2007 it joined the Eurozone on January 1, 2008.
Politics and government
Malta is a republic, whose parliamentary system and public administration is closely modeled on the Westminster system. Malta had the second highest voter turnout in the world (and the highest for nations without mandatory voting), based on election turnout in national lower house elections from 1960 to 1995.[37] The unicameral House of Representatives, (Maltese: Il-Kamra tad- Deputati), is elected by direct universal suffrage through single transferable vote every five years, unless the House is dissolved earlier by the President on advice of the Prime Minister. The House of Representatives is made up of sixty-five Members of Parliament. However, where a party wins an absolute majority of votes, but does not have a majority of seats, that party is given additional seats to ensure a parliamentary majority. The Constitution of Malta provides that the President appoint as Prime Minister the member of the House who is best able to command a (governing) majority in the House.
The President of the Republic is elected every five years by the House of Representatives. The role of the president as head of state is largely ceremonial. The main political parties are the Nationalist Party, which is a Christian democratic party, and the Labour Party, with Dr. Joseph Muscat as its leader, which is a social democratic party. The Nationalist Party is currently (2008) at the helm of the government, the Prime Minister being Dr. Lawrence Gonzi. The Labour Party is in opposition. There are a number of smaller political parties in Malta that presently have no parliamentary representation.
Until World War II Maltese politics was dominated by the language question fought out by pro-Italian and pro-British parties. Post-War politics dealt with constitutional questions on the relations with Britain (first with Integration then Independence) and, eventually, relations with the European Union.
Administrative divisions
Malta is divided into 68 elected local councils, with each council responsible for the administration of cities or regions of varying sizes. Administrative responsibility is distributed between the local councils and the central government in Valletta. The Local Councils Act, 1993 (Act XV of 1993) was published on June 30, 1993, subdividing Malta into 54 local councils in Malta and 14 in Gozo. The inhabitants who are registered elect the Council every three years, as voters in the Local Councils' Electoral Register. Elections are held by means of the system of proportional representation using the single transferable vote. The mayor is the head of the Local Council and the representative of the Council for all effects under the Act. The Executive Secretary, who is appointed by the Council, is the executive, administrative, and financial head of the Council. All decisions are taken collectively with the other members of the Council. Local councils are responsible for the general upkeep and embellishment of the locality, allocation of local wardens and refuse collection; they also carry out general administrative duties for the central government such as collection of government rents and funds and answer government-related public inquiries.
Local councils
Since 1993 Malta has been subdivided into sixty-eight local councils. These form the most basic form of local government. There are no intermediate levels between local government and national government and the levels of the 6 districts (5 on the main island) and of the 3 regions (2 on the main island) serve primarily statistical purposes.
Geography
Malta is an archipelago in the central Mediterranean Sea (in its eastern basin), some 93 km south of the Italian island of Sicily across the Malta Channel. Only the three largest islands Malta Island (Malta), Gozo (Għawdex), and Comino (Kemmuna) are inhabited. The smaller islands, such as Filfla, Cominotto and the Islands of St. Paul are uninhabited. Numerous bays along the indented coastline of the islands provide good harbours. The islands of the archipelago were formed from the high points of a land bridge between Sicily and North Africa which became isolated as sea levels rose after the last ice age. The archipelago lies on the edge of the African tectonic plate, as it borders with the Eurasian plate.
The modern-day landscape is characterised by low hills with terraced fields. The highest point is at Ta' Dmejrek on Malta Island at 253 metres (830 ft) near Dingli. Although there are some small rivers at times of high rainfall, there are no permanent rivers or lakes on Malta. However, some watercourses are found around the island that have fresh water running all year round. Such places are Baħrija, l-Intaħleb and San Martin. Running water in Gozo is found at Lunzjata Valley.
Malta implemented the Schengen Agreement on December 21, 2007. Customs and border controls remained at airports until March 2008.
Contrary to popular belief, the south of Malta is not Europe's most southern point; that distinction belongs to the Greek island of Gavdos.
Phytogeographically, Malta belongs to the Liguro-Tyrrhenian province of the Mediterranean Region within the Boreal Kingdom. According to the WWF, the territory of Malta belongs to the ecoregion of "Mediterranean Forests, Woodlands and Scrub".
Islands
The main islands, and the only inhabited ones of the country are Malta Island, Comino and Gozo. Other islands that form part of the archipelago include: Cominotto (Kemmunett, uninhabited), Filfla (uninhabited), Fungus Rock (Il-Ġebla tal-Ġeneral, uninhabited), Manoel Island (which is joined to the town of Gżira, on the mainland by a bridge), and the Islands of St. Paul (uninhabited). The Maltese Islands have been an independent republic since 1974. The centre of government, commerce and a primary centre of culture is the capital city of Valletta on the eastern coast of Malta.
Maltese Islands are as the following:
Climate
The climate is Mediterranean (Köppen climate classification Csa), with mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers. There is no real thermal dormant season for plants, although plant growth can be checked briefly by abnormal cold in winter (patches of ground frost may occur in inland locales), and summer heat and aridity may cause vegetation to wilt. Effectively there are only two seasons, which makes the islands attractive for tourists, especially during the drier months. However, strong winds can make Malta feel cold during the springtime.
Water supply poses a problem on Malta, as the summer is both rainless and the time of greatest water use, and the winter rainfall often falls as heavy showers running off to the sea rather than soaking into the ground. Malta depends on underground reserves of fresh water, drawn through a system of water tunnels called the Ta' Kandja galleries, which average about 97 m. below surface and extend like the spokes of a wheel. In the galleries in Malta's porous limestone, fresh water lies in a lens upon brine. More than half the potable water of Malta is produced by desalination, which creates further issues of fossil fuel use and pollution.
The lowest temperature ever recorded at Valletta was on February 19, 1895, with 1.2 °C (34.2 °F), and the highest temperature was 43.8 °C (110.8 °F) recorded in August 1999 at Luqa International Airport. An unofficial lowest temperature of −1.7 °C (28.9 °F) was recorded on February 1, 1962 in the Ta' Qali airfield with snow on the ground.
Snow is virtually unheard of, with very few and brief snow flurries recorded in February 1895, January 1905 and January 31st, 1962. No accumulation has been reported on the coast at least since 1800, but on the last day of January 1962 snow briefly covered some parts of the interior of the main island. The following night the only frost in the history of Malta was recorded in the Ta' Qali airfield.
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