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Valletta and its monuments
Strolling around Valletta, you can easily find all the most important monuments of great historical importance.
Co-Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist
The most important church of Malta, Co-Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist was completed in 1577. The interior of the temple, as well as its facade, was to be simple and modestly decorated.
However, in the 17th century, Grand Master Raphael Cotoner commissioned the decoration of the church to Mattia Preti, who transformed his interior into a pearl of Baroque art. The vault was decorated with a series of frescoes depicting scenes from the life of Saint John the Baptist. Each element of the cathedral is filled with decorations, and their wealth is simply stunning.
Grandmaster’s Palace
By 1580, the construction of seven auberges (the seats of knights of individual provinces of the Order) was completed, five of them have survived to this day. The distinctive Auberge de Castille (for the Spanish language knights) was significantly rebuilt in the Baroque style in the 18th century. The Grandmaster’s Palace was created between 1571 and 1574.
Sacra Infermeria
However, Valletta of the Knights of Malta is not only churches and palaces. In order to meet the obligation of the Order to serve the sick, Grand Master Jean de la Cassière ordered to built the Holy Infirmary (Sacra Infermeria) in Valletta. It was opened in 1575. Innovative solutions and treatments were used, for example food was served on silver (antibacterial) plates.
The main hall of the Sacra Infermeria could accommodate up to 600 patients and is still one of the largest in Europe, although the hospital rebuilt after war damage no longer fulfills its original function.
Manoel Theater
To provide Knights of Malta with “fair entertainment”, Manoel Theater was created in just 10 months in 1731, entirely financed by Grand Master Antonio Manoel de Vilhena. The theater is currently one of the oldest (still used) in Europe and in the world.
This list of monuments is definitely longer, especially since Valletta is filled with beautiful churches, museums and palaces. You can say that there is something for everyone 🙂 .
Photographs of Valletta of the Knights of Malta
Defensive walls and moat of Valletta 
Hastings Gardens 
Cannons in front of the Auberge de Castille 
Merchants Street and Auberge d’Italie (on the left) 
Auberge de Castille 
St James Cavalier 
Marsamxett Harbour 
Co-Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist 
Co-Cathedral’s interior 
One of the chapels 
The main altar 
St. George’s Square in front of the Grandmaster Palace 
Grandmaster’s Palace 
National Library 
Scene of the Manoel Theater 
Teatr Manoel 
Sacra Infermeria 
Horse carriage 
Beautiful staircase in Sacra Infermeria 
Sacra Infermeria 
Knight of Malta 
Sacra Infermeria 
Fort Ricasoli in the Grand Harbour bay 
Defensive walls at the Fort Saint Elmo 
Fort Saint Elmo 
View of Fort Ricasoli from Fort Saint Elmo 
National War Museum 
Fort Saint Elmo 
Fort Ricasoli and a lighthouse 
Streets of Valletta 
Grand Harbour
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Carly BB
I am a passionate enthusiast of travel, archeology, photography and dancing 🙂 On this page I try to combine the first three elements: P and show you that travelling becomes definitely more interesting when we discover visited places, and often inconspicuous ruins hide the most fascinating stories 🙂