As a walled city, Mdina’s immense ancient ramparts rising up from the surrounding countryside, give the town a fairy-tale charm. The old city dates back to the Bronze Age, its fortifications were built in the Romans, Arabs, Normans, Spaniards and Knights, and through St Paul’s shipwreck, Mdina, known as Melite, was mentioned in the Bible! The most obvious influence of the Arab occupation is Mdina’s labyrinthine street plan and by following our tour below, you will be transported into the past.
The old capital was occupied by the Phoenicians/”>Phoenicians until the Romans conquered Malta in 218 BC. Back then Mdina was much larger, its walls enclosing a large part of Rabat but it was reduced in size to make it more defensible by the Byzantines who were overthrown by Arab forces who changed the name of the city to Mdina.
After the Normans took over, bringing the Maltese Islands back into the Christian fold in 1090 AD, many noble families settled in Mdina; however, the Maltese Islands passed to the German Hohenstaufen dynasty followed by the Angevins from France. The Maltese noble families gained importance after a Royal Charter dated 20th June 1482 from King Alfonso V confirmed the right of the Maltese to enjoy a degree of independence, setting up a local government, the Universita, in Mdina.
When the Knights of St John arrived, this self-governing power was lost, which caused much resentment among the the nobles. Since Mdina’s fortifications were weak and the Knights needed to be close to their galleys in harbour, they defused the situation by making Birgu their base, leaving the nobles to their splendid isolation in Mdina. It was only after the highly destructive earthquake of 1693 that the Knights of St John moved in and left their imprint through the remodelling of Mdina.
MDINA TOUR
As you approach Mdina gate which was seen in ‘Game of Thrones’, you’ll see sculptured weapons, lions guarding the gate, and Grandmaster de Vilhena’s crest, all intended to show who was boss in Mdina in the age of autocracy. Mdina and its nobles had been been ignored for a long time but after the great 1693 earthquake, Manoel de Vilhena took the opportunity to imprint the Order’s image on Mdina, commissioning French Engineer Charles Francois de Mondion to remodel the old city and its defenses in the Order’s image.
Look to the right of Mdina’s gate where the remains of the old Arab drawbridge gate can be seen. This gate led to a labyrinthine entrance to the old city: all those who entered had to zig-zag through a narrow passage before entering the citadel, which would allow the defenders to ambush invaders if they got through the gate.
De Redin Bastion rises out of the deep moat beneath the bridge, forming part of Malta’s fortifications which were among the most advanced of their day. Cross at Mdina Gate which used to be a wooden drawbridge, and on the inside, you’ll see a lunette sculpted in high relief showing the three patron saints of the city: Saint Publius, Saint Paul and Saint Agatha. On the left, the Torre dello Standardo watchtower was an important link in the chain of towers that protected Malta. By lighting a fire on the roof of this tower a warning would be passed to surrounding villages that enemy corsairs were approaching Malta.
Palazzo Vilhena was constructed by Grandmaster de Vilhena on the site of the medieval Arab entrance into Mdina. Built in 1726, Vilhena Palace is one of the best works by the Order’s French resident engineer, François de Mondion in the Parisian Baroque style; look up at the arches around the courtyard set like theatre boxes to watch the ceremonies that were so loved in Baroque times. Vilhena Palace which served as a hospital during the 1847 cholera outbreak and continued to serve as a tuberculosis hospital until the early 20th century. The Palazzo now serves as the National Museum of Natural History, displaying insects, birds, habitats and marine ecosystems.
Turning down to the right, the Xara Palace, currently a hotel, dates from the 15th century; the Town Herald used to read proclamations issued by the Universita’ from the long stone balcony or Herald’s Loggia there. Opposite the Xara Palace, the Corte Capitanale, (part of Palazzo Vilhena) was the Courts of Justice, its statues of Mars, the God of war, and Justice, reminding the population that the Order would not hesitate to impose order through justice or the sword. Today the Corte Capitanale houses the Mdina Local Council.
The Chapel of St Agatha dates back to 1410 but after being damaged in the 1693 earthquake it was rebuilt on the design of Lorenzo Gafa and during WWII was sheltered refugee families. After peeping into this tiny gem with its painting of Saint Agatha, walk on to the Convent of St Benedict, set up in 1418 and its adjoining Chapel of St Peter with its elaborate altar and altarpiece by Mattia Preti dating from 1682, depicting the Madonna and child with Saint Peter, St Benedict and St Scholastica. The chapel also includes the remains of Blessed Maria Adeodata Pisani, a cloistered nun who lived in the monastery in the 19th century, beatified by Pope John Paul II in 2001.
The house opposite with an imposing portal in Triq Villegaignon is Casa Inguanez, home to Malta’s oldest aristocratic family. Parts of the Palazzo date back to the 14th century and if you walk round the house-corner into Triq Iguanez, you will see the house’s beautiful old door with its famous knockers, and its beautiful tiny ‘secret’ walled garden across the lane. Walk down to Pjazza Mesquita, a serene, uniquely medieval square for Malta with its village well and very rare muxrabija viewing boxes or windows.
Continue down Triq Mesquita to see Greek’s Gate, with its pointed Norman arch, the only surviving medieval entrance in Malta, also set within the original medieval rampart – most of the stones in this inner wall were re-utilised from earlier Punic and Roman buildings as can be seen from their large size. The outer gate consists of a Baroque portal, decorated with coats of arms and a Latin inscription. A guardhouse was located inside the passageway between the gates. Greek’s Gate was the only gate slaves were allowed to enter and got its name from the small Greek community who were mostly occupied in humble occupations like garbage collection which was strictly regulated in order to avoid disease in the citadel.
Walk back up Triq Mesquita to the 14th century Gatto-Murina Palace in Triq Gatto Murina and look up to the right to admire the Norman Gothic Chiaramonte double windows together with the wall sculplture. Other pointed arches converted to square doors can be made out in Mdina’s streets.
Turn up right and the narrow street opens onto Mdina’s glorious main square dominated by St. Paul’s Cathedral. It had already been decided to demolish the old 13th Century Romanesque Cathedral on that site when nature intervened, in the form of the violent 1693 earthquake that demolished much of the Cathedral. The Baroque twin-belfried cathedral was rebuilt in 1702, and is decorated by fine clocks. Accroding to legend, the clock on the left was purposely placed there to confuse the devil since it does not appear to tell the correct time. In reality it shows the date and month of the year. The Cathedral is regarded as the renowned Maltese architect Lorenzo Gafà’s masterpiece and boasts a very fine dome fresco, works by Mattia Preti, and inlaid tombstones. Many streets and houses were destroyed to create an open square in front of the cathedral befitting the size and splendour of the church.
A ticket to the Cathedral of Saint Paul includes the Cathedral Museum. Housed in the cathedral’s grand Baroque seminary, the museum’s collection includes Roman antiquities, engravings by Rembrandt, woodcuts and copperplates by Albrecht Durer, archived documents from the Inquisition, a rare coin collection spanning 2000 years, many masterpieces of European painting, especially works from Spain as well as the Cathedral’s fine medieval Polyptych of Saint Paul.
Walking back up the square, take a look at the Banca Giuratale on Villegianon Street, built in 1730 as the new ‘Universita’. The stunning portal is richly decorated with armour, arms and flags while roof sculptures symbolising the Knights’ military power look down on the nobles from the roof of the building, reminding them that it is the Knights who now rule over Mdina. With the Cathedral on your right, walk past Palazzo Santa Sofia, built in 1233 and thought to be the oldest surviving building in the citadel, though the upper floor was built in the 20th century.
The Carmelite Church, designed by the French military engineer Mederico Blondel (1628-1698), is remembered for the riot that led to the Maltese revolt against the French in 1798, triggered when the French were about to steal the church’s precious damask hangings. Maltese rebels immediately locked the doors of the church as the French approached and, it is said, a young boy climbed up to the belfry to sound the alarm. The Carmelite Priory is still a functioning monastery and is the only priory in Malta open to the public. Guided tours take visitors to the Refectory the Carmelite Church, the kitchen, and a typical friar’s cell. In the chapels of the exquisite oval domed church are masterpieces of art from the 17th to 19th centuries and the Carmelite Church is considered one of the most important Maltese Baroque churches.
Palazzo Falson generally known as the Norman House, is the best-preserved and second-oldest building in Mdina dating to the early 14th century – its beautiful double windows, divided by slender calonettes date from the 15th century. The house has a colourful past, from the notorious Matteo Falsone who in 1574 was tried by the Inquisition, to Captain Olof Gollcher who bought it in 1927 and proceeded to amass an eclectic and eccentric horde of antiques. Recently restored, these now form a fascinating collection including silver, furniture, oriental carpets, a rare collection of books and manuscripts, jewellery, armour and much more.
From the belvedere of Bastion Square one can view most of Malta, from Paola to Valletta, Sliema and Mosta with its very visible Rotunda church dome. Mtarfa is the nearest hill to the left, a hospital town built to accommodate the wounded of WWI when Malta was the ‘Nurse of the Mediterranean’.
No visit to Malta is complete without a visit to Fontanella, the tea-rooms on the bastions, renowned for their delicious Maltese pastizzi and cakes. After all this walking, you’ve earned them!
We suggest you visit Mdina in the afternoon, when the crowds have thinned, that way you’ll end your tour in the evening, when Mdina is at its most romantic and photogenic. Cars are not allowed to enter Mdina so park in one of the two car parks outside Mdina gates or take a bus following the Moovit link below.
REFERENCES:
https://web.archive.org/web/20110317065729/http://www.militaryarchitecture.com/index.php/Building-Methods/porta-grecorum.html
http://www.kappellimaltin.com/Il-Kappelli/Sett11/MDN_S_Pietru_S_Benedettu/mdn_s_pietru_s_benedettu.html
http://www.kappellimaltin.com/Il-Kappelli/Sett13/MDN_Sant_Agata/mdn_sant_agata.html
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