Visiting the National War Museum in Valletta, Malta – A Journey Through History

In spite of having lived in Malta for so many years, there are still countless places I have yet to visit. One of these was the National War Museum in Valletta, but I finally got to cross it off my list in September! The visit was entirely unexpected and was part of an organised group walk around the capital.

Fort St.Elmo

The War Museum is located within St Elmo's Fort, on the edge of Valletta and near the Mediterranean Conference Centre (MCC). It is quite a curious structure. Rather than having a huge building that houses everything, the museum is like a complex with many sections connecting to each other. 

There are a lot of tunnels and stairs. After visiting a chapel, we climbed one such flight of stairs to find ourselves in an open plan that can be toured systematically. 

Tunnel leading to a viewpoint

The first section told the story of the Great Siege of Malta. This was a big battle, and the display of costumes, maps and 'footage' were just as exciting and dramatic as the real thing. By footage though, it was recreated with actors wearing historically accurate costumes. Cameras were yet to make an appearance in those days...

Great Siege of Malta

Next up was the French period. Compared to other rulers, the French spent a relatively short time occupying the islands - a mere two years, before they were swept away by the British. Despite their short stay, the French nonetheless got their hands on some of our churches' tapestries and other previous treasures of the islands. When the country changed hands from the French to the British, the two parties signed an agreement, supposedly on a table that is now displayed in one of the museum's rooms. This wooden, and sturdy-looking table, with its round-ovalish shape, reminded me of King Arthur's table!

I'm sure there were several other rooms and sections we explored, but between reading the information boards, admiring the displays and trying to keep up with the group, I may have missed some very important point...

Tigne Point, Sliema

What I can say, though, is that the British section was my favourite. I have a big interest in almost everything related to Britain and the British. One of the exhibition huts was entirely dedicated to the war period. 

Malta played a role in both WWI and WWII. During WWI though, Malta was only involved on the sidelines. Its ship repair sections was kept busy mending ships, so that was beneficial for the economy. In WWII, however, Malta was in the midst of the war-zone and suffered greatly. Towns, especially those in the harbour area, were heavily bombed. 

History lesson done...back to the museum. This exhibition featured uniforms, artifacts and tanks/machinery, and was rather like the displays at the aviation museum at Ta' Qali, but on a smaller scale. Oh, and without the gigantic planes.

A big aircraft at Ta' Qali Aviation Museum

All in all, the visit was amazing, and I only regret the fact of not having had the time to go through everything. I'm sure I'd be capable of spending a whole day there given the chance!