Mdina

Mdina is Malta's old capital city. Mdina is a real paradise out of the Middle Ages. In Mdina there are no apartments, no aluminium apertures, only beautiful palaces, quaint little houses and a splendid baroque cathedral. 

Mdina is situated practically in the middle of the Island of Malta. It is 200 metres above sea level. Mdina is the oldest inhabited place in Malta. It was the Phoenicians, who first founded Mdina 700 years before Christ. Under the Phoenicians it was known as Maleth (the protected city). After the Phoenicians, came the great empire builders - the Romans (218 BC - 535 AD). Under the Romans it was known as Melita. Some historians say that the word Melita comes from an Italian word miele meaning honey. Other historians say that Melita comes from the Phoenician word Maleth.

After the Romans came the Arabs in 570 AD and it was the Arabs, who made Mdina smaller, so that it would be easier to defend. Before, Mdina reached as far as the Parish Church of Rabat with the Catacombs on the outer side, because it was not allowed to bury the dead in the capital city. That is why, in Rabat, there are a number of catacombs. During the Middle Ages Mdina was known as Citta Notabile. Today Mdina is known as the Silent City, because when one walks through it, one imagines it is a city of walls and palaces, but Mdina is all inhabited. It has 400 inhabitants and all the palaces are all lived in. 

Before, the main door of Mdina was where one sees the stone frame to the right of the gate. The imposing gate one sees today, was built during the time of the Grand Master of the Order of St John, Manoel de Vilhena. In fact on top of the gate is the coat of arms of Manoel de Vilhena with his war-like triumphs.

At the back of the main gate are three stone statues. On the right is St Agatha, the patron saint. In the middle is St Paul, who it is said brought Christianity to Malta. On the left is St Publius. Publius was the Governor of the Island, when St Paul was shipwrecked. Just below these statues on the right is the coat of arms of the Inguanez family. Inguanez was once governor and so he could hang his coat of arms on the city walls.

Here right behind the Mdina Gate on the right are the dungeons. These are original dungeons, which have been turned into horror chambers. To the right is an imposing palace. This is the Vilhena Palace. In this palace were given the keys to the first Grand Master of the Order of St John, when they came to Malta in 1530. The first Grand Master to rule in Malta was Jacques Villiers de l'Isle Adam. Before, in Vilhena Palace was the local commune run by the nobles. The Knights of the Order of St John did not settle in Mdina, as Mdina was too far away from the harbor, but in what is today known as Vittoriosa. In its present form, Vilhena Palace was designed in the 18th century by the French architect de Mondion. Here one can see the French style with a courtyard in front.

Opposite Vilhena Palace is a watch tower dating back to the 16th century, which today is the police station of Mdina. From the end of the road, before one turns left, one can admire a beautiful building, which during the time of the Order of St John, was used as the Law Courts. In fact on top are two statues signifying truth and justice. One can also see a part of a balcony with balustrades. This was the Herald's balcony and from this balcony were given the important announcements of the day.

Turning into Villegaignon Street (who was a French Officer, who was responsible for the defense of Mdina) one can admire the first imposing Palace on the left. This is the Inguanez Palace. The door knockers are also worthy of mention. They are beautifully made out of bronze. In the Inguanez Palace lived King Alphonse XIII as guest of the Inguanez Family for three months. Opposite Inguanez Palace is the Benedictine Cloister. Here, the nuns never go out and only two men can enter the cloister - these are the doctor and the white-washer. In the olden days the white-washer used to disinfect the walls with lime. Somewhere in the vicinity, it is said that, the Knights of the Order of St John built an underground reservoir.

Further down the road, to the right is another beautiful palace, belonging to another noble family the Bonnici Testaferrata Family. On the door knockers, one can admire the family crest. Opposite this palace is a house with trellis known as Casa Viani. This house has a little history to it. When the French came to Malta in 1798, they first came to Mdina. They started looting the churches and stealing the silver to pay for the troops for Napoleon's campaigns. The Maltese could not take it, that this foreigner was stealing silver from the churches which they loved so much. A revolt followed and the Maltese managed to throw the French out of Mdina. One French officer - his name is recorded in history - Masson - tried to hide in this very house (Casa Viani), but he was thrown to his death from the balcony. The French then went to Valletta and threw the Maltese out of their own homes; the city which the Maltese had helped so much to build and to fortify. Just a few metres down the road and on the right is another beautiful baroque building - the Banca Giuratale.

Then there is the Cathedral. A beautiful piece of baroque building and probably the finest example of baroque on the island. A couple of very lovely houses are to be seen in this square. To the side door of the Cathedral is the Cathedral Museum - a beautiful baroque building financed by Bishop Alpheran de Bussan. This building was previously the priests' seminary. Today the Cathedral Museum houses amongst other things a beautiful collection of Roman coins as well as a very beautiful collection of wood and copper etchings by the well-known German artist Albrecht Durer. They were given to the Cathedral by a private family as a donation.

Another interesting palace is the Archbishop's Palace to the left of the Museum. This Palace serves as the private residence of our Archbishop. To the right of the Cathedral Museum is a very beautifully stone-carved wall.

In Mdina there are two kinds of streets. The curved streets were built during the time of the Arabs as a form of defense. Going up these narrow curved streets, one cannot gauge how long they are or, who is waiting at the other end. The streets built during the time of the Order of St John in the 16th century are built straight. The Arabs also built bastions, but the bastions built by the Arabs differ from the bastions built during the time of the Order of St John. The bastions built during the time of the Arabs are built vertically, because at the time of the Arab rule people used to climb up the walls and they would be thrown down to their death, whereas when the Order of St John came to Malta, gunpowder started being used and so the bastions were built slightly at an angle, so that the cannon ball would ricochet back on the person who fired it.

On the bastions are lovely tea rooms, where on a sunny day one can enjoy a coffee on the terrace and take in a splendid view at the same time. As one walks along the bastions one can not only admire the thickness of these walls but also see three-quarters of Malta on a clear day. One also gets a good idea of the countryside from here, and to the left one can also see where the train (before the buses started being used in Malta) went from Rabat, under Mdina right through to Valletta. This, of course, today is something of the past. The only thing which still stands today is the train station, which has been turned into a restaurant and rightly named L-Istazzjon (The Station).

Right behind the bastions is a small square. Further down the narrow street on the left is a building known as the Norman House. This is built in a Siculo-Norman style and dates back to the 15th century. It is still in very good condition. It is said that, here is where the first Grandmaster L-Isle Adam lived for a few days when he arrived in Malta. Also on this street is Palazzo Costanzo. Today it is a restaurant which specializes in Maltese food. If one has a look inside one will get an idea how most of these palaces in Mdina are built. They have an internal courtyard as it was not allowed to have gardens during the time of the Order. This was done to save water. The Order of St John also had another law that said that all the houses had to have an underground reservoir to collect the rain water from the roof in the winter months. This system is still used to this day.

Opposite Palazzo Costanzo is the Carmelite Church. When the French came to Mdina and started looting the Churches, they started with the church of the Carmelites. The next block down the road from the Carmelite Church is Palazzo Santa Sophia - built in Gothic-Romanesque style. This is the oldest building in Mdina that had windows overlooking the street. Before, the houses only had windows overlooking the internal courtyard. The ground floor was used for the horses. This palace has typical Maltese edging.

Mdina has a second gate, known as Greeks gate. It is thought that before there was a small Greek community living here. In fact the square here is known as St Nicholas Square - the patron saint of Greece. Before, there was also a small chapel dedicated to St Nicholas. Through this gate were also taken the slaves, who were not allowed to use the main gate of Mdina.