Valletta

Valletta

Valletta is the UNESCO-listed Baroque capital of Malta, built from scratch by the Knights of St John on a limestone peninsula from 1566 and recognised as one of the most concentrated areas of historical and artistic sites in the world.

History

Founded in 1566 by Grand Master Jean de Valette after the Great Siege of Malta, Valletta was purpose-built as a fortified city on a limestone promontory. The Knights of St John, a military-religious order, erected its grid of streets, palaces, and churches within decades. The city served as the headquarters of the Order until Napoleon seized Malta in 1798. Inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1980, Valletta served as the 2018 European Capital of Culture.

What to See

St John’s Co-Cathedral conceals one of Europe’s most lavishly decorated Baroque interiors and houses Caravaggio’s masterpiece The Beheading of Saint John (1608). The Grand Master’s Palace, now the Maltese Parliament and State Rooms, flanks Republic Street. The Upper Barrakka Gardens offer sweeping views over the Grand Harbour. The Museum of Fine Arts and the National Museum of Archaeology complete the cultural circuit.

Getting There

Valletta is the capital of Malta, served by Malta International Airport 8 km south. Regular bus services connect the airport and the island’s towns to the Valletta terminus at City Gate. A ferry from Sliema crosses the harbour in minutes.

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