Exploring Malta: World War II

Exploring Malta: 1565 - The Great Siege

Exploring Malta: An Activity Book

The Pens That Felled The Mighty

The Shadow of the Almighty

Social Transitions in Maltese Policy

Junior Classics

Stejjer tal Milied

Wines of Malta - The Essential Guide

Essays on Governing Malta (1800 - 1813)

The Maltese Goddess

Lara McClintoch is thrilled to be on the island of Malta, an  ancient land of Goddess worship and legendary artifacts. She’s there to personally furnish the home of Toronto’s Martin Galea, whose reputation as an architect is rivaled only by his reputation as a womanizer. But when he turns up dead in an antique chest, it seems someone has been playing goddess with Galea’s life. Lara soon finds out that her client and his new home share a troubled past – a past that stretches back to the ancient world, and reaches out with the insidious hand of modern intrigue…

The Shield and the Sword

The order of the Knights Hospitaller of St John of Jerusalem is the most long-lived military orders of knighthood. Founded in a hospice on the road to Jerusalem, it never numbered more than an active few thousand. In the order's frequent clashes with the expanding power of Islam, we see a microcosm of the conflict between east and west that lasted for centuries.The author describes the order from its first beginnings in the holy land, the increase in its wealth, power and territory, its expulsions from Cyprus and Rhodes culimating in the great siege of Malta in which the knights heroically stemmed the tide of Suleiman the Magnificent's expansion. The knights of St John were master mariners, navigators and builders of their time, and today their work continues in the sending of doctors and medical supplies to troublespots, and the maintenance of hospitals throughout the world.

Siege: Malta 1940-4943

When Mussolini’s bombers broke the peace of a cloudless sky one day in the summer of 1940, they began a siege which was to become one of the epics of the Second World War. Ernle Bradfor’s remarkable chronicle of thet crucial perio in the war-ravaged Mediterranean follow, in dramatic detail, the traumas and triumphs of the next three years. Siege: Malta describes how Hitler repeatedly thres the might of his Luftwaffe against a tenacious and courageous people, and moves finally to a stirring climax that is more tense and gripping than fiction.

The Cross and The Ensign

This book gives the first detailed account of the naval history of Malta over two centuries, from the earliest days of British rule, through the critical period of the Second World War, when Malta held the key not only to the Mediterranean but also to North Africa, to the advent of independence.

Onward to Malta

In Onward to Malta, Ton F. Neil describes his time as a fighter pilot with 249 Squadron after the Battle of Britain. Having acquitted themselves splendidly during the Battle of Britain and afterwards, the Squadron, stationed at RAF North Weald in Essex, was ordered to Malta to reinforce the Middle East in April 1941. The book deals with 249’s activities at North Weald and their trip to Malta on the aircraft carriers Furious and Ark Royal. Tom Neil describes the life of a young fighter pilot, what he did from day to day, how he saw the war and what he thought of his colleagues and some of his seniors. There are first hand descriptions, not only of the incidents that occurred both at North Weald and in Malta during 1941, but also of a major torpedo attack on the convoy on which the author was traveling to Egypt.

Malta: The Thorn in Rommel’s Side

Between June 1940 and December 1942, Malta became one of the most bombed places on earth. The battle for this tiny island proved to be one of the most decisive turning points of World War II. In this book the author uses first-hand experience of the conflict to describe the pressures of combat. As the commanding officer of the island's top-scoring Spitfire squadron he gives an insight into the tactics that reversed the overwhelming odds stacked against Allied successes, as well as featuring miraculous escapes and the darker hours - the intense bombing campaign that destroyed 39 newly-arrived Spitfires, the hardships endured by the islanders and the enormous cost in human life. Laddie Lucas recounts individual stories of heroism and gives an insight into the behaviour of the pilots.

Malta Convoy

In 1942, a mighty convoy sailed to relieve the island of Malta. But lying in wait was a vast force of German submarined and aircraft…  One of the few survivors of that convoy was the SS Ohio. Here is the fantastic saga of the men who sailed her through every peril a relentless enemy could devise. When Ohio, broken-backed and sinking, finally limped into Malta’s harbour, she discharged from her straining holds the fate of the war itself.

The Kappillan Of Malta

Father Salvatore was a simple, lumbering priest, a kappillan serving the poor Valletta, when war came out of the blue skies to pound the island to dust. Now amid the catacombs discovered by a chance bomb, he cared for the flood of homeless, starving, frightened people who sought shelter from the death that fell unceasingly from the sky. His story, and the story of Malta, is told in superbly graphic pictures of six days during the siege. Each of those days brought forth from the kappillan a message of inspiration to keep them going - the legendary tales of six mighty events of Malta's history which shone through the centuries and gathered them together in a fervent belief in their survival. This novel is an achievement in two separate dimensions: as a sublime portrait of a humble man who brought faith and hope and comfort to a stricken people, and as the story of an island whose violent history began with the Phoenicians and which suffered its most terrible agony in the Second World War.

The Great Siege – Malta 1565

Malta, then one of the easternmost bastions of Christendom, was attacked in 1565 by the Sultan of Turkey with 200 ships and 40,000 men. This book is based upon historical records and tells how approximately 700 Knights of St John plus 9,000 men defended Malta against the Sultan's armed forces.

Pedestal

In the summer of 1942 one of the main issues in the balance was the fate of Malta. The island was still a bastion of the Royal Navy in the Mediterranean and a constant threat to the supply route for the enemy land forces in North Africa. It bravely resisted every onslaught of the Axis powers, but food supplies were desperately short and fuel oil running low.  In August of that year Operation Pedestral was launched – a last attempt to relieve Malta. Fourteen merchant ships were allocated to it and the Royal Navy provided the most powerful force ever to escort a convoy and it included four aircraft carriers. Operating from Sardinia and Sicily, the Germans and Italians let fly with their shore-based aircraft on an unprecedented scale. The losses on the British side were appalling, but the objective was achieved and the blocade of Mlata was finally lifted.

The Siege of Malta 1565

At dawn, on 18 May 1565, the Grand Master Jean de Valette Parisot and his Knights of the Order of St. John watched solemnly as the vast armada of Sultan Suleiman of Turkey approached Malta. For nearly six months the Knights, with some 9,000 soldiers, defended their small island bastion against a Turkish army of 40,000, in one of the crucial sieges int the was of faith betweem Christendom and Islam. This was also a strategic struggle for domination of the Mediterranean, as the Knights’ presence in Malta formed an obstacle to the Ottoman Empire’s expansion into Europe. Francisco Balbi, a wandering poet fought to defend Malta as an arquebusier in th eSpanish corps, provides a compelling eyewitness account, vividly bringing to life a decisive episode of European history.

Mediterranean – Portrait of a Sea

For thousands of years people have sailed, traded, and fought across the waters of the Mediterranean. On its shores and islands they have built cities, colonised, dreamed, conquered and fallen. This sea, which brings together three continents, was the cradle of western civilization. Ernle Bradford spent almost 30 years sailing into nearly every corner of the Mediterranean and here he tells its fascinating story. Once it was realised that the sea could be a link rather than a barrier, discovery was possible and he follows the explorations of the Egyptians, the Cretans, the Phoenicians, the Greeks and others. The Mediterranean became a Roman and Byzantine sea until displaced by the Arab and Turkish conquests which reached their apogee with the great siege of Malta in 1565; by the 18th century Europe again dominated, with France and England in contention for sovereignty. The author continues his story through the grand sweep of historic events including the Napoleonic wars, the building of the Suez Canal and on to two World Wars ending with the peace of 1945.Into his account of the history of the region, the author weaves a wealth of detail: of flora and fauna, trade and commerce, society and religion, war and peace. The result is a portrait of an enormously vibrant region and its people.

The Sword and the Scimitar

Nico and Maria, Maltese brother and sister, are separated when young Nico is abducted by Moorish slavers. Taken to Algiers to be the personal slave of a wealthy merchant, he becomes a pawn in household politics and sets out to escape. Extraordinary events lead him to the court of Suleiman the Magnificent, Sultan of the Ottomans. Maria, stranded in Malta with unsympathetic parents, makes her own plans to escape the island and find her brother. She joins a group of Jews - forced by their Christian rulers to renounce their faith - who continue their rituals clandestinely. French aristocrat Christien de Vries yearns to prove himself as a surgeon in the Order of St John, to which he was pledged as an infant but joined only as a result of a life-altering oath. These unforgettable characters find themselves caught up in the sweep of history as the Ottomans confront the Knights in the historic Siege of Malta, and the fate of Europe hangs in the balance.

The Sword and the Scimitar

The Sword and the Scimitar is a saga of the most fanatical religious wars in world history. It is a story abounding with highly distinctive personalities – popes, saints, kings, sultans and heroes like Saladin and Richard Coeur de Loin, of the clash to two great cultures and their cross-fertilization. It tells of the three great Military Orders, the Knights Hospitaller of St. John, the  Teutonic Knights and the Knights Templar. It does not disguise the savagery that accompanied thre capture of Jerudsalem by the Crusaders or the scenes of fire and carnage when the Kingdom of Jerusalem fell nearly two centuries later, and the marketrs of the East were so flooded with Christian slaves that a young Frankish woman might be sold for one silver coin.

The Jukebox Queen of Malta

It is 1942 and Malta is under siege. Rocco Raven, a native of Brooklyn, New York, is left to wander the devastated streets of Valetta in a bewildered daze until he sees an apparition, Melita, a beautiful, ethereal woman. It is the beginning of an extraordinary relationship.

The Brass Dolphin

Lila Cunningham is struggling to keep both herself and her father afloat, in East Anglia, in 1938. They are forced to accept the offer of a house in Malta where war is looming. As the bombing starts, Lila becomes the focus of attention of three men, and she soon realizes the value of true love.

Malta Convoys 1940-1942

In Malta Convoys David Thomas, the distinguished naval historian, gives a fascinating account of the vital battled fought by sea and air to ensure that essential supplies got through. He vividly describes the appalling cost in men and ships. In his quest for original material he appealed through the pass for any surviving crew member of the ships involved to write to him their experiences. The response was overwhelming and he has skillfully woven these into his book to give is what can be truly described as ‘history at first hand’. The reader really gets the taste of what it was like to be on the ships that ensured the Islands survival.

Spitfires over Malta

This book tells the story of the RAF's gallant stand in 1942 to hold Malta against all odds and to save the island from invasion, which, had it happened could have changed the whole course of the war in the Middle East. Between March and October 1942, some 400 Spitfires reached the beleaguered island, flown mainly from the decks of aircraft carriers that had ventured at great risk into the hostile waters of the Mediterranean. Once established on the three bombed-scarred airfields of Luqa, Takali and Hal Far, the Spitfires flew daily sorties to repel the might of the Luftwaffe and Regia Aeronautica based in Sicily, just 60 miles away. The cost was high. Very few of the Spitfires survived more than a few weeks, sometimes only days. Moreover, almost 100 Spitfire pilots paid the supreme price, young men from Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Rhodesia, together with volunteers from the United States serving with the RAF or RCAF. At times the fighting was intense. In April 1942, Malta suffered a greater tonnage of bombs than the UK did in any one month at the height of the Battle of Britain. More than 1,000 Maltese civilians lost their lives in 1942.But the sacrifice was not in vain. Malta held out and finally the Luftwaffe and Regia Aeronautica conceded the battle was lost with Malta's Spitfire pilots being credited with at least 600 aerial victories during this period. Told in true Brian Cull style, this well-researched, well-written and very detailed book is accompanied by rare photos and contains much new material, especially from the logbooks and diaries of the pilots themselves. Spitfires over Malta is the companion volume to Hurricanes over Malta published in 2003.

Maltese Islands – Diving Guide

Located in the center of the Mediterranean, between North Africa and Sicily, Malta has played an important role from a strategic point of view until the end of World War II. Today the island is a natural paradise where one frequently encounters, both above and below the water surface, by ni means faded traces of its eventful past. This guide has been written to enable divers to discover the 25 best diving spots of the entire Maltese archipelago. The text, full of valuable information and tips, is accompanied by three-dimensional drawings and splendid photographs, and features an appendix with detailed illustrations and brief descriptions of the 107 most characteristic fish and invertebrates found in the waters of Malta, Gozo, Comino and Cominotto.

Malta Popout Map

Publication Date	March 2003
ISBN	1-841-39368-1
Price in Lm	1.99
Price in Euro	4.64

Malta Insideout Popout Map

 

This pocket-sized guide to Malta has a sleek, durable cover, and incorporates a pop-up map. It has a flip-up, working compass and pen housed in the ergonomically moulded plastic spine.

AA Essential – Malta & Gozo

All you need to know in a handy pocket guide. Get the most from your holiday with "AA Essential Guide" - compact yet packed with information, helpful and easy to use. The Top Ten sights are picked out for you by the expert author and key places to visit in the main A to Z section are given star ratings to help you decide. Useful features such as The Ten Essentials (experiences not to be missed) and Peace and Quiet (getting off the beaten track) provide the perfect introduction. Detailed lists recommend the best places to eat and drink; where to shop; children's attractions; local activities and nightlife. All this, plus suggested walks and drives, colour photographs throughout, clear maps and practical travel advice.

Baedeker’s Maltabook title

Quick and easy to consult, the principal features of interest are described in the main "Sights From A To Z" section, with each entry cross-referenced to the large folded map that completes this handy map and guide pack. Detailed background information sets the scene: facts and figures about the people, religion, climate and economy, its culture and history, plus a round-up of associated famous people. Special features, colour photographs, colour maps and plans are found throughout the book and the well-organized "Practical Information" section ensures you can make the most of your stay.

Malta and Gozo 

 

A detailed, large-scale map showing extensive tourist and leisure information, places of interest, footpaths and hiking trails together with inset plans for the main towns on the island.Useful road information and classifications with distances together with beaches and water sports are also included along with national parks and nature reserves. The map is available in three or more language keys.

Malta – Gem of the Mediterranean

 

An Introduction to Maltese Food & Wine

Apart from the International food served in many of our restaurants and hotels, Malta has fine cuisine typical of the Mediterranean diet but different in many ways from that of neighboring countries. This book, presented in full colour and an easy to follow format, serves as a comprehensive introduction and appreciation to the many facets of the exciting Maltese dishes and sweets, with a separate chapter on Maltese wines. An additional interesting feature is the ‘shopping around’ section which offers a detailed guide of where to buy many of the local specialties – much loved by locals and the many visitors to our Islands.

Mdina – Rabat - Mosta

Malta and it’s Islands 

Malta: A Colour Guide

British Heritage in Malta 

This book is a collection and appreciation of the British period and serves as a concise but clear guide of this long association between the two nations.

The Knights of St. John in Malta

The Order of the Knights of St. John are synonymous with Malta. However, the events that led to the Order’s arrival in Malta in 1530, their origins and detailed history is often taken for granted or overlooked. This book gives a clear and beautifully illustrated insight into history of The Templars and Hospitallers, their time in Rhodes and a detailed account of the Great Siege of Malta by the Ottoman Empire in 1565.

Malta – It’s Archaeology and History

Authoritatively written and lavishly illustrated, this book gives a clear and concise account of the history of Malta from its geological formation down to present times. It provides an ideal an ideal record and appreciation of the Island’s rich history for both the local student and the visitor.

Gozo – The Island of Calypso

 

Malta 

This spectacular book offers a candid view of Malta and the Maltase, it reveals through the media of photography, an insight into the elements that have shaped the country into what it is today. This book retails for Lm 9.87 € 22.99 and is available from all leading bookshops.