Crown Colony of Malta
Malta, 1813–1964. Draft, not yet reviewed
The Crown Colony of the Island of Malta and its Dependencies was the British colony in the Maltese islands, that has become the modern Republic of Malta. Malta became a Crown Colony on 23 July 1813, when Sir Thomas Maitland was appointed as Governor of Malta. Malta's status as a Crown Colony was confirmed by the Treaty of Paris of 1814, which was itself reaffirmed by the Congress of Vienna of 1815. The colony gained independence in 1964.
Seat of power: Valletta
Rulers
Thomas Maitland
Governor of Malta, 1813–1824
The disease began to spread especially in Valletta and the Grand Harbour area, and when Governor Maitland arrived, stricter quarantine measures were enforced. He was autocratic since he refused to form an advisory council made up of Maltese representatives, and so he was informally known as "King Tom". He formed the Malta Police Force in 1814, while the local Italian-speaking Università was dissolved in 1819.
Portrait of Thomas Maitland: John Hoppner, Public domain, file
_-_Portrait_of_Sir_Thomas_Maitland_(1760-1824).jpg){kind=link}
Frederick Cavendish Ponsonby
Governor of Malta, 1827–1836
On 22 December 1826, he was appointed Governor of Malta, and remained there for eight and a half years.
Portrait of Frederick Cavendish Ponsonby: Thomas Heaphy, Public domain, file
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Henry Frederick Bouverie
Governor of Malta, 1836–1843
He became General Officer Commanding Northern Command in 1828 and Governor of Malta in 1836.
Portrait of Henry Frederick Bouverie: Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain, file
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Patrick Stuart
Governor of Malta, 1843–1847
He was a British Army officer who served as Governor of Malta between 1843 and 1847.
Portrait of Patrick Stuart: Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain, file
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William Reid
Governor of Malta, 1851–1858
He was Governor and Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial fortress of Malta from 1851 to 1858.
Portrait of William Reid: Richard James Lane, Public domain, file
_by_Richard_James_Lane.png){kind=link}
John Le Marchant
Governor of Malta, 1858–1864
He was Governor of Malta from 1858 to 1864. While in Malta, he had some portrait photos taken of him and his daughters by Maltese photography pioneer Leandro Preziosi.
Portrait of John Le Marchant: Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain, file
Patrick Grant
Governor of Malta, 1867–1872
He became Governor of Malta in 1867 and was promoted to full general on 19 November 1870.
Portrait of Patrick Grant: E. J. Turner, Public domain, file
Charles van Straubenzee
Governor of Malta, 1872–1878
He became Governor of Malta in 1872.
Portrait of Charles van Straubenzee: Felice Beato, Public domain, file
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Arthur Borton
Governor of Malta, 1878–1884
Promoted to full general in 1877, he became Governor of Malta in 1878 before retiring in June 1884.
Portrait of Arthur Borton: Herman Gustave Herkomer, Public domain, file
Arthur Fremantle
Governor of Malta, 1893–1899
In 1899, after his term in Malta ended, Fremantle returned to England.
Portrait of Arthur Fremantle: Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain, file
Leslie Rundle
Governor of Malta, 1909–1915
He became General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Northern Command in 1905 and Governor and Commander-in-Chief of Malta in 1909.
Portrait of Leslie Rundle: Bain News Service, Public domain, file
Herbert Plumer, 1st Viscount Plumer
Governor of Malta, 1919–1924
Plumer was appointed General Officer Commanding-in-Chief the British Army of the Rhine in December 1918 and governor of Malta in May 1919, in which role he succeeded Field Marshal Lord Methuen.
Portrait of Herbert Plumer, 1st Viscount Plumer: Alexander Bassano, Public domain, file
David Campbell
Governor of Malta, 1931–1936
He was Governor and Commander-in-Chief Malta from 1931 to 1936. Political tensions between pro-British and pro-Italian parties on the island led to him dissolving the elected assembly and returning Malta to direct rule, a situation which would last until after the Second World War.
Portrait of David Campbell: Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain, file
Gerald Creasy
Governor of Malta, 1949–1954
Creasy succeeded Sir Francis Campbell Ross Douglas as Governor of Malta on 16 September 1949.
Portrait of Gerald Creasy: Elliott & Fry, Public domain, file
Robert Laycock
Governor of Malta, 1954–1959
In 1954, his old friend, Antony Head, now Secretary of State for War appointed Laycock to the position of Commander-in-Chief and Governor of Malta.
Portrait of Robert Laycock: War Office official photographer, Public domain, file
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Culture
- The plague broke out in Malta in March 1813, when a British merchant ship infected with the disease arrived from Alexandria. Overall, 4,486 people were killed which amounted to 4% of the total population.
- Despite this, home rule was refused to the Maltese until 1921, and the locals sometimes suffered considerable poverty.
- In 1825, the Maltese scudo and the other circulating currencies at the time were officially replaced by the pound sterling.
- In 1886 Surgeon Major David Bruce discovered the microbe causing the Malta Fever, and in 1905 Themistocles Zammit discovered the fever's sources.
Picture
The Lascaris War Rooms are an underground complex of tunnels and chambers in Valletta that housed the War Headquarters from where the defence of the island was conducted during the Second World War.
Image: Pi3.124, CC BY-SA 4.0, file
Sources
Text adapted from the Wikipedia articles listed as sources, CC BY-SA 4.0.