News
August 2006
www.vittoriosahistorica.org
200th
anniversary of the explosion at L-Imgarraf
Inauguration of La Vallette's hat after
restoration
Grand Banquet at Fort St. Angelo
25th anniversary of the ordination of Rev.
John Avellino
50th anniversary of the ordination of Fr. Guzi
Mifsud OSA
Donation of St. Lawrence antiphon
Inauguration of statue of St. Lawrence at St.
Lawrence Band Club
Completion of restoration
works on St. Lawrence monument
Restoration
of marble tablet
200TH
ANNIVERSARY OF THE EXPLOSION AT L-IMGARRAF
On 18 July 1806
the city of Vittoriosa and the surrounding harbour area was rocked to
its
foundation by a terrible explosion. A
gunpowder magazine located at the southern end of Vittoriosa Wharf where the Royal Navy
had just established it HQ
accidentally blew up killing some 150 people and leaving a huge mould
of
debis. The area came to be known as
l-Imgarraf (the destroyed site). Most of the victims were buried in St
Lawrence
Cemetery where the Vittoriosa Historical & Cultural Society has
affixed a
marble tablet to recall their memory on the 200th
anniversary. It was unveiled by the
Society’s President
Can. Paul Raggio who also said Mass in the adjoining chapel. Historian Mr Anton Attard chronicled the
horrors of the event. Vittoriosa Mayor
Mr John Boxall was in attendance; he placed a flower wreath at the foot
of the
tablet. The ceremony was brought to a
conclusion with the playing of the Last Post by a contingent of Scouts. The event was also the subject of a
researched article by Mr Denis Darminin, Committee Member of the
Society,
published in the Sunday Times of Malta.
INAUGURATION
OF LA VALLETTE’S HAT AFTER
CONSERVATION
The most outstanding personality
during the Great Siege of 1565 was undoubtedly Grand Master La Vallette
who led
the stategy and observed the field of battle with the Ottomans from
Birgu. In the thick of the fighting he
personally
joined the front-line at the Post of Castille.
Throughout the siege La Vallette spent moments of recollection
and
prayer in the Chapel of Our Lady of Damascus of the Greek Community at
Birgu. After the Victory, as a sign of
thanksgiving and by way of ex-voto, he donated his Ceremonial Hat and
Battle
Sword to the Chapel where they remained to this day.
The Hat which has suffered considerable
deterioration through exposure has now been expertly conserved at the
Textile
Department of Heritage Malta Bighi Centre for Conservation. The project was financed by the Cottonera
Rehabilitaion Committee whose Chairman, Dr Raymond Bondin, presided
over the
inauguration of the restored Hat at the Vittoriosa Museum at St. Joseph Oratory. In his speech he stated that carbon tests
carried out at the University of Lecce on a sample from the
Hat’s cloth confirmed the
authenticity of the Hat’s dating to the mid-16th century. Among the distinguished guests was Can.
Joe
Caruana, Archpriest of Vittoriosa and the volunteers who serve as
Museum
attendants, all members of the Vittoriosa Historical & Cultural
Society
which organized the event. The occasion
closed with a Reception at the Society’s premises in Vittoriosa Square, coordinated by Mt John
Gatt.
GRAND
BANQUET AT FORT ST ANGELO
One
starry summer night in July the courtyard of the
Magisterial Palace at Fort St Angelo was transformed into a magnificent
venue
for a Grand Banquet hosted by the Resident Knight and Governor of Fort
St
Angelo, Fra John Critien. The occasion
was a fund-raising initiative by the ad hoc committee for the
organization of
the 1,750 anniversary of the Martyrdom of St Lawrence due to be
celebrated in
2008. There were some 200 participants
and the guest of honour was HE the Grand Master od the Sovreign
Military Order
of Malta, Sir Andrew Bertie, who happened to be in Malta.
25th
ANNIVERSARY OF THE ORDINATION OF REV. JOHN AVELLINO
Rev John Avellino celebrated the silver jubilee of his
ordination by a special Mass at St Lawrence Collegiate Church. He was ordained priest together with 15 others
at St John Co Cathedral on 11 July 1981. Fr
John leads a youth association at Vittoriosa, which thanks to his
encouragement, are always busy with some original activity. But perhaps the most important of these is
the annual musical held in the open-air at Fort St Angelo.
Fr John would attribute the success of these
events to the youths themselves who take care of every aspect of the
organization. However, it is Fr John who inspires and motivates them. Fr John is also an active member of the St
Lawrence External Festivities Committee.
He is also a media reporter and commentator, mainly for the
church-run
radio station, RTK. During the second
visit of Pope John Paul II to Malta, Fr John
Avellino was special media envoy
accompanying the Pope’s entourage in his pilgrimage tracing St Paul’s apostolic
journeys.
50th ANNIVERSARY
OF THE ORDINATION OF FR GUZI MIFSUD OSA
Fr Guzi Mifsud OSA has celebrated the 50th
anniversary of his ordination by saying Mass at St Lawrence Collegiate
Church
during the one Novena Days in preparation for the Feast of St Lawrence. He is a respected Member of the Augustine
Order where he served in various pastoral roles. He
is the brother of Mons Lawrence Mifsud
with whom he shares a close affinity.
DONATION
OF ST
LAWRENCE ANTIPHON
Mons Lawrence Mifsud, the Rector of St John’s
Co-Cathedral and Chaplain of the Sovereign Military Order of St John,
ex-Archpriest of Vittoriosa, donated to the Rev. Chapter of St Lawrence
Collegiate an Antiphon to St. Lawrence composed by himself. Mons Mifsud has written various musical
pieces including hymns and oratorios.
INAUGURATION
OF
STATUE OF ST LAWRENCE
AT ST LAWRENCE BAND CLUB
A beautiful marble statue of St Lawrence has been
erected in the Entrance Hall of the St Lawrence Band Club at Vittoriosa
Square, Vittoriosa.
The work was executed by the firm Dino Felici of Carrara, Italy, represented
by Messrs. E. Theuma & Co. of Valletta. The design of
the statue was made by young artist and member of the Vittoriosa Band
Club, Mr
Andrew Bugeja. The statue was donated to
the Band Club by its Hon. President, Mr Joseph Scicluna.
COMPLETION OF RESTORION WORKS ON ST LAWRENCE MONUMENT
After more than a year of delicate repairs and
restoration, the neo-classic stone monument to St Lawrence at
Vittoriosa was
cleared of the scaffolding and screens in which it was wrapped and
revealed to
the public for the occasion of St Lawrence Day.
The work was undertaken, after a professional situation survey,
by the
Bighi Centre Restoration and was paid by the Cottonera Rehabilitation
Committee. The monument was inaugurated in
1890 to
commemorate the 800th anniversary of the erection of St
Lawrence
Church as parish. It was paid by Can.
Raphael Patiniott and was designed by English architect, S. Poulson.
RESTORATION
OF
MARBLE TABLET
On the initiative of the Vittoriosa Historical &
Cultural Society the marble tablet marking the house in Quarter Front
Street,
Vittoriosa, were Archbishop Sir Michael Gonzi was born has been
restored.