From November 27 to 29, Malta will host the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) with the theme ‘Adding Global Value’, which will discuss the future of the Commonwealth.

The major locality of this gathering of heads of state is Fort St Angelo in Vittoriosa, known in medieval times as the Castrum Maris, the Castle by the Sea, an impregnable citadel that stands majestically in the middle of the Grand Harbour.

It is a most fitting venue. St Angelo is not just a walled fort separated by a moat from the rest of the island, which can offer great security to our visiting heads of state, but it is also the embodiment of Malta’s centuries-old history.

St Angelo (top), jewel in the crown of Malta’s fortifications, fully deserves professional rehabilitation… but the mound of rocks on which stands Anton Agius’ monument is an “insult” to the sculptor’s memory.

Unfortunately, from the zenith of its popularity, when in 2004 it was the focal point of Malta’s celebrations marking Malta’s accession to the European Union, Lower St Angelo has plummeted to a nadir, a victim of utter neglect and vandalism, only to be rescued by EU funds and massive government assistance for its rehabilitation.

Fort St Angelo is more than a historical site and I am sure that Heritage Malta is taking note of its past glories, when it hosted kings and monarchs. Consequently it deserves to be a living museum of our maritime history to complement the rich Maritime Museum along the marina.

Its links with Dubrovnik, another major maritime city in the Mediterranean, could be further enhanced by a professional documentary film entitled The Malta Maritime Experience to be viewed in the arched halls that once welcomed the greatest European troubadour, Pietre Vidal, in the 13th century.

It is also the site where the first spark of Marian art appeared – a painting of Madonna del Soccorso dated 1462 and also an Italo-Byzantine icon of the Virgin Suckling the Child venerated in the rock-cut chapel of the Nativity of Our Lady.

Near the arch leading to the elegant yacht marina, visitors to Fort St Angelo encounter one of
the most hideous, cumbersome and unsightly monstrosities in Malta

May I suggest that for CHOGM, we set up a temporary Museum of Medieval Artistic Treasures in the Maltese Islands, with the possible loan of priceless items from the Mdina Cathedral Museum, the Ta’ Ġieżu Church in Rabat, St Lawrence Parish in Vittoriosa and from other parishes.

St Angelo, considered as the brightest jewel in the glittering crown of our fortifications, is fully deserving of professional rehabilitation and it will be no mean achievement for it to be ready in all aspects to receive our auspicious visitors in November.

Near the arch leading to the elegant yacht marina, lined with ostentatious baroque palaces, visitors to Fort St Angelo encounter one of the most hideous, cumbersome and unsightly monstrosities in Malta. I am referring to the mound of rubble on which stands one of the most important monuments of the late 20th century – the Freedom Monument by the Rabat sculptor Anton Agius.

The monument, hardly visible today, is an impressive symbol of the political maturity of our people who, in spite of the bumpy and arduous road, achieved Independence and Republican status without confrontation and without shedding a drop of blood but in a spirit of reconciliation as evidenced in the monument.

As it shamefully stands today, blotting out the beauty of the baroque façade of St Lawrence parish church built by Vittoriosa-born Lorenzo Gafa’, this mound of rock is an insult to the memory of Anton Agius and the architects of our political maturity.

It deserves to be immediately removed and replaced by an artistic and honorific pedestal with a bas-relief that depicts the struggle of the workers in pursuit of freedom similar to that at Msida.

This monument, minus the mound of rocks, is compatible with the spirit of the CHOGM theme, Adding Global Value, as in this turbulent world the peaceful representation conveyed in Agius’s monument gives a tangible message to our Commonwealth visitors on their way to Fort St Angelo.

Whatever the cynics may say, the people of Vittoriosa, especially the older generation, have a passionate and enduring love for the British monarchy, a relationship that goes back to the Navy days when Briitsh warships were household names and Fort St Angelo on the Vittoriosa promontory was the headquarters of Britain’s Mediterranean Fleet.

The strong links forged during the heyday of the dockyard, the inter marriages and the participation of British personnel in the old city’s social and sporting life, have endured till the present day.

This was evidenced in the warm welcome accorded to Prince William on his visit to Vittoriosa last September, also expressed in a letter of thanks and appreciation I received from Kensington Palace about this extraordinary and unexpected manifestation of pro-British sentiment as “the Duke felt incredibly honoured to be part of the celebrations... and was most touched by the warm welcome he received”.

This augurs well for Prince William’s grandmother Queen Elizabeth II’s visit to our island in November. In this regard the Queen should be given the opportunity to retrace Prince William’s route through this medieval city on her way to Fort St Angelo, a city that still boasts of the appellation of Prince of Wales Band club and bars like Rose Shamroch & Thistle, England’s Glory, George V and Coronation Bar that once graced the medieval piazza.

Furthermore, may I urge the government to meet the wishes of the Vittoriosa local council and the Vittoriosa Historical Society and expedite the reconstruction of the medieval watch tower that once stood majestically in the much smaller piazza, so that our guests for CHOGM, even if the tower is only partially rebuilt, will be able to appreciate Malta’s medieval past.

CHOGM offers great opportunity for the regeneration of the inner harbour area to be further promoted and appreciated.