The book about Valletta Dominican Fathers by Victor Scerri.

When the building of the city of Valletta started in 1566, the Dominican Fathers of the Annunciation Convent in Vittoriosa used to cross the Grand Harbour by boat to tend to the spiritual needs of the workers who were building the new city.

In May 1569, the Dominicans obtained the necessary permit from Grand Master Pietro del Monte to start building a church and a convent on a stretch of land donated to them by the same Grand Master. First, they built a small chapel where they could celebrate Mass and administer the Holy Sacraments and later they built a bigger church for the needs of the new population of Valletta on a design by architect Girolamo Cassar.

The foundation stone was laid on April 19, 1571. Acknowledging the pastoral work carried out by the Dominican Fathers in Valletta, on July 2, 1571, Dominican Pope, Pius V, by means of a papal bull, Ex debito pastoralis offici, raised the church to the level of first basilica in Malta and the first and principal parish of Valletta.

The church was completed in 1617 but, along the years, it suffered several structural damages caused by earthquakes and bad weather. At one instance, the dome split open and had to be kept in place by means of an iron belt. Grand Master Emmanuel de Rohan (1775-1797) sent his own architects for an inspection and on their advice he ordered the closure and the demolition of the church.

The work on the present church started on March 7, 1804, on a design by Antonio Cachia. The foundation stone was laid by Bishop Vincenzo Labini on November 25 of that year. In 1813 the work had to stop because of the plague and it did not resume until the plague subsided in 1814.

Work will soon start on the restoration of the church’s façade.

Until the work was finished, the Dominican Fathers were given permission to serve their parishioners from the Jesuits church in Merchants Street.

On the day when the church was consecrated by Bishop Ferdinando Mattei on May 15, 1815, the friars left the Jesuits church in procession to the new church carrying the Holy Eucharist.

During the 200 years of its existence, the Dominicans, together with the help of their parishioners and benefactors, took great care to embellish and decorate the church with several masterpieces, including sculptures, paintings and other objects.

At the beginning of the 20th century, the church was covered in marble.

Currently, the church is undergoing restoration. Last year, work started on the outside and inside of the dome. New windows were fitted and a new stone cross was placed at the top. Work on the church’s facade and the two bell towers will start later this year, while preparations are in hand to start maintenance works on the ceiling, followed by the restoration of the painting.

This project requires a lot of planning and preparation and, above all, a lot of money. The central government has already provided substantial help and we are in contact with other entities to find more funds for this project.

A Thanksgiving Mass to mark the 200th anniversary will be celebrated by Archbishop Emeritus Paul Cremona on Friday at 6.15pm. This will be followed by the launch of a new book by Victor Scerri about Dominican Fathers hailing from Valletta. The public is invited to attend.

Fr Michael Camilleri is prior and parish priest at St Dominic parish church, Valletta.