It is a fact that the Order of St John fared badly in military encounters against the Turks. The Order was forced out of the Holy Land in 1291 and on January 1, 1533, it was defeated in Rhodes after a long siege. After 400 years in Turkish waters, the Knights of St John were homeless – until they were granted the Maltese islands by Charles V of Spain.

In Malta, the Knights of St John emerged victorious against the Turks despite the odds being against them. Historians ascribe Malta’s ultimate victory over the mighty Ottoman Empire to the courage, faith and determination of the besieged in Vittoriosa and that includes not only the men but also the women and children, as recorded by Antonio Bosio and Francesco Balbi di Correggion.

It is inconceivable why the Order never built a monument or a memorial to the valiant Maltese heroes. This was left to Sir Harry Luke, Deputy Governor of Malta, assisted by Canon G. M. Farrugia, who placed a marble plaque commemorating the event on the impressive church parvis.

For the noble knights it was a different story: they were laid to rest in a different grave. Even in death the Maltese were discriminated against. When the new city was built, the bones of the aristocratic knights were disturbed and removed from humble Vittoriosa to the proud, new city that for weeks on end bombarded the ramparts of the maritime city. Yes, the “city built by gentlemen for gentlemen” owes its patrimony to Vittoriosa; it rose on the acrid ashes of a devastated city.

The cemetery at St John’s is not the fallen knights’ authentic burial place. Once the Order in the 1570s disturbed their authentic resting place in Vittoriosa, what’s wrong with removing their remains again to be laid in a dignified tomb in order to make space for the magnificent tapestries at St John’s Co-Cathedral?