Raymond Mintoff, 86, may have just lost his eldest brother, Dom, but his sky-blue eyes are shedding no tears. Instead, his face lights up as a flood of memories return.

He was always hot-tempered. But then he really knew how to butter you up

“I enjoyed his company mostly during those two hours every day when we would go swimming – rain or shine, all year round.

“As soon as he relaxed, he was a completely different person,” says Raymond, adding that they went on swimming until the former Prime Minister began to approach 80.

Dom – who turned a humble up-bringing from Cospicua into a towering political legacy – was undoubtedly the family favourite.

But Raymond, 10 years his junior, was never envious of his brother, who took him under his wing and gave him a job as soon as he opened his architecture firm, which is now being run by Raymond’s grandson.

Since they lived together in Paola for several years, Raymond was the sibling who got closest to Dom.

He recalls former Prime Minister Paul Boffa coming over to discuss strategy and asking Dom to write articles for him.

“His English was impressive,” says Raymond of his Rhodes Scholar brother who studied at Oxford.

When Dom returned, he wanted to continue living independently and move out of his family home in Valletta.

However, his doting mother did not want him to be alone and suggested that Raymond – who had completed military service – move in with him.

“As soon as he opened his firm there was a lot of work because of the war damage. I was going to apply for a job because I wasn’t keen on university but he told me to join him at the firm.” That was to be Raymond’s first and only job. Though not an architect, he learnt the trade as Dom’s assistant.

“I spent so much time with him I ended up knowing more about concrete than any architect. They say he was a volatile person – and he was – but he was also extremely patient, especially when he was teaching. Everything I know came from him.”

‘Hardest times were when he was called Communist’

According to Raymond, this was one of the many ways in which his brother was misunderstood. “For instance, they say he was a miser. But he gave me this Rolex,” he says as he shakes the cherished gold watch worth thousands of euro on his wrist.

To him the wristwatch symbolises his brother’s generosity, even though he knows it was originally a gift from “some head of state” that Dom found too heavy for his own wrist.

Raymond was never active in politics but used to follow Dom with great admiration.

“He did so much good for so many people. He etched his mark on each person,” says Raymond, impressed by the number of people who well up at the mere mention of his brother – even before he died.

The hardest moments, he says, were the times Dom was labelled a Communist during his long drawn out battle with the Church.

These were also the toughest times for their family – fervent Catholics who stood by their son, whom they never expected to end up as Prime Minister.

“My parents loved him so much,” he says, even though he is somewhat surprised that they managed to tolerate his temper.

He did so much good for so many people. He etched his mark on each person

But his ability to be brutally firm and then unbelievably charming was always part of Dom’s character. “He was always hot-tempered. But then he really knew how to butter you up,” he said, adding that he oozed charisma in large doses.

Raymond’s wife Josephine knows this only too well. “I was frightened of him,” she says with a giggle as her husband reminds her of his forceful and intimidating nature, especially when “he knew he was right”. “But he really loved her,” says Raymond.

The last few years have been tough for the family, as Dom’s age (he died at 96) began to have an impact on his intellect.

“His mind began playing tricks on him. At some points he would be impressively alert and remembering everything. But then there were moments where he would barely recognise you.”

Raymond recalls Dom’s special relationship with President Emeritus Guido de Marco, who he claims harboured a secret desire to have him on the PN’s side – particularly because his fiery speeches in Parliament could never be matched.

This wish came partly true in 1998 when Dom caused Labour’s Alfred Sant administration to collapse. At this point, he was labelled a “traitor” by many of the same people who adored him – another extremely painful moment for his family that stood by his decisions nonetheless.

While most of Dom’s decisions were characterised by vehement opposition, he was evidently admired by heads of state from all over the world and spent many a day meeting important people.

Dom soon became a workaholic, dedicating his life entirely to politics and the state, even sidelining his family in the end, making his state funeral entirely deserved, says Raymond. He describes Dom’s wife Moira de Vere Bentinck as a “saint” who was extremely patient with her husband’s dedication to work.

Raymond was not with his brother when he died at his home on Monday. A head-on car collision a few weeks ago had left him with weak legs and no car.

But the last time they met a few weeks ago they had planned to go to Gozo together, showing Dom’s zest for life even at such an advanced age.

“I will really miss him. I will miss everything about him and all the experiences we shared. Half an hour is not nearly enough to talk about his life,” he says.

But judging by the wide smile on his face, the short chat about his beloved brother is enough to keep him smiling all day.