The foreboding shadow cast over Malta by the approaching World War II led the Governor, Charles Bonham-Carter, to propose the burial of victims at sea.
No religious, sentimental or other scruples should bar the way to rapid disposal of the dead
Secret documents released yesterday by the National Archives in Kew, west London, show that the Governor had feared air raids would claim so many victims that they would have to be buried at sea.
According to the Press Association, Sir Charles wrote in May 1938 that “special gangs” of men would be formed to bury the dead but the corpses should be buried at sea if they became overwhelmed.
“As regards final disposal, I consider the most suitable arrangement would be for corpses to be taken to sea in barges and sunk by means of weights.” He added that if Malta was subjected to frequent attacks, the barges would have to be taken out in the dark.
When contacted, historian Joe Pirotta noted that the British were not well-prepared for the war in Malta.
The defence system was rudimentary and had been neglected. He referred to booklets handed out with special instructions informing people that the designated shelters in case of an attack were large buildings including churches. Others were told to take shelter under their dining table, which was to be placed beneath the staircase with a mattress on top of it.
The British feared the threat of invasion so much that at the beginning of the war the navy had left Malta for Alexandria, Egypt, only to return in a few months, Prof. Pirotta added.
He noted that they had also started to diphase road directions in fear of an Italian invasion.
With reference to the colonial era files released yesterday, the Press Association said they showed that Britain was planning to destroy valuable items in case they were forced to abandon Malta. Telephone lines, transport facilities and machinery were earmarked for destruction.
A government official had written to the Governor saying: “One lesson of this war has been great military importance of scorched earth policy in territory invaded by enemy.”
Between June 1940 and April 1944, there were more than 1,500 civilian casualties in Malta and about 3,340 air raids were registered throughout the war.
The collection at the National Archives in Kew includes a secret letter by the Air Commodore of the RAF Mediterranean to the Lieutenant-Governor in Malta about the disposal of “mass casualties” when temperatures soared above 40°C.
“It is emphasised that when approaching this problem no religious, sentimental or other scruples should bar the way to rapid disposal of the dead, in view of the most serious menace to health of the surveying population and the garrison should delay arise over burial of casualties particularly during the hot season.”