You cannot miss it, the huge marble plaque at the Upper Barrakka Gardens paying homage to the Portuguese sailors who “died fighting” in Malta in the insurrection against the French on September 2, 1798.

In reality, they arrived two weeks later and no Portuguese sailors died in Malta in 1798, according to an amateur historian.

Thomas Zerafa, an amateur historian, has been waiting for eight years for someone to point out the mistake.

The plaque was inaugurated eight years ago by then President Eddie Fenech Adami in the presence of the Portuguese Ambassador – the embassy was behind the plaque.

And during all this time, one person has been hoping that some historian would point out the gross inaccuracy.

Thomas Zerafa, 80, a former civil servant, was present during the commemorative ceremony at the Upper Barrakka eight years ago.

“I noticed straight away that the dates and the events being commemorated jarred, and I went home to consult my history books. In all these years no one has pointed out the inconsistency,” Mr Zerafa said.

The inscription, in English, Maltese and Portuguese, reads: “To honour the memory of admiral Marquis de Nisa and the Portuguese sailors under his command who died fighting side by side with the Maltese during the popular insurrection against French rule on September 2, 1798.”

During the ceremony, then ambassador Antonio Russo Dias pointed out that the Portuguese fleet in the Mediterranean came to the relief of Malta on September 19, 1798. This is in fact two weeks after the revolt against the French and contrasts with the September 2 date on the inscription.

We cannot leave this plaque there: it is a falsity. This is a very serious matter

“We cannot leave this plaque there – it is a falsity. This is a very serious matter,” Mr Zerafa said.

Historical documentation claims that Marquis de Nisa came to Malta after being asked to do so by Lord Nelson. The Portuguese ships blockaded and laid siege to the French, and also landed a contingent to help the Maltese.

The marquis gave the Maltese 500 muskets, while two of his officers went ashore to advise them on the best location for their trenches and posts facing Valletta and Cottonera.

However their contribution did not last long: the Portuguese fleet stayed here for only three months, sailing away on December 13, 1799, when two British regiments under Lord Nelson reached the island.

The British ships subsequently stayed on for a year and nine months, until the French capitulated.

“September 2, 1798, was a glorious day for Malta: it was the day that the Maltese rebelled and wanted to take control of their fate. That was the beginning of the independence of Malta. It should be a national day,” Mr Zerafa said.

He said the Maltese tend to have their priorities wrong when it came to the French period. “We are obsessed with the sword of La Vallette but we do not realise, for example, that in that siege more than 20,000 people died.

“There is no monument for these people who died for the sake of fundraising for Napoleon’s Egyptian campaign,” he said. They did not die fighting, he was quick to point out, but of starvation, while Napoleon was pilfering the island’s riches – melting treasures or else packing them away for the Louvre.

“Malta is a miracle. The fact that we are independent when all the islands around us form part of another state is a miracle, and we should celebrate that.”