Fondazzjoni Wirt Artna, through its partnership with Bank of Valletta, is organising a WWI weekend at Fort Rinella in Kalkara on the 100th anniversary of the Great War.

The event is being held tomorrow and on Sunday between 10am and 5.30pm. It will also feature the firing of the 100 ton gun, a full-scale infantry trench complete with barbed wire entanglements in the grounds of the fort and a 20-men detachment kitted in British WW1 kit.

A full-scale WW1 battle scene will be re-enacted starting at 2pm.

This event is being complemented by a military headgear exhibition covering over 1,000 years of military gear evolution, the display of a genuine WW1 Vickers 18-pounder field gun, interactive displays about WW1 trench warfare and informative talks about period weaponry and equipment.

The event was launched by foundation CEO Mario Farrugia and Michael Galea, chief officer, operations at Bank of Valletta.

"Although lacking front-line action, Malta played an active role during World War I with over 30,000 people participating in the war effort, from a total population of under 200,000," Mr Farrugia said.

"From her role as the nurse of the Mediterranean, the Maltese also participated by enlisting in the Royal Air Force and Royal Naval Reserve, minesweeping, submarine warfare and ship-building.

"WWI is symbolised by trench warfare, and this event aims to bring the hardships and strife of this period to life. The smell of rotting corpses and exposed latrines, the constant threat of a gas attack or enemy advance, rats and body lice, mud and disease were among the factors that the trench warriors had to face to conserve our freedom. In this event, we try to give the visitor a snapshot of the life that soldiers had to endure on days on end during the great war," Mr Farrugia said.

Event programme

Gas mask display: 10am-5pm (throughout the day in between displays)
Bayonet Exercises: 11.30am
Sword Exercises: 12.30pm
Lunch break: 1–2pm
Foot Drill Display: 2pm
Cavalry Display (including tent-pegging competition): 2.30pm
Battle simulation: 3.30pm
Firing of the 100-ton gun: 5pm

Opening to public: 10am
Entrance fees: adults: €10, children under 16: €2, paid up members of FWA: free.

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.