Medieval music, wizardry and sbandieratori were among the many attractions that drew the crowds to the 11th edition of the Medieval Mdina festival over the weekend.

Re-enactment groups brought to life the era of the knights during the Medieval Mdina festival.

Visitors were entertained by numerous re-enactment groups, both local and foreign, who brought to life the fabled era of knights, courts, jesters and nobility in the ditch surrounding the old capital.

These included the Compagnia San Michele, a Maltese historical interpretation group that stages educational events; Show of Arms, a local re-enactment group and fighting school dedicated to the accurate portrayal of medieval and early-modern influences in Malta; and the Historical Re-enactment Group of Malta, the largest living history volunteer society in Malta, which boats 75 members.

Another local group participating in the event in Mdina was Projekt Lazarus Malta, which demonstrated a fully-equipped archery range and a fully-functional trebuchet, a medieval siege engine, among other artefacts, and the Martial Era Revivalists and Combat Society, which engaged in battle and warfare techniques of those times.

Other groups that showed their combat skills were La Rosa D’Accaio, a group of fight performers from Italy, and the Scuola d’Armi, Compagnia Spade e Daghe, which encourages and promotes the art of Historical European Martial Art in Malta. This group also held an exhibition at Casino Notabile.

Children were especially amused by a juggling show presented by the TandemBliss Project and medieval magic by Brian Role and Lourdes Palmer.

Medieval sounds, featuring bagpipes and drums, among other instruments, and flag-bearing demonstrations complemented the re-enactments thanks to the Compagnia La Giostra, the Sbandieratori e Musici Associazione Marduk, the Musici Piazza Medioevale and Graf Hlefenstein Trommler and Koenix, a group of five Swiss musicians.

The Medieval Mdina festival was organised by the Mdina local council and sponsored by the Parliamentary Secretariat for Local Government and Communities, Reġjun Tramuntana, the Malta Tourism Authority, Malta International Airport and Studio 7.

Flag-wavers during a display in the ditch surrounding Mdina.