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Home , Anzac Day, Auberge de Provence, City Gate (Valletta), Floriana, Fort Chambray, Fort Manoel

The ANZAC experience in In 1915 57,950 servicemen from the ex- peditionary force were evacuated to Malta, and during the last three months of the year the sick and wounded continued to arrive from the Dard- anelles at the rate of about 2,000 weekly, and in one week in December 6,341 were landed in Malta.

Archives /www.warart.archives.govt.nz/node/1085 Archives Despite the best efforts of the medical staff, some The landing at Anzac, 25 , 1915, by Charles Dixon casualties did not recover and were buried in Malta. Among these are 202 members of At the start of the , in April Imperial Force and 72 service- 1915, the wounded were evacuated to Egypt, but men from the New Zealand it was immediately evident that facilities there Expeditionary Force. could not cope. When war was declared in A week after the landings at , at the August 1914 there were just four beginning of May, the first convoy of casualties military hospitals on the islands. Within a year arrived in Malta; by the end of the month more there were 21 plus seven convalescent depots than 4,000 sick and wounded were being treated and homes – earning Malta the soubriquet of on the island. Nurse of the Mediterranean.

The ANZAC experience in Malta is a set of four self-guided tours to the principal sites associated with the personnel of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) during, mainly, the First World War. These tours will show you where wounded Anzacs where hospitalised, convalesced, were entertained, and the locations where those who lost their personal battles are buried. Tours may be followed in one of two ways: circularly, ending where they begin, or in a linear fashion. The walking man (_) and car (%) pictograms denote travel directions on foot or by car, whilst the reading man (R) indicates information about the locale and provides historical insights. A map is rec- ommended for car tours, otherwise one is not necessary. The tours also highlight points of interest on the islands – places where recovering servicemen and off duty personnel may have visited, and so can you.

1 11 Auberge de Bavière 200m 290m 2 12 Triq l-Arcisqof 220m 280m 3 13 Triq Santa Lucija 330m 190m 4 Triq ir-Repubblika 14 Fortress Builders 520m 280m Richard Ellis Archive Malta Richard Ellis Archive 5 Triq l-Arcisqof 15 Vincenti Buildings ’s original city gate (left) and the 110m 180m military gymnasium in the background — 6 The 16 St Andrew’s Scots Church now site of the central bank 49m 80m 7 309m 17 Triq l-Ordinanza 8 Mediterranean Conference Centre 210m Tour 1 - Arrival 120m 18 City Gate 430m Valletta, and Pieta 19 Independence Arena Military Cemetery 430m 20 Argotti Botanical Gardens Mode: Linear, on foot () Start: Valletta, city gate 9 Site of the former St Elmo Hospital 550m : 6.5kms 200m 21 Distance 10 Military History Museum : approx 4hrs, at a 770m Duration 360m 22 Pieta Military Cemetery leisurely pace Inc map - Apple Background The ANZAC experience in Malta - Arrival • 1 Matthew Mirabelli Valletta’s from the Upper Barrakka Gardens with: A - Ricasoli Hospital; B - Bighi Naval Hospital; C - Fort St Angelo, known as HMS Egmont in WWI; and, D - Cottonera Hospital

The many sick _ Turn right rah Kastilja is the Auberge de steam cranes lower the stretch- and wounded from as you enter Castile, now the prime minis- ers, swinging them gently into Gallipoli required Valletta – the ter’s office. their places. Thus they are entertainment new ‘gate’ was During the First World War it brought ashore.”1 and the military completed at was British military headquar- One hundred and sixty se- gymnasium - built the end of 2014 ters and the building to its left verely wounded were ferried to in 1872 for the – and walk up is the former Garrison Chapel Valletta Military Hospital in am- Valletta and Flori- the stairway, that now houses the stock ex- bulances drawn by six horses; ana garrisons - turn left to- change. The entrance to the gar- the remainder were taken to was turned into a wards Misrah dens is to the left and behind specialised hospitals. soldiers and Kastilja mak- the stock exchange. _ Make your way to Triq ir-Re- sailors institute. ing for the The Upper Barrakka is the pubblika, retracing your steps The Vernon Upper Bar- highest point in Valletta and its past the Auberge de Castile, the United Services rakka Gardens. terrace offers a panoramic view statue of Grand Master de Club, as it became You’ll pass, on of the Grand Harbour. Valette and the renovated known, main- your left, what R It’s Tuesday, Pjazza Teatru Rjal – the original tained its function is known as a On 5 May 394 4 May 1915, opera house was destroyed in as a social club , a for- wounded arrived nine days after 1942. for the military bidding, win- on the HS Sicilia. the Gallipoli until 1967. dowless A further 641 landings, and The government monolith in- were disembarked the first hospi- took over the tended to be from HT Aragon tal ship — the building in 1968, used as a last on the 6th. By the HT Clan demolished and means of de- end of May more McGillivray — rebuilt the inte- fence in siege than 4,000 sick steams into the rior but retained warfare. On and wounded had harbour. The the external your right is landed in Malta. wounded were walls. It was inau- the Central under the med- gurated as the Bank of Malta. ical care of Captain (later Central Bank of At the out- Major) Vivien Benjafield of the Malta on 13 Feb- break of war Medical Corps. ruary 1971. this was the Within minutes the HT Clan

military gym- McGillivray docks and the 600 Retro Courtesy Bay nasium, converted into an en- wounded Anzacs on board “feel Australian servicemen in Valletta after an tertainment centre in mid-1915 that they have reached a haven Axis air raid for servicemen recuperating of rest. from Gallipoli wounds. “Quietly big barges come along- The imposing building on Mis- side, and almost tenderly the R The ambulances made their way slowly to Valletta, entering During the Great Siege of 1565 Fort St Elmo guarded the entrance to the Grand the capital through Porta Reale Harbour. The Sciberras Peninsula – modern-day Valletta – was largely uninhab- and proceeded down Strada ited scrub. Reale, now Triq ir-Repubblika. The strategic height of the peninsula was not lost on the Ottoman Turks. As at “Masses of people packed the Gallipoli, Turkish heavy artillery had the advantage of an elevated position Strada Reale…Large crowds over the defending knights of the Order of St John, occupying the lower lined both sides and waited ground, across the harbour in Fort St Angelo. In 1565 what are now the silently…Many had brought Upper Barrakka Gardens were used as a platform for the Ottoman canons. packets of cigarettes while oth- Today it is used as a saluting battery with canons fired daily by re-enactors in ers carried bags of chocolates… Victorian-era military uniforms at noon and at 16:00. Others carried bunches of beau- tiful, sweet scented roses and The ANZAC experience in Malta - Arrival • 2 flowers that bloom in spring”, journey down Triq ir-Repubb- the George Cross to Malta in writes Herbert Ganado in his lika with “the crowds pressing 1942 and honours the more memoirs Rajt Malta Tinbidel2. forward to catch a glimpse of than 7,000 service personnel “Some clapped but were the heroes recumbent on and civilians who died on the is- quickly shushed by the crowd. stretchers or comfortably lands between 1940 and 1943. It was not an occasion for noise seated – according to the nature R Facing the memorial is the and shouting”, Ganado recalls. of their injuries – and as the sit- Mediterranean Conference Cen- “The people, uation developed sympathy and tre, once the principal hospital When the first particularly enthusiasm, the spectators of the Order of St John. In 1915 batch of wounded mothers in the cheered with vigour and hearti- this was the Valletta Military arrived in Malta crowds, be- ness…Those of the wounded Hospital, used mainly for triage. on 4 May, there came very who were strong enough to re- “Low-lying, one might at first were no motorized emotional and ciprocate the compliment, think it unsuitable as a health ambulances on the threw choco- waved hands and smiled upon resort. Yet once inside its thick, islands. lates, packets the sympathisers”3. ancient walls, and you feel as if Six Ford ambu- of cigarettes _ Past the turn right you had passed beyond the lances arrived on and flowers. into Triq l-Arcisqof and head to- reach of the sun. The very solid- 26 May, shipped “Some of the wards Triq il-Merkanti. Just be- ness of the old masonry acts from Britain on wounded fore reaching it you’ll see The like a refrigerator, and within the SS . waved, smiled Pub, a favourite watering hole of there is coolness”, writes the The following and looked the Royal Navy, and the place Rev Albert MacKinnon in Malta month another 24 happy that where actor Oliver Reed died on The Nurse of the Mediter- arrived. they had been 2 May 1999 whilst drinking ranean. By November welcomed with with his wife Josephine and “Here is said to be one of the 1918 there were such love and sailors from HMS Cumberland. biggest wards in the world, with 83 ambulances in spontaneous Turn left at Triq il-Merkanti its 200 beds, and it is a touching Malta. affection.” and, some 100 metres along, it’s sight to look down its great _ Turn right right again into Triq San length and see every cot occu- at the intersection with the Kristofru and head for the pied. Wembley Store, walking down Lower Barrakka Gardens. “Here are many of the danger- Triq ir-Repubblika passing the These afford an equally good ous cases, which it would be un- (on your view of the Grand Harbour. wise to move farther.” left). In the days of the British On exiting the gardens, turn At the outbreak of the war Val- Empire the building’s top floor right and you’ll see the Second letta Hospital had only 36 beds, was the Union Club, the hub of World War Siege Memorial. Un- but was increased to 440 just Malta’s social life, today it veiled in 1992 by Queen Elisa- before the Gallipoli campaign houses the National Museum of beth II, the memorial with the renovation of disused Archaeology. commemorates the awarding of wards and improvements made At the next intersection, with Triq San Gwann, you’ll pass the 16th century Co-Cathedral of St John. Once the conventual church of the Order of St John, it is artistically and historically one of the most important mon- uments in Malta and certainly worth a visit. Two squares along, on Misrah ir-Repubblika, is a statue famil- iar to all from former British colonies: Queen Victoria. The austere building next to the Victoria monument is the Palace, formerly the grand - ter’s palace later the governor general’s and now the presi- dent’s office. It also houses Malta’s parliament and a medi- aeval armoury, the latter and the staterooms deserve to be seen. Malta Richard Ellis Archive R In 1915 the ambulances The Valletta Military Hospital, now the Mediterranean Conference Centre, was used would have continued their expansively for triage and the treatment of the severely wounded The ANZAC experience in Malta - Arrival • 3 Department Malta of Information, Valletta’s Sacra Infermeria, built in 1574, was the new, bigger and better

equipped hospital of the Order after Malta Richard Ellis Archive the original in Vittoriosa was aban- Recovering soldiers posing with nurses and ‘medicos’ at Valletta Hospital, that had “one of the doned. The Infermeria had six wards; biggest wards in the world” the largest originally measured 155 metres in length and is reputed to be the longest room in Europe. available accommodation was be increased to 314. Likewise, Each patient had his own bed, un- taken up; each wounded was on the southern side of Grand usual at the time, and silverware was resting on his bed of comfort, Harbour was the Royal Navy’s used to serve meals and drinks. where he was at once attended Bighi Hospital; this, too, played During the French occupation the in- to by skilled medicos and de- a vital role (see Tour 3). firmary became the Hôpital Militaire voted nurses.” In the Valletta area, mean- and, as its name implied, was used as One of the wounded Australian while, several public buildings a military hospital. It retained this infantry soldiers “found that a were converted into hospitals to function from 1800 until 1920 as a bullet had struck the bible in his treat the more severely British military hospital. (breast) pocket. The bullet pen- wounded. In 1887 -born Dr David etrated as far as the gospel of St _ With the conference centre Bruce (later Major General Sir) identi- Matthew, the last pages split by at your back, follow the signs to fied the cause of undulant fever, then the bullet being that contained the war museum. Along the way known as Malta fever, whilst serving the 22nd chapter. The two you will pass granaries, storage at the Valletta Military Hospital. verses which were split were 43 silos with stone lids, and Fort St During the Great War the main en- and 44, the end of the tear rest- Elmo (see the sidebar on page trance to the hospital was in Triq il- ing exactly on the words: “Till I 6). Merkanti; however, that section of the put thine enemies underneath The fort was rebuilt after the building was destroyed in the Second thy feet.” Great Siege of 1565 and now Word War. The principal entrance To accommodate the ever-in- houses the Military History Mu- nowadays is in Triq it-Tramuntana, by creasing number of injured ser- seum. Showcased are exhibits the sea front. vicemen from Gallipoli, and that highlight Malta’s role in Sacra Infermeria tours are conducted further to the expansion of Val- both world wars. by the Malta Experience, located letta Hospital's bed capacity, R Opposite the fort a govern- across the road. Cottonera Hospital — across the ment school was converted into Housed in the Magazine Ward of the harbour — provided 167 beds the 218-bed St Elmo Hospital. Mediterranean Conference Centre, and was the largest military Designated a surgical facility, it meanwhile, the walk-through Knights hospital in Malta at the out- received its first patients on 12 Hospitallers focuses on the medical break of war. A month into the August 1915, “but very soon history of the Order of St John in a se- Gallipoli campaign this had to more beds were needed and, by ries of life-size tableaux.

to existing medical facilities. The 18 May edition of The Daily Malta Chronicle reports that “without bustle or confu- sion each wounded soldier was borne on a stretcher carried by the strong hands of the atten- dants, under personal supervi- sion of a medical officer, led along the long corridor, up the stairs into the ward, each being

placed on the bed previously al- Courtesy John Portelli lotted to him. Recovering Anzacs ‘taking the air’ at St Elmo Hospital. It was here, in 1918, that a bullet was “In an incredibly short time all surgically removed from a trooper’s heart - the first such operation in Malta The ANZAC experience in Malta - Arrival • 4 dint of using the fine veran- dahs, another 100 beds were found…Much fine work has been accom-

Courtesy Wellcome Images Wellcome Courtesy plished there; On 16 February in one series of 1918 Colonel, later 531 operations Sir, Charles Bal- only six deaths lance (above) per- occurred, a formed an tribute surely operation to re- to the opera- move a bullet from tive skill and the heart of nursing powers

Trooper Robert of the staff”, Malta Richard Ellis Archive Martin of the Der- writes Dr The former auberge of English and Bavarian knights became Bavière Hospital in 1915 and byshire Yeomanry. George Bruce specialised in surgical cases of a very severe type, particularly head and spine injuries Martin had been in his history shot in the chest of military hos- on 14 November pitals in officers’ mess and just before to units that took part in the de- 1917, his 21st Malta4. the war the Command Paymas- fence of Malta during the Sec- , by a Bul- Official ter’s HQ. ond Word War. Healed Gallipoli garian soldier in records say After renovation and “the Anzacs, no doubt, attended Salonika. He had that St Elmo usual sanitary fittings” in- services here. basic surgery at a Hospital was stalled, the auberge opened on field hospital and closed in Octo- 15 June 1915 as Bavière Hospi- The first lift in Malta was installed in was then evacu- ber 1917; tal with 100 beds, increased to St Paul’s Modern Building, behind St ated to Malta. clearly, this is 130 in July and to 155 in Au- Paul’s Cathedral, in 1908. On 13 January not possible if gust. The neo-classical cathedral, mean- 1918, Martin was surgical opera- “In spite of its smallness Bav- while, was built on the spot where the admitted to St tions were car- ière Hospital did excellent Auberge d’ Allemagne – home of the Elmo Hospital ried out there work,” reports Dr Bruce, “for German knights - had stood. with the bullet in February from the beginning many surgi- When Britain’s dowager Queen Ade- still in his right 1918. Unfortu- cal cases of a very severe type laide learned that Anglicans did not ventricle. nately, no con- were admitted, and shortly af- have their own purpose-built place of A month later, on temporary terwards it specialised in the re- worship, she commissioned and fi- 16 February, Col writer provides ception of surgical injuries of nanced the building of the church; she Ballance removed the precise the head and spine.” also laid its foundation stone on 20 the bullet with a date of its clo- Bavière Hospital reverted to March 1839. It was completed in 1844 pair of artery for- sure. There is civilian use on 14 August 1917. and has the tallest spire in Valletta at ceps. Trooper Mar- no doubt, how- Possibly a good time for re- 60 metres. tin survived the ever, that the freshments? Across the road is St Paul’s is one of three cathedrals of operation but died building was the GunPost Snack Bar, a con- the Anglican Diocese of Gibraltar in on 14 March of an destroyed dur- verted WWII observation and Europe. infection. ing an air raid machine gun post that bills it- This was the first in the Second self a “mini war museum”, with Proceed along the side of the heart operation in World War. emphasis on the ‘mini’. The mili- cathedral, down Triq il-Punent; Malta and the _ Continuing tary memorabilia on display is at the intersection with Triq third of its kind along the sea fascinating. Santa Lucija turn right and at worldwide. front, some _ Walk along Triq Marsamxett; the end of the block take a left. 500 metres turn left at Triq l-Arcisqof and Some 200 metres ahead you’ll from Fort St Elmo, past Triq il- up the flight of steps. At the top, see the Fortress Builders. This Fran, you’ll see a large, some- you’ll be in Pjazza Indipen- recently opened museum offers what dilapidated, old building; denza; on the left is the Auberge an enthralling look at the devel- this is the Auberge de Bavière, d’ Aragon, now a government opment of in now offices of the Government ministry but in WWI it was the Malta and beyond. Property Department. Military Families’ Hospital. At the intersection of Triq R Formerly the headquarters Opposite is the Anglican St Marsamxett and Triq San Mark, of the English and Bavarian Paul’s Pro-Cathedral, conse- turn left and proceed to Triq il- knights of the Order of St John, crated as a church in 1844. It Fran (Bakery Street). The large in colonial times it had been an contains numerous memorials building facing you is Vincenti The ANZAC experience in Malta - Arrival • 5 government department – the inland revenue. R In 1915 these buildings were barracks, and the infantry bat- talion that occupied them va- cated on 5 June; within 48 hours equipment began arriving to convert this into Floriana Hospital with 600 beds, in- creased to 700 in November. Meantime, the first batch of 249 patients arrived on 9 June,

On 14 August 1915 21-year old Corpo- ral John Vasey of the 2nd Field Com- pany, Australian Engineers, died in Malta of wounds received at Gallipoli and was buried at the Pieta Military Cemetery. His father, George Vasey, of Malvern, Victoria, together with friends pre- sented two stained glass windows to the Methodist Church in Floriana in memory of his son and other Anzacs who died in Malta.

Malta Tourism Authority Tourism Malta The windows, designed and made by Guarding the approaches to both the Grand and Marsamxett harbours, Fort St Abbot & Co of Lancaster, England, Elmo — built in 1488 — was the scene of a heroic defence during the Great Siege of were installed in 1921 and were dam- 1565. aged in WWII. After the war they were The fort withstood intense bombardment and was under siege for 28 days before shipped to Abbot for repairs and were capitulating to the Ottoman Turks on Saturday, 23 June. returned to Malta by the Royal Navy in At sunrise on that fateful Saturday those too injured and unable to stand were 1947, and placed in their original set- placed in chairs behind the shattered ramparts, among them was the Spaniard ting above the communion table. Captain Juan de Miranda. They were armed with pikes, swords and pistols and The stained glass windows were awaited the final assault. When it came, the Ottomans attacked as a howling mass transferred to their present location in yet the handful of Christians still managed to fight for several hours. Eventually 1988. the Turks took their prize and killed all the defenders. De Miranda and other knights were beheaded and their heads placed on spikes. Today, a descendent of the heroic Captain de Miranda is an Australian citizen and a reporter for News Corp Australia. Fort St Elmo was rebuilt and integrated into Valletta’s fortifications after the Great Siege and has been in use since. It was the target of the first air raid over Malta in 1940. Today it houses the War Museum. It is also the location where the In Guardia and Alarm re-enactments are held. In front of the fort are the St Elmo Granaries, storage silos with stone lids.

Buildings, on this site stood the the First World War. bakery of the Order, destroyed _ Take a left into Triq l-Ordi- in WWII. Turn right and walk up nanza and then right on reach- the hill toward St John’s Cava- ing Triq ir-Repubblika. lier – a fortress within a fortress One must now leave Valletta and now the embassy of the and head towards Floriana Order of St John. passing, once again, through the R However, before reaching the city’s new gate, the imposing cavalier, at the junction with Triton Fountain and walking

Triq Nofs in-Nhar stands St An- down Vjal ir-Re Dwardu VII and Mirabelli Terence drew’s Scots Church. Two past the Independence Monu- The window on the left depicts Christ stained glass windows in the ment. as The Light of the World, after the church were gifts from Aus- Behind the al fresco car park, painting by William Holman Hunt, tralian and New Zealand officially known as the Inde- whilst the other shows Our Lord as Methodists, as a memorial to pendence Arena, stands every- The Good Shepherd. their compatriots who died in body’s least favourite The ANZAC experience in Malta - Arrival • 6 Jubilee Grove commemorative column to your right. At the bot- tom of the hill, and on your left, you’ll see the Satariano Home showroom (there’s a zebra crossing some 100 metres be- yond); the cemetery is located behind the showroom and is ac- cessed from Triq id-Duluri – use the farthest gate. R The cemetery was opened in 1857, and is one of four admin- istered by the Commonwealth

Richard Ellis Archive Malta Richard Ellis Archive War Graves Commission in (Above) In 1915 Floriana Barracks were Malta. converted into a hospital, seen on the left of Of the 1,303 Commonwealth the clump of trees and tents. (Left) In 1916 casualties of WWI buried or the hospital was enlarged to include marquees pitched on the ground

Zealand serviceman of the First

Courtesy Walter Bonnici Walter Courtesy World War who died and is “followed by 110 on the 10th buried in Malta. and 236 on the 14th”. The ma- jority of cases treated at Flori- ana “were severe surgical requiring in many cases early operative treatment”, writes Dr George Bruce. “As an example of the strain of work it may be mentioned that, on arrival of one convoy, two operating ta- bles were hard at work from 4 pm till 3 am next morning, and

again from 7 am until 2 am the Mirabelli Terence following morning. The ANZAC memorial in Argotti Gar- “The hospital’s site”, explains dens, inaugurated on 25 May 2013, is Dr Bruce “was exceedingly con- the first such monument outside of venient, being close to both the Australia, New Zealand and Gallipoli. Marsamxett and Grand Har- In 2004 the Valletta-based Maltese bours, each of which was then Australian Association (MAA) agreed in use for disembarkations.” to erect a monument to commemorate Floriana Hospital was closed the Anzacs of WWI who died and were the following April, but re- buried in Malta. opened with 704 beds in Sep- A competition was held for the design

tember. In December 1916 the Mirabelli Terence of the memorial, won by sculptor Ganni accommodation was increased Two hundred and five names are inscribed Bonnici, and construction began in late to 1,304 beds by erecting hospi- on the plinth of the ANZAC Memorial 2011. tal marquees on the parade Contributions to fund its building ground – today’s football pitch. were obtained from the MAA, various It finally closed on the 30 April The next and final stop is Pieta Australian and Maltese associations 1917. Military Cemetery, one kilome- and from individuals. _ We now embark on the more tre away. The monument’s two bronze figures sombre part of this self-guided Turn right as you leave Argotti represent the soldiers who died and tour. Walk to the end of Triq il- Gardens, past the former their families who suffered. According Mall and enter the Argotti Methodist Church (see the side- to Bonnici “the idea was not to repre- Botanic Gardens on Triq Vin- bar on the following page) and sent war and weapons, but rather the cenzo Bugeja. Scout HQ, turn right on reach- humanity that defended it, and those One cannot miss the ANZAC ing Triq Sant Anna and con- who lost their lives fighting for their Memorial, inaugurated in May tinue downhill passing the country”. 2013. Designed by a Maltese ornate Portes de Bombes. Con- The plinth contains the names of 205 sculptor, the monument names tinue along Triq l-Indipendenza, casualties buried in Malta. every Australian and New keeping the pinetum and the The ANZAC experience in Malta - Arrival • 7 commemorated here, 170 are Building of the neo-gothic Robert Samut Hall was begun in 1881 and completed two Australians and 61 are New years later. On 18 March 1883 it opened its doors as the first purpose-built Zealanders. Pieta Cemetery is Methodist Church in Malta. It was also the first building on the islands to use elec- also the site where the annual tric light bulbs. ANZAC Day remembrance serv- In 1921 two stained glass windows, gifts from Aus- ices are now held. tralian and New Zealand Methodists as a memorial ANZAC Day has been commem- to their compatriots who died in Malta during WWI orated in Malta since 1916, and were installed (see the sidebar relating to St An- was originally two services. A drew’s Scots Church). service for non-Catholics was The Methodist Church was closed in 1974, since held at Pieta Military Cemetery then its congregation has worshipped at St An- and another at the Addolorata drew’s, where the stained glass windows were Cemetery for Catholics, as ser- transferred in 1988. vicemen were buried in ceme- The building, along with the adjoining Connaught teries according to their Home - a refuge for soldiers and sailors run by the religion. Methodists and used to entertain convalescing With the unveiling of the War troops during WWI – were taken over by the govern- Memorial in Floriana, the com- ment in 1975. The church was renamed Robert memoration services were com- Samut Hall and converted into a cultural centre

bined and held at this new whilst Connaught Home became a home for the eld- Mirabelli Terence location until 1977. A low-key erly. service was held in 1978. (Samut was a doctor and author of the Maltese national anthem; he lived in Aus- Since 1979 an ecumenical tralia for a short while.) service has been held at Pieta Military Cemetery, as it con- Jack on a gun carriage. Occa- “Two qualities characterised the Aus- tains the highest number of sionally, one saw six or seven tralian soldier as a patient throughout ANZAC war graves on the is- coffins in the same funeral pro- the campaign. Under almost any suf- land. cession. fering he was too proud to wince; and he struggled like a plant towards light and air and water. Stowed in the crowded, unventilated chambers of the ship any Australian who could move himself used to get somehow to the deck - and to the bath, if one could by any means be obtained.”5

Sources 1Malta The Nurse of the Mediterranean (Rev Albert G MacKinnon MA, Hodder

Richard Ellis Archive Malta Richard Ellis Archive and Stoughton 1916) Anzacs paying their last respects to fallen comrades at the Pieta Military Cemetery 2Rajt Malta Tinbidel, translated into English by Michael Refalo and titled My Century (Be Communications 2004) “The day after the first batch of “Later, perhaps not to create 3The Daily Malta Chronicle of 6 May wounded arrived, one witnessed an atmosphere of despondency, 1915 quoted in Gallipoli The Malta Con- the first military funerals,” re- funeral processions left from nection (John Mizzi, Tecnografica Pub- calls Herbert Ganado in his Portes de Bombes and ended at lications 1991) memoirs Rajt Malta Tinbidel2. the Ta’ Braxia cemetery. 4Malta Military Hospitals 1915-1917, a “This is how I learned Chopin’s “From Argotti gardens where short account of their inception and de- Funeral march, and now, when- we played, we could hear the velopment (George Bruce, MA, MD, ever I hear the music, this saluting party fire three times DPH, Capt, RAMC, (SR), Specialist Sani- scene comes to mind: a firing in succession and, as the last tary Officer, Malta) party, rifles at reverse arms, volley was fired into the air, we 5Official History of Australia in the War pointing downwards, a band said: ‘He has gone up to of 1914-1918 Vol 1 (Charles Bean, 11th and a coffin draped in the Union Heaven’.” edition, 1941) The ANZAC experience in Malta - Arrival • 8 WWI Military hospitals and convalescence facilities

Hospital Name before Date Initial Maximum Dated conversion to a hospital opened beds beds closed

Valletta Hospital 1801 36 524 1918 Bighi Naval Hospital 1832 250 17-Sep-1970 Forrest Hospital Palazzo Spinola 1860 30 186 1922 Cottonera Military Hospital 28-Aug-1873 148 802 1920 Blue Sisters Hospital 1910 80 1979 as an officers’ hospital 06/06/15 80 120 30-Jun-1917 Hospital 1896 42 1,853 Feb-19 (Mtarfa Military Hospital 23-Jun-1920 196 2,000 1978) Tigné Hospital Tigné Barracks 2-May-1915 600 1,314 6-Jan-1919 St George’s Hospital St George’s Barracks 6-May-1915 840 1,412 31-Oct-1917 St Andrew’s Hospital St Andrew’s Barracks 9-May-1915 1,172 1,258 Floriana Hospital Floriana Barracks 4-Jun-1915 600 1,304 30-Apr-1917 Hospital Istituto Tecnico Bugeia 8-Jun-1915 108 117 5-Jul-1917 Bavière Hospital Auberge de Bavière 15-Jun-1915 105 155 14-Aug-1917 St Ignatius Hospital Jesuits’ college 2-Jul-1915 155 196 1917a St David’s Hospital 25-Jul-1915 464 1,168 1-May-1917b St Elmo Hospital Government Elementary Schools 12-Aug-1915 218 348 Oct-17 St Patrick’s Hospital 15-Aug-1915 1,000 1,168 27-Apr-1917 St Paul’s Hutments 25-Aug-1915 240 898 27-Apr-1917 St John Hospital Government Elementary Schools 1-Sep-1915 400 520 9-Oct-1917 Spinola Hospital Fort Spinola 6-Nov-1915 1,000 1,168 27-Apr-1917 Ricasoli Hospital 6-Nov-1915 800 800 19-Mar-1916 Manoel Hospital 16-Nov-1915 500 1,184 21-Dec-1918

Convalescence depots

All Saints Camp 12-Jun-1915 1,465 2,000 Nov-17 Ghajn Tuffieha Camp 15-Aug-1915 2,000 5,000 Jan-19 Camp Fort Chambray 4-Oct-1915 400 400 13-Mar-1916 Mellieha Camp 31-Jan-1916 1,250 2,000 5-Sep-1917

Convalescence homes

Villa Dragonara 14-May-1915 12 20 29-Aug-1917 Juno House 60 60 Verdala Castle 9-Dec-1915 30 30 17-Apr-1916 a Mental hospital from 1917 to 1919. b Precise date unknown, operations were still being carried out here in early 1918

ANZAC casualties buried in Malta

Cemetery Australian New Zealand WWI WWII Totals Proudly sponsored Addolorata Cemetery 28 10 38 0 38 by Naval Cemetery 27 7 3 31 34 CommBank Europe Limited Mtarfa Military Cemetery 1 1 2 0 2 Pembroke Military Cemetery 3 0 2 1 3 Pieta Military Cemetery 170 61 231 0 231

Totals 229 79 276 32 308 Written and designed by Terence Mirabelli, Island Publications Ltd, on behalf of the Australian High Commission in Malta. Australian High Commission: Ir-Rampa Ta’ Xbiex, Ta’ Xbiex XBX 1034. Tel 2133820 Fax 2134405 Site www.malta.highcommission.gov.au/mlta/home.html Island Publications Ltd: 36/38 Triq l-Isperanza, MST 1309. Tel 21431864 Site www.travelmalta.com Copyright © 2015 Australian High Commission, Malta. Island Publications (IPL) was unable to locate the copyright holder of some photographs used in this document. IPL will pay a usage fee to the legal copyright holder if he identifies himself with proof of title. The ANZAC experience in Malta - Arrival • 9