10 Military Museums in Island of Malta That You Shouldn't Miss

Fort Rinella in Kalkara,was built in 1878. This fort is not only a unique remnant of Malta's recent British colonial past, but it is also the world's first mechanical fort which enabled its small garrison to fire a monstrous 100-ton gun every six minutes. To be able to do this, the fort was equipped with a novel steam-driven hydraulic set-up that enabled the gun to traverse and depress and its ammunition to be hoisted and loaded mechanically. On visiting this fort in 1889, the great French writer Jules Verne described it as a marvel of the industrial age which would render Malta safe for ever. Some say that this is the place from where he got the idea of writing his famous novel a 'Voyage to the Moon', where a man is stuffed into a large projectile and fired from a large gun onto the moon!Originally, the 100-ton gun was built by Sir William George Armstrong of Newcastle in 1878, to equip a new class of Italian battleships - the Duilio class. This caused a serious stir between Britain and Italy which led to the former to obtain examples of the same gun to secure Malta and Gibraltar against a potential Italian seaborne attack.The Armstrong 100-ton gun has a calibre of 17.72-Inches (45cm). It is 35 feet long and has an overall weight of 156 tons making it the world's largest muzzle-loading cannon ever built. It used a quarter of a ton of gun powder to propel its monster shells up to a maximum range of eight miles. At that range it could pierce anything up to 21-inches of ship armour! The gun at Fort Rinella and another at Napier of Magdala Battery in Gibraltar are the sole surving examples today. The fort has recently undergone extensive restoration and improvement. A new 20-minute audio-visual outlining the history of the fort and its gun has also been added and is included in all guided tours.RE-Live History at Fort Rinella - Every afternoon from Monday to Saturday!Throughout the year, from Monday to Saturday at 14.00Hrs sharp, Fort Rinella is brought back to life complete with late 19th century Victorian soldiers who will take visitors on an animated tour around the fort. This tour combines excellent guiding with live and colourful historical re-enacting including military signalling, firing of rifles, bayonet practice, military cooking and more. Much use of original period equipment and weapons is made throughout this tour. All this goes to provide an enjoyable and long lasting experience to visitors.

Visitors at Fort St Elmo can experience the impressive grounds of the fort, including the splendid architecture of the two chapels dedicated to St Anne. Among the most notable artefacts inside the museum one finds the military armour of the Order of St John and the Ottoman Turks, the Gloster Sea Gladiator N5520 FAITH, Roosevelt’s Jeep ‘Husky’, and Malta’s award for gallantry, the George Cross.

The Lascaris War Rooms consist of an underground complex of tunnels and chambers that housed the War Headquarters from where the defence of Malta was conducted during the Second World War.This secret complex contained operations rooms for each of the fighting services from where not only the air defence of Malta was coordinated, but also some of the greatest battles fought in the Mediterrean during the war. In July 1943, the Lascaris War Rooms served as the advance headquarters for the Invasion of Sicily (Operation Husky)by Generals Eisenhower, Montgomery, Alexander and Clark and Air Marshal Tedder and Admiral Cunningham. It went on being used under different forms by both the British services and Nato up to 1977.

The Saluting Battery is one of Malta's most vibrant visitor attractions where history is brought to life daily! Located high along Valletta's eastern historic ramparts it enjoys unrivalled spectacular views of the Grand Harbour and its surrounding fortified towns. It is also perhaps the oldest saluting battery still in operation anywhere in the world. Here one can see a fully restored gun powder magazine, an artillery side-arm store, a handsome collection of original muzzle-loading artillery , ammunition and equipment and get a close-look at the saluting guns. The battery is equipped with audio-guides but guided torus in English are also available three times a day at 11.00, 12.30 And 15.00Hrs.

The Malta at War Museum is located at the original historic entrance of Vittoriosa (Birgu), the older from the Three Cities. It stands to document for posterity the great ordeal which the brave people of Malta and their defenders endured during the dark days of the Blitz (1940-43). Vittoriosa (Birgu) is the former home to the Royal Navy in the Malta and one of the most bombed places in WW2. This museum combines an attractive exhibition about the Second World War in Malta along with the viewing of an original wartime documentary – ‘Malta G.C.’ and a visit into an underground air raid shelter in which hundreds took refuge during the raids.This attraction has recently undergone a complete remake co-funded by the European Union’s European Regional Development Fund (72.25%), the Government of Malta (12.75%) and Fondazzjoni Wirt Artna. The result is a new attractive museum spread on nine galleries. Each of these is dedicated to a given aspect of wartime Malta. The museum display is organised in a chronological manner and includes some 10,000 original artefacts connected with the subject. These vary from clothing, weapons, instruments, equipment, printed matter and other large exhibits.The new Malta at War Museum is open daily for visiting between 10.00 and 17.00hrs.

Please note that the Palace State Rooms will be closed to the general public from the 1st of February 2020 and until further notice. This closure is necessary in view of the extensive restoration project currently underway at the Grand Master’s Palace. Works will not affect accessibility to the Palace ARMOURY, which will remain open daily.

Housed within the Old Naval bakery, the Malta Maritime Museum charts Malta's maritime history and lore within a Mediterranean context. It also illustrates the global nature of seafaring and its impact on Malta's society. The museum houses numerous artefacts highlighting the different epochs of Malta's history that is inadvertently tied to the sea.The museum is proud to showcase some unique artefacts including the largest known roman anchor in the world, the earliest known ex:voto on the island, the largest ship model belonging to the Order of St John, the largest collection of cannons on the island, the Napoleonic figure head of the 110 gun ship HMS Hibernia, a 1950's working marine steam engine, and a collection of 60+ boats.