page_title: 1675–1676 Malta plague epidemic
section_title: Cemeteries
hierarchical_section_title: 1675–1676 Malta plague epidemic / Impact / Cemeteries
caption_attribution_description: English: Church in Triq Raymomd Caruana, Gudja
context_page_description: The 1675–1676 Malta plague epidemic was a major outbreak of plague on the island of Malta, then ruled by the Order of St John. It occurred between December 1675 and August 1676, and it resulted in approximately 11,300 deaths, making it the deadliest epidemic in Maltese history. Most deaths were in the urban areas, including the capital Valletta and the Three Cities, and these had a mortality rate of about 41%. In the rural settlements, the mortality rate was 6.9%.
  The exact cause of the outbreak remains uncertain, but infected merchandise from North Africa seems to be a likely source since the disease first appeared in the household of a merchant who had goods from Tripoli. The epidemic spread rapidly and efforts to contain it were poor, in part due to disagreements on whether the disease was actually plague or not. Eventually strict measures were taken and the epidemic subsided after eight months.
context_section_description: During the epidemic, the deceased were usually not buried in churches as was common practice at the time. Burials were held in various locations, particularly in specially-established extramural cemeteries, around fortifications or abandoned churches. Inhabitants of Valletta were buried in a cemetery on the Isolotto (now known as Manoel Island), while those of Cospicua and Senglea were buried in cemeteries outside the cities' fortifications. The deceased of Birgu were buried at Il-Hisieli. People were also buried at a cemetery in Cospicua known as Iċ-Ċimiterju tal-Infetti (Cemetery for Infectious Diseases), which still exists today.
  The deceased from Birkirkara, Gudja and Qormi were buried in village cemeteries, while those in Żurrieq, Kirkop, Rabat, Mosta, Bubaqra and Attard were buried in churches, mostly ones which were disused.
caption: The Chapel of Santa Lucija tal-Barrani, in Għaxaq, is on the site of a plague cemetery. The cemetery was destroyed when the road was widened for vehicle traffic in the 20th century.[16]
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