page_title: History of Malta
section_title: Great Siege
hierarchical_section_title: History of Malta / Hospitaller rule (1530–1798) / Great Siege
caption_attribution_description: English: The Siege of Malta: Capture of St Elmo, 23 June 1565 This is the third of eight pictures commemorating the Siege of Malta in 1565. It portrays the capture of Fort St Elmo on 23 June. Fort St Elmo was captured after a siege lasting 29 days. Inside the fort, the Turks found 27 cannons which are portrayed here adorned with the Turkish flag and pointing at the Christian Fort St Angelo. The painting takes the viewer's eye over the battle to the fort and sea beyond, with a view from Mount Sceberras overlooking the Christian forts of St Elmo on the left and Birgu in the background to the right. The Turks pour through the breached walls of the castle where two parties of Knights make their last stand. The battery consists of two tiers of cannon, pointing to the left, and in the middle of the picture, on the battery, a distinguished Turk dies having been hit by a cannon ball from Fort St Angelo. Beyond, two cannons fire at Birgu. The whole area is crowded with troops moving in tight formation. In the left foreground is a group of archers, and in the middle foreground, janissaries. Mustapha Pasha, and other Turkish leaders, Piali Pasha and Ochiali Calabrese, are positioned in the extreme foreground. The picture depicts the variety of head-dress worn by the Turkish troops. At the mouth of the harbour and to the west of St Elmo are five Turkish galleys, and rowing towards St Angelo and Birgu are three barges of the Knights, returning after their efforts to relieve St Elmo. When St Elmo fell, all inside perished, except for nine wounded Knights. See also BHC0252-BHC0259. 'The Siege of Malta: Capture of St Elmo, 23 June 1565'
context_page_description: Malta has a long history and was first inhabited in around 5900 BC. The first inhabitants were farmers, and their agricultural methods degraded the soil until the islands became uninhabitable. The islands were repopulated in around 3850 BC by a civilization which at its peak built the Megalithic Temples, which today are among the oldest surviving buildings in the world. Their civilization collapsed in around 2350 BC, but the islands were repopulated by Bronze Age warriors soon afterwards.
  Malta's prehistory ends in around 700 BC, when the islands were colonized by the Phoenicians. They ruled the islands until they fell to the Roman Republic in 218 BC. The island was acquired by the Eastern Romans or Byzantines in the 6th century AD, who were expelled by Aghlabids following a siege in 870 AD. Malta may have been sparsely populated for a few centuries until being repopulated by Arabs in the 11th century. The islands were invaded by the Norman County of Sicily in 1091, and a gradual Christianization of the islands followed.
context_section_description: On 18 May 1565, Suleiman the Magnificent laid siege to Malta. By the time the Ottoman fleet arrived the Knights were as ready as they could be. First, the Ottomans attacked the newly built fort of St. Elmo and after a whole month of fighting the fort was in rubble and the soldiers kept fighting until the Turks ended their lives. After this they started attacking Birgu and the fortifications at Senglea but to no gain.
  After a protracted siege ended on 8 September of the same year, which became known in history as the Great Siege, the Ottoman Empire conceded defeat as the approaching winter storms threatened to prevent them from leaving. The Ottoman Empire had expected an easy victory within weeks. They had 40,000 men arrayed against the Knights' nine thousand, most of them Maltese soldiers and simple citizens bearing arms. Their loss of thousands of men was very demoralising. The Ottomans made no further attempts to conquer Malta and the Sultan died in the next year.
caption: Capture of St. Elmo, 1565
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