page_title: Crown Colony of Malta
section_title: Home rule to Independence (1947–1964)
hierarchical_section_title: Crown Colony of Malta / Home rule to Independence (1947–1964)
caption_attribution_description: Her Royal Highness Queen Elizabeth II inspects the naval Guard of Honour after arriving at Customs House in Valletta, Malta. She was on a tour of the Commonwealth. At the time 78 Fighter Wing RAAF was based in Malta while undertaking garrison duty.
context_page_description: The Crown Colony of the Island of Malta and its Dependencies was the British colony in the Maltese islands, today the modern Republic of Malta. It was established when the Malta Protectorate was transformed into a British Crown colony in 1813, and this was confirmed by the Treaty of Paris in 1814.
context_section_description: After the Second World War, the islands achieved self-government, with the Malta Labour Party (MLP) of Dom Mintoff seeking either full integration with the UK or else self-determination (independence), and the Partit Nazzjonalista (PN) of Giorgio Borġ Olivier favouring independence, with the same "dominion status" that Canada, Australia and New Zealand enjoyed. Meanwhile, after the 1948  Red Flag Incident, in 1949 Britain signed the North Atlantic Treaty and joined NATO.
  After the 1952 accession of Queen Elizabeth II, in December 1955 a Round Table Conference was held in London, on the future of Malta, attended by the new PM Dom Mintoff, Borġ Olivier and other Maltese politicians, along with the British Colonial Secretary, Alan Lennox-Boyd. The British government agreed to offer the islands three seats of their own in the British House of Commons. In addition, the Home Office would take over responsibility for Maltese affairs from the Colonial Office. Under the proposals, the Maltese Parliament would also retain responsibility over all affairs except defence, foreign policy, and taxation. The Maltese were also to have social and economic parity with the UK, to be guaranteed by the British Ministry of Defence (MoD), the islands' main source of employment.
  A UK integration referendum was held on 11 and 12 February 1956, in which 77.02 percent of voters were in favour of the proposal, but owing to a boycott by the Nationalist Party, only 59.1 per cent of the electorate voted, allowing the opposition to claim that the result was inconclusive.
  There were also concerns expressed by British MPs that the representation of Malta at Westminster would set a precedent for other colonies, and influence the outcome of general elections.
  In addition, the decreasing strategic importance of Malta to the Royal Navy meant that the British government was increasingly reluctant to maintain the naval dockyards. Following a decision by the Admiralty to dismiss 40 workers at the dockyard, Mintoff declared that "representatives of the Maltese people in Parliament declare that they are no longer bound by agreements and obligations toward the British government..." (the 1958 Caravaggio incident) In response, the Colonial Secretary sent a cable to Mintoff, stating that he had "recklessly hazarded" the whole integration plan.
  Under protest, Mintoff resigned as Prime Minister, while Borġ Olivier declined to form an alternative government. This led to the islands being placed under direct colonial administration from London for the second time, with the MLP abandoning support for integration and now advocating independence. In 1959, an Interim Constitution provided for an Executive Council under British rule.
  While France had implemented a similar policy in its colonies, some of which became overseas departments, the status offered to Malta from Britain constituted a unique exception. Malta was the only British colony where integration with the UK was seriously considered, and subsequent British governments have ruled out integration for remaining overseas territories, such as Gibraltar.
  In 1961, the Blood Commission provided for a new constitution allowing for a measure of self-government. Giorgio Borġ Olivier became Prime Minister the following year when the Stolper report was delivered. Malta became independent on 21 September 1964.
caption: Queen Elizabeth II visiting RAF Hal Far in 1954
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