Timeline..      

Around 5000 BC

Neolithic farmers arrive

.5000-4000BC

Neolithic period. Skorba Temples built

4000- 3000 BC

Temple Period. Age of Tarxien and Ggantija temples and Hal saflieni Hypogeum

2500-700BC

Bronze and Iron age. Period of  fortified villages and `cart tracks`

700-550 BC 

Phoenicians colonize the islands.

550-218 BC

Period of Carthiaginian rule

218BC

Romans annexe Malta in their strategy to win the Second Punic War.

AD60

St. Paul is Shipwrecked on Malta and brings Christianity

5th Century

Roman Power diminishes; Vandal Raids

6th Century

Byzantine empire gains control

870 

The Arabs conquer Malta

1090

Roger the Norman, ruler of Scicily and parts of southern Italy, takes Malta from the Arabs.

1194

Malta (with Scicily) becomes part of the German Hohenstaufen empire

1266

Charles of Anjou takes over the kingdom of Scicily, of which Malta is part.

1282

Riots against the French rule in Scicily. King Pedro I of Aragon defeats Charles of Anjou; Sicily and Malta come under the kingdom of Aragon.

Mid-15th Century

Emergence of universal, or local governing body, under Aragonese rutelage

1429

Malta is attacked by the Muslims

Early 16th Century

Having declined economically and culturally, Malta is now little more than a rock with a population of about 20,000

1530

Emperor Charles V of Spain grants the Maltese Islands to the Knights of  the Order of St. John of Jerusalem. The Knights occupy the Islands making Bigu  (Modern Vittoriosa) their headquarters.

1565

The Great Siege of Malta- Malta is attacked heavilly by the Ottoman Empire-The Turks

1566

The City of Valletta is founded

1571

The Maltese capital is formerly moved from Birgu to Valletta. A Christian fleet, assisted by the Knights, inflicts defeat on the Ottomans at Lepanto.

1676

Plague causes 8,569 deaths

1735 

Sicillian ports are closed to Maltese ships after the Grand Master Vilhena resists Charles VIII attempt to influence Maltese affairs.

Late 18th century

The Order becomes de- militarized and corrupted by wealth.

1792

The French National Assembly confiscates the Orders lands in France.

1798

Napoleon takes Malta and plunders the islands. The Order of St. John is ordered to leave the Island. The Maltese rise up against the French; helped by the British, they besiege the main French garrison.

1800

The French capitulate and the British occupy the Island

1802

The Treaty of Amiens stipulates that Malta should be returned to the Knights, but a powerful group of Maltese declares allegiance to Britain.

1813

Sir Thomas Maitland is appointed as the first British Governor of Malta. Extensive constitutional and administrative reforms are made.

1814

The Treaty of Paris formally recognizes Malta as a British Colony.

1848

The British Admiralty's first dry dock opens on Malta

1853-6

During the Crimean War, Malta acts as a supply station for British forces

1869

The opening of the Suez Canal makes Malta an important port on the British route to India.

1914-18

World War I. Malta becomes `the nurse of the mediterranean` providing 25,000 beds for the wounded

1921

Malta is granted self-government `in matters of local concirn`

1940

Italy enters World War II

1942

The Second Great Siege. Over 60,000 tonnes of bombs are droped on Malta in April alone. On 15th April the George Cross is awarded to the Maltese people for their bravery during the air raids.. In August and September, the German and Italian forces suffer heavy losses over Malta and in October they concede defeat. The UK government announces a grant of 30million for the reconstruction for the reconstruction of the Island.

1962

The state of Malta formally comes into being with Dr. Borg Olivier as its first Prime minister.

1964

Malta is granted full independence within the British Commonwealth, though British Forces remain.

1974

Malta is decalred a republic

1979

British forces finally leave Malta

1989

Presidents Bush and Gorbachov meet on a ship moored off Malta 

1990

Malta applies for full membership of the European Community

1996

Nationalists ousted by the Labour Party

1998

Nationalist Victory puts ths island back on course to join the European Union.

The intelligent visitor is never satisfied with just skimming the surface of his holiday destination. His appetite for learning urges him to delve deeper in to the origins and history of the country and the people he is visiting. 

Malta and Gozo are justly famous for their temples and tombs. On the two islands, 34 prehistoric sites have been discovered, 23 of them being temples. Some of these may to the untrained eye, look no more than a pile of rubble or the tumbled remnants of a drystone wall. On the other hand, the finest examples demonstrate a remarkeable sophistication and rank amongst the oldest free standing structures in the world.

Over the centuries Gozo, like Malta, was ruled by the powerful nations of the time, including Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Romans and Arabs.   

The megalithic temples, designated by UNESCO World heritage sites , are the oldest freestanding stone structures known to man.

Then there is the Azure Window, a stunning break in the rocky shoreline, Ta' Pinu Basilica which is a center of pilgrimage, and the new church at Xewkija with one of the world's largest free - standing domes.

At the center of Gozo, commanding a superb view of the island, is the Citadel (Cittadella) which for centuries served as the islanders' safest sanctuary, and after the Great Siege of 1565, the Knights set about encircling it with battlements. For many years the inhabitants were required by law to spend their nights within its walls for their own safety.

Today, the Citadel stands as proudly as it ever did. An earthquake in 1693 damaged many of the buildings within its walls but, with the help of UNESCO, these are being restored to their former glory

Despite the small nature of the island, there is a lot to see. Besides the Citadel, and the Ggantija megalithic temples, one finds the equally impressive Inland Sea at Dwejra and Fungus Rock, where the Knights used to collect a fungus they believed to have medicinal properties. 

Historic Places of Interest 

Knights Armory- Citadel - VictoriaThis commercial hub with its street market (known as it-Tokk, in Independence Square) also contains the Citadel (known often as the Gran Castello or the Cittadella), an impregnable strategic point which owes its origins to the late mediaeval era, and which was re-fortified by the Knights of the Order of St. John to act as protection for the inhabitants.

• Cathedral Museum- Citadel -Victoria- At the back of the cathedral, this museum houses a modest collection of vestments, religious paintings, church ornamentation and old manuscripts.

• Cathedral- Citadel-Victoria-This fine classic facade of the cathedral, raised above a flight of steps, makes a powerful impact as you step inside the citadel

• Gozo 360 -Victoria- Multivision show gives a dramatic glimpse into Gozo`s past and present.

• Museum of Archaeology- Citadel Victoria- The 17th Century Palazzo Bondi makes a fitting setting for Gozo`s archaeological finds. Exhibits range from fragments of prehistoric pots to Roman amphorae and pottery found on shipwrecks off the coast  of Gozo. 

• Natural History Museum- Citadel- Victoria- This small exhibition focuses on the geology and marine life of the island and includes displays of fossils, fish and coral.

Azure Window and Inland Sea- Dwejra

At Dwejra on Gozo`s southern coastline is a superb natural phenomenon, the Inland Sea

.

Basilica of Ta Pinu- Gharb A center of pilgrimage for  Gozitans and Maltese, the modern neo-Romanesque sanctuary of Ta Pinu rises majestically in the isolated countryside.

• Frenc Tal Gharb Museum- Gharb

• Gharb Folklore Museum- Gharb- This is a charming museum where exhibits are laid out in the rooms of 3 medieval houses. The emphasis is on everyday Gozitan life over the centuries.

• Karmni Grima Museum- Gharb

Ninus(Calypsos) Caves and Xerris Grotto- XgharaClose to Xaghra and overlooking the red sands of Gozo's finest beach, Ramla l-Hamra, is Calypso's Cave, assumed by many to be the cave referred to by Homer in 'The Odyssey'

THE STALACTITE GROTTOS OF XAGHRA
The village of Xaghra is poised on a high limestone plateau. As limestone is soft and porous, rainwater percolates through and by chemical action melts the more soluble materials, leaving the harder ones to stand. This explains the formation of caves and grottoes in limestone terrains. 

Two such underground caves have been discovered at Xaghra: the first in 1888 by Joseph Rapa, in a field known as ta' Ninu (belonging to Anthony); the second in 1923 by Joseph Xerri, beneath his own home. e. 

XERRI'S GROTTO lies within a private house at Gnien Imrik Street, not far from the church. It is reached by a flight of 36 steps. 

NINU'S CAVE is also located in private premises, in January Street, to the left of the church. The cave is 24 metres long and reaches 18 metres in width. On both sites, admittance is at a small charge, and visitors are shown around by a family guide. 

• Ggantija Temples- 4000- 3000 BC Xaghra The megalithic temples of Ggantija near the village of Xaghra are an outstanding example of the prehistoric monuments to be found on the Maltese Islands. According to latest analysis they were built around 3600 BC, earlier than the first pyramid in Egypt (around 2800 BC) and Stonehenge in England (around 2400 BC)

• Mithna Ta Kola- Xaghra

Built in 1725, this is one of Gozos few surviving windmills. The Mill, now a museum, has been finely preserved.

• Gozo Heritage- Ghajnsielem In a converted Gozitan farmhouse between Mgarr and Victoria, a series of reconstructed scenes takes you through 7,000 years of the islands chequered history. Events are portrayed by life size figures in period settings. A shop sells handmade Gozitan crafts.

• Rotunda Church -Xewkija The mighty Xewkija Rotunda; the dome is one of the biggest in the world- Built 1951

• Salt pans- Qbajjar-Marsalforn 

Festivals- 

• Feast of St. Pauls Shipwreck- 10th February

• Carnival- 3 days before Ash Wednesday

• Easter (April)

• Freedom day- 31st March

• St. Peter and St. Paul- 29th June

• St. George- Late July

• Feast of the Assumption- 15th August

• Our Lady of Victories- 8th September

• Independence Day- 21st September

• International Choir Festival- 3rd week in November

• Feast of the Immaculate Conception 8th December

• Republic Day 13th December

• Christmas Day- 25th December

• New Years Day -01 January