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History of Malta
From antiquity to the modern era — the historical eras, key events, and narrative that shaped Malta.
Overview
Malta was an important cultic center for earth-mother worship in the 4th millennium B.C. Recent archeological work shows a developed religious center there long before those of Sumer and Egypt. Malta’s written history began well before the Christian era. Originally the Phoenicians, and later the Carthaginians, established ports and trading settlements on the island. During the second Punic War (218 B.C.), Malta became part of the Roman Empire. During Roman rule, in A.D.
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Historical Eras
The major periods of {country}’s history at a glance.
Prehistoric & Phoenician
5000 BCE – 218 BCE
Malta's earliest inhabitants erected the Ggantija and Hagar Qim temple complexes around 3600–2500 BCE, predating the monuments of Sumer and Egypt and marking the island as a major centre of earth-mother worship. The Phoenicians subsequently established trading ports, followed by Carthaginian settlers who integrated Malta into Mediterranean commerce. This era laid the linguistic and cultural substratum that would shape Maltese identity for millennia.
Roman & Byzantine
218 BCE – 870
Malta entered the Roman sphere during the Second Punic War in 218 BCE and eventually gained municipium status under Emperor Hadrian. In 60 CE, Saint Paul was shipwrecked at what is now St. Paul's Bay, an event that initiated the island's enduring Christian identity. Following Rome's division, Malta passed to the Byzantine Empire in 533 CE, remaining under Constantinople's administration until the Arab invasion of 870.
Arab & Norman Rule
870 – 1530
Aglabid Arabs from Tunisia conquered Malta in 870, leaving a profound imprint on the Maltese language, agriculture, and customs that persists to the present day. In 1091 the Norman adventurer Count Roger of Hauteville expelled Arab authority, attaching Malta to his kingdom of Sicily; the final expulsion of the Arab population followed in 1224. For the next three centuries Malta was passed among the feudal lords of Swabia, Aragon, Castile, and Spain, functioning largely as a peripheral dependency of Sicily.
Knights of St. John
1530 – 1798
In 1530 Charles V granted sovereignty of Malta to the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem, who transformed the islands into a formidable Christian bastion. The Order's finest hour came during the Great Siege of 1565, when the Knights and the Maltese population repelled the vast Ottoman forces of Suleiman the Magnificent after months of fierce combat. The Knights founded Valletta in 1566, endowing the island with magnificent baroque palaces, churches, and fortifications before their peaceful capitulation to Napoleon Bonaparte in 1798.
British Colonial Era
1798 – 1964
After a brief and resisted French occupation, Malta voluntarily joined the British Empire in 1814, becoming the headquarters of the Royal Navy's Mediterranean Fleet and a strategically vital imperial fortress. During World War II the island endured relentless Axis bombardment between 1940 and 1943; King George VI awarded Malta the George Cross in 1942 in recognition of its extraordinary collective resistance. The postwar period saw growing demands for self-governance, culminating in independence on September 21, 1964.
Independent Republic
1964 – present
Malta became a republic on December 13, 1974, and the last British forces departed in March 1979, completing full sovereignty. The island transitioned from a military economy to a diversified one built on freight transshipment, financial services, and tourism from the mid-1980s onward. Accession to the European Union on May 1, 2004 marked Malta's integration into the broader European political and economic community.
Timeline Preview
The first 7 key events. View the full chronology on the timeline page.
117 – 138
Islands become municipium under Emperor Hadrian.
Islands become municipium under Emperor Hadrian.
395 – 870
Byzantine rule.
Byzantine rule.
870 – 1090
Arab rule.
Arab rule.
870
Aglabiti (Tunisian) Arabs invade Malta and expel the Byzantine.
Aglabiti (Tunisian) Arabs invade Malta and expel the Byzantine.
1048
First Byzantine attempts to regain islands.
First Byzantine attempts to regain islands.
1091
Count Roger of Hauteville, aka the Norman, takes Malta.
Count Roger of Hauteville, aka the Norman, takes Malta and imposed taxes but leaves Arab rulers.
1224
Final expulsion of Arabs from Sicily and Malta.
Final expulsion of Arabs from Sicily and Malta.