Description
These fascinating images offer a unique glimpse of life in Malta almost 100 years ago.
Archive footage restored and published by Malta Audio Visual Memories shows just how busy Valletta was in the 1920s with crowds of people thronging the main shopping street, Kingsway.
The fascinating film was shot over a century ago in various locations around the capital city and features soldiers on parade outside Main Guard in St George’s Square.
Unlike many portrait photographs from the period, this never-before-seen footage is informal and shows a more relaxed side to life.
A huge battleship from the Royal Navy’s Mediterranean Fleet is seen entering the Grand Harbour to an impressive gun salute from the cannons on the Saluting Battery.
The battery remains one of Malta’s most spectacular visitor attractions to this day and is said to be the oldest saluting battery still in operation anywhere in the world.
Members of the Societa Filarmonica Nazionale La Valette are also seen celebrating in the streets after the band club won the best International Band award in 1927 in Como in Italy.
Almost every man taking part in the celebrations is seen wearing a straw hat, which were hugely popular fashion items in the Roaring Twenties!
