Senglea- L-Isla

Senglea 400 Years of History
Senglea is the smallest of the Three Cities in the Cottonera. This less than a mile long and fairly new peninsula is situated between Galley Port (or Dockyard Creek) on the Cospicua side and the French Creek. Its sharp projection at the far end into the Grand Harbour is colloquially known as il-Ponta. However the popular name for this city derived from Italian l'Isola (L-Isla) meaning island, which basically indicates its geographic structure, nearly cut off by two hills Mill Hill and St. Julian's Hill.
After my struggle I emerged undefeated (Quo pugna vi invicta consido)
Although a peninsula it was referred to as Isola meaning island, the majority of its perimeter being surrounded by sea except the narrow fragment adjacent to the City of Cospicua. The local topography supplemented by the beauty of nature made Isola the favourite recreational site amongst the Knights of the Order of St. John. During his reign as Grand Master Fra Philipo Villers de l'Isle Adam planted large quantities of olive trees to make this stretch of land an ideal hunting ground. The Spanish Grand Master Fra Juan d'Homedes was fascinated by the pulchritude of the grove and as a matter of fact Casa Magistrale, the Grand' Master's resort was built here, he also initiated a program to fortify the peninsula. The activity of the Order's Arsenal and fleet generated employment with many workers were seeking accommodation in this region.
In 1553 the French Grand Master Fra Claude de La Sengle transformed this promontory into a fortified city still bearing his name, Senglea. In older to facilitate access the city was built on a grid plan, this arrangement proved very practical and was later adopted for the construction of the Capital City of Valletta. Families were encouraged by the Grand Master to dwell in Senglea by offering land and houses at nominal prices. The Fort dominating the city entrance was named St. Michael as it was commissioned on 8 May 1552, the Archangel's feast day. Sheer bastion, the palaces of the Captains of the Galleys and the store which housed the chain used to block the Galley Port during the Great Siege are existing structures coupled with the Order's naval activities.

During the 1565 Siege Senglea was ravaged by furious attacks launched by the Muslims who failed to conquer the city. Hence this city was bestowed with the title of Invincible City. Victory was declared on 8 September, the feast day of the Nativity of Our Lady, the city's Patron.
In 1596 the local mariners contributed for the erection of the Church and Convent overlooking Grand Harbour dedicated to Our Lady of Safe Haven. Governor Mayor Sir Henry F. Bourverie confiscated the convent to serve as a hospital during the 1837 plague.
The French Occupation of 1798 brought misery and hardships on the Maltese including the inhabitants of Senglea. A number of Sengleans were accused of committing treason against France and were consequently shot. Maltese soldiers positioned on Corradino Heights bombarded French contingents stationed in Senglea, this resulted in the destruction of seventy houses in the locality. The French Control was short lived and they were forced to leave Malta in 1800.
The British took over and gradually influenced the inhabitants' way of living. The British Admirality confiscated the site and wharves underneath Senglea bastions facing Corradino Heights to be converted into a naval dockyard. In order to suit Admiralty requirements, the configuration of the said bastions was altered. Established local shipyards and shipbuilders had to move to the new port at Marsa, at that time the shipbuilding industry was undergoing a period of transition, consequently the majority of these yards became redundant. The ship yards of the Sengleans Gregorio Mirabitur and Lorenzo and Salvatore German and many others provided for the local economy. The Senglean sculptor Vincenzo Bonnici built one hundred and fifty ship figureheads in his workshops in Victory Street, SengleaDuring World War II the city was shattered by enemy air bombardments and was reduced to a mere shell, many lives and possessions were lost. The Imposing Basilica dedicated to Our Lady of Victories was destroyed during brutal air strikes such as those on HMS lllustrious berthed in French Creek on 16 of January 1941. Air raids were a daily occurrence and the exodus of many Sengleans was inevitable. King George VI visited the devastated City in 1943 and perceived the catastrophe. On September 8 1943 Italy surrendered to the allies, a naval messenger delivered this news to the Parish Priest while the procession with the statue of Our Lady of Victory reached the Marina. Once again the city of Senglea established itself invincible.

Grand Master Juan D'Homedes
The Aragonese Knight Juan D'Homedes was elected Grand Master on 20 October 1536. The new Grand Master was a man of strong character and fought bravely for the Order, unfortunately he lost an eye in the Great Siege of Rhodes. In 1551 a fleet of ninety galleys and fifty galiots with ten thousand men on board under the command of corsair Dragut sailed towards Malta to conquer the Island. The Order was not prepared to meet this force and D'Homedes lost no time in disposing the army to the best advantage. Although outnumbered the Knights managed to keep the Turkish warships away from Grand Harbour. Consequently the majority of the Turkish Fleet anchored at St. Paul's Bay and the rest manoeuvred into Mgarr Harbour, Gozo. The Gozitans were forced to surrender and six thousand inhabitants were taken as slaves and the invaders pillaged the Castle and the nearby villages. In 1552 there were rumours of another invasion from the Turks, instead the Turkish Army attacked Tripoli and took it over.
The Order was aware that Malta would be the next target. Grand Master Juan D'Homedes planned to improve the defence of the island by enlarging Fort St. Elmo, building Fort St. Michael at Isola, and strengthening the bastions at Borgo. This feared attack did not take place thus the Knights afforded to send an expedition to the States of Barbary that resulted in a total failure.
Grand Master D'Homedes died at the age of eighty on 6 September 1553 and was buried in the vault of St. Angelo.

Grand Master Claude De La Sengle
Claude de La Sengle a French noble and Grand Hospitaller of the Order and Ambassador at the Court of Pope Julius III was elected Grand Master in 1553. La Sengle ordered the building of a strong bastion to be built at Isola Point within which a new city began to take shape. To honour her founder and benefactor, this city bears the Grand Master's name - Senglea. The building stone was taken from the ditches dug outside the bastions to ensure a speedy operation. This Grand Master commissioned the Italian engineer Nicolo Bellavanti to supervise work in connection with the strengthening of the fortifications.
In 1555 a hurricane struck the Maltese Islands and many houses and properties were damaged. The Galley Squadron in the Harbour was devastated, four galleys capsized and sunk causing the death of six hundred men. This was a great blow for Malta as no warships were available to defend in case of an eventuality. The Order of St John was not in a position to replace the lost warships mainly due to financial constraints. La Sengle contributed from his personal finances for the construction of a new galley he named San Claudio. Assistance came from Pope Paul IV, King Philip II of Spain, the Grand Prior of France Francois De Loriane and the Grand Prior of St. Gilves.
Claude de La Sengle maintained good relations with France and Spain as these two nations were at loggerheads with each other and were rivals for the supremacy of Sicily and the control of the Western Mediterranean. The Viceroy of Sicily, Giovanni De Vaga demanded the Order of St. John to conquer Mehdia in Africa, this demand was later rejected. In retaliation the Viceroy stopped the exportation of wheat to Malta. To mitigate this unpleasant situation, the assistance of the Palermitan engineer Vincenzo Vogo was sought to modernize the windmills, meanwhile the Pope intervened and sent enough wheat to meet demands.

The Prior of France De Loraine, a relative of the king of France, made pressure on La Sengle to hand him the command of the fleet. To sustain good relations with France La Sengle assigned De Loraine Captain of the Galley Squadron. This was an unwise decision opposed by the Italian and Spanish Knights, knowing that De Loraine lacked naval experience. In 1557 the Galley Squadron under the command of De Loriane was defeated and humiliated by the Turkish Fleet. This was a great blow for Malta and an embarrasment for the Grand Master.
After this incident La Sengle became ill and weak and tried to comfort himself by hunting at Boschetto. The Grand Master respected his subjects and never enacted any kind of injustice or hardship on the Maltese. Claude de La Sengle passed away on 18 August 1557. The Order inherited all his treasures including 80,000 scudi. His Corpse was laid in the vault of St. Angelo and his heart was deposited in the Carmelite Church of the Annunciation near Boschetto at Rabat.