Pietà, Malta
Encyclopedia
Valletta
Valletta is the capital of Malta, colloquially known as Il-Belt in Maltese. It is located in the central-eastern portion of the island of Malta, and the historical city has a population of 6,098. The name "Valletta" is traditionally reserved for the historic walled citadel that serves as Malta's...
, the capital city of Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
. Tal-Pietà is the suburb
Suburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...
next-closest to the capital after Floriana
Floriana
Floriana is a town in Malta, just outside the capital city Valletta. Floriana is the birthplace of many famous Maltese, amongst which the composer of the national anthem, 'L-Innu Malti', Robert Samut; former Bishop of Malta Dom Mauro Caruana, the poet Oliver Friggieri, and Swedish Idol winner...
. Its name is derived from Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
and signifies "mercy".
Description
The former Maltese national hospital, St. Luke'sSt. Luke's Hospital, Malta
St. Luke's Hospital , is a general hospital located on Gwardamanġia hill, in Pietà, Malta. Its foundation was laid April 5, 1930, by the Governor of Malta, John Du Cane, in the presence of the Prime Minister, Gerald Strickland....
, is located in Tal-Pietà, as well as the University of Malta
University of Malta
The University of Malta is the highest educational institution in Malta Europe and is one of the most respected universities in Europe. The University offers undergraduate Bachelor's Degrees, postgraduate Master's Degrees and postgraduate Doctorates .-History:The University of Malta was founded in...
Medical School. Tal-Pietà is a coastal town, and an old boathouse of notable historic interest is located on the waterfront. Also of historic interest, and visible in several medieval prints, is the little chapel of Our Lady of Sorrows
Our Lady of Sorrows
Our Lady of Sorrows , the Sorrowful Mother or Mother of Sorrows , and Our Lady of the Seven Sorrows or Our Lady of the Seven Dolours are names by which the Blessed Virgin Mary is referred to in relation to sorrows in her life...
, which dates from the seventeenth century, still in active use today.
The parish church
Parish church
A parish church , in Christianity, is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish, the basic administrative unit of episcopal churches....
, however, goes back only to 1968. It is dedicated to Our Lady of Fatima
Our Lady of Fatima
Our Lady of Fátima is a famous title given to the Blessed Virgin Mary as she appeared in apparitions reported by three shepherd children at Fátima in Portugal. These occurred on the 13th day of six consecutive months in 1917, starting on May 13...
and is run by the Dominican Order
Dominican Order
The Order of Preachers , after the 15th century more commonly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, is a Catholic religious order founded by Saint Dominic and approved by Pope Honorius III on 22 December 1216 in France...
. The town also hosts St. Augustine's College
St. Augustine's College (Malta)
St Augustine College in Malta was established as a Catholic school for boys by the Order of Saint Augustine in 1848. Fr. Gaetano Pace Forno O.S.A. founded it in Valletta next door to the church of St. Augustine. It has since been relocated to Pietà....
, run by the Augustinian Order. A couple of streets nearby bear the names of St. Augustine and his mother, St. Monica. Tal-Pietà is a departure point for ferries to Gozo
Gozo
Gozo is a small island of the Maltese archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea. The island is part of the Southern European country of Malta; after the island of Malta itself, it is the second-largest island in the archipelago...
, and the patrol boat
Patrol boat
A patrol boat is a relatively small naval vessel generally designed for coastal defense duties.There have been many designs for patrol boats. They may be operated by a nation's navy, coast guard, or police force, and may be intended for marine and/or estuarine or river environments...
depot of the Armed Forces of Malta
Armed Forces of Malta
The Armed Forces of Malta is the name given to the combined armed services of Malta. The AFM is a brigade sized organisation consisting of a headquarters and three separate battalions, with minimal air and naval forces.- Headquarters, AFM :...
is located at the Haywharf. Within the boundaries of Tal-Pietà is the hamlet of Gwardamanġa.
Also within the boundaries of Tal-Pietà are St. Ursuline's Orphanage; PBS
Public Broadcasting Services
Public Broadcasting Services Limited is Malta's public broadcasting company, responsible for the TVM television channel and the Radio Malta and Radju Parlament and Magic radio stations. PBS is funded by government grant and the sale of commercial airtime...
, the national broadcaster; Villa Gwardamanġa, which served as the residence of the then Princess Elizabeth of Great Britain (later Queen Elizabeth II) when she lived in Malta between 1949 and 1951; the Ta' Braxia Cemetery Complex is a Commonwealth Landmark Site and where many World War I garrison veterans from the British army and navy are buried; and the headquarters of the Nationalist Party
Nationalist Party (Malta)
The Nationalist Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in Malta, along with the Labour Party. It was founded by Fortunato Mizzi in 1880 as the Anti-Reform Party, opposing taxation decreed by the British colonial authorities and measures to Anglicise the educational and the...
, currently the party in power. The party built its base here in 1969. Tal-Pietà is regarded as a suburb of Ħamrun, Msida
Msida
Msida or Imsida is a harbour town in Malta with a population of 7,623 . The town is located just west of Valletta on the northeast coast of Malta. The town enjoys a Mediterranean climate with hot, dry, sunny summers and short, cool winters.The neighbouring towns of Msida are Ta' Xbiex, Gzira, San...
, and Valletta. Most of its resident population over the past 30 years hails from this area.
The population of Tal-Pietà and its hamlet, Gwardamanġa, now close to 3,853 , has increased over the past few years, thanks to a new housing estate and the redevelopment of old homes over the past thirty years.
A large number of Maltese citizens have Tal-Pietà as their place of birth, because many women give birth at St. Luke's Hospital. Tal-Pietà is not, however, considered by the Maltese born there to be their home town, that being considered instead the town or city they first lived in.
Tal-Pietà Local Council
The current Tal-Pietà local council members are:- Malcolm Mifsud (Mayor, PN)
- Jessie Fabri (PL)
- Anthony Camilleri (PL)
- Annhelica Agius (PN)
- Michael Seychell (PN)
Tal-Pietà Main Roads
- Misraħ San Luqa (St Luke's Square)
- Misraħ il-Madonna ta' Fatima (Our Lady of Fatima Square)
- Telghet Gwardamanġa (Gwardamanġa Hill)
- Triq ix-Xatt (Marina Street)
- Triq il-Mimosa (Mimosa Street)
- Triq San Luqa (St Luke's Road)
- Triq Santa Monika (St Monica Street)
- Triq San Guzepp (St. Joseph Street)
- Triq id-Duluri (Our Lady of Sorrows Street)
- Triq Zammit Clapp (Zammit Clapp Street)
- Triq Hookham Frere (Hookham Frere Street)
- Triq San Girgor (St Gregory Street)
- Triq is-Sorijiet tal-Ursolini (Ursoline Sisters Street)
- Sqaq Borton (Borton Lane)