Today marks the anniversary of the uprising of the Maltese against the French on September 2, 1798. Thomas Zerafa writes that the determination of Carolina, wife of King Ferdinand of Naples, to starve the French in Malta to avenge her sister Antoinette’s execution, played a part in the insurrection’s eventual success.

The French Revolution of 1789 shook the world. Among its victims were King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette, who were both guillotined. The queen was 37 when she died on October 16, 1793, for treason. In due course her violent death would determine the history of our island. This is the evidence.

In June 1798, Ferdinand IV was the King of the Two Sicilies when the Order of St John was still ruling Malta under fief from Naples. His wife, Maria Carolina, was Marie Antoinette’s favourite sister. Antoinette and Carolina were very close from birth. In childhood, the sisters spent all their time together.

Carolina never forgave the French for Antoinette’s fate. She wrote: “I am not and never shall be on good terms with the French... I shall always regard them as the slayers of my sister and the royal family”. She refused to speak French, which she called “that monstrous language”. Napoleon was “that wild beast”. The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies had always looked with antipathy and even hatred on Republican France.

Maria Carolina was viewed as a power-hungry outsider who effectively ruled the Kingdom. Her husband, King Ferdinand is described as “uncouth, completely lacking in the least vestiges of culture or erudition, indolent, weak and corrupt”. It was said that his only achievements were on the hunting field where he slaughtered anything that moved. He was reportedly completely dominated by his wife.

The opportunity for Carolina to avenge her sister’s death came unexpectedly when Napoleon Bonaparte captured the Maltese islands on June 10, 1798. This prompted England, an ally of Naples, to send Admiral Horatio Nelson to the Mediterranean to confront the French. It so happened that what Admiral Nelson was ordered to achieve coincided perfectly with Carolina’s plan. Malta found itself sandwiched between two great powers and the Kingdom to which it belonged.

Napoleon was an accomplished liar and exhibited a considerable talent for falsehood. But the magnetism of his personality would carry him to great achievements as well as disasters. Malta is a classic example. He would soon learn, however, that Malta could not be won by horses – it could only be won by boats.

On the day the Knights Hospitaller’s capitulation was signed on board the Orient, the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies was represented by its ambassador in Malta. Naples never renounced its ownership of the island. His role as ambassador was “to safeguard the interest of the Alto Dominio of the King of Naples over Malta and Gozo”. The ambassador, Balì di Torino Frisari, who resided in Villa Bichi, found no objection to sign the capitulation “without prejudice”. He was without doubt following Carolina’s instructions. Malta was at the time considered part of France. It would remain the only island in the Mediterranean (out of 189) separated from its neighbour.

Why would Carolina sacrifice Malta so cheaply with complete disregard to its people? I do not think this aspect of our history has been given its due importance.

When Bonaparte declared Malta to be part of France and its citizens French, France was assuming responsibility of Malta. Naples was no longer bound to supply Malta with its needs as it was during the reign of the Knights. Carolina saw this as an opportunity not to be missed to avenge her dear sister’s death, with Nelson’s support.

Napoleon lost no time issuing new orders on the governance of Malta. He planned grandiose projects for the island. But he avoided explaining how provisions would be obtained for 100,000 people living on an arid island that cannot feed itself. Our forefathers did not swallow the bait.

Our forefathers had the vision to seek protection from those who could provide it

Nelson’s concern was about England’s short cut to India. Due to Malta’s geography, England could not tolerate their enemy occupying the island. “If Bonaparte takes Malta I will starve the French to death” he told Carolina to her delight.

Enter Emma Hamilton, the beautiful wife of Sir William Hamilton, the British Ambassador in Naples. Mrs Hamilton was the bosom friend of Queen Carolina with whom she used to spend a lot of time. Admiral Nelson would necessarily and frequently have to discuss Malta with Ambassador Hamilton. But Mrs Hamilton was close to his heart. He became infatuated with her and at one stage his affair interfered with his duties – a perfect film story.

Following the insurrection by the Maltese people against the French, the Maltese, unaware of Carolina’s strategy, sent several pleas assuring Naples that they still considered themselves part of Sicily, and Ferdinand as their King, and that his flag was flying in Mdina. However, Carolina was determined to avenge the death of her dear sister by starving the French in Malta for the slaying of Antoinette. Incredibly she included the people of Malta, who were now French citizens.

Our forefathers were thus condemned to pay for a crime committed by their invaders. Deprived of their bread, the islanders’ staple food, this was a question of survival. Starvation was looming! A strict quarantine barring Maltese boats from entering Sicilian ports was enforced.

With the French garrison ensconced behind the walls of the four cities, a Maltese National Assembly was quickly formed to coordinate plans for defence and to seek ways to get help. The assembly, formed two days following the insurrection in Rabat, consisted of senior members from the villages. They immediately informed Naples of the local situation and requested urgent assistance, which was always promised but very rarely provided.

Seven days after contacting Naples, the National Assembly, very wisely and significantly, facing a desperate situation, informed Nelson they had rebelled against the French and requested him to blockade Malta’s two main harbours. They also requested assistance! This was an SOS. But starvation knows no law!

What makes a nation great is the ability of its people to make the most of a situation that is leading to total disaster! And Malta would never look back.

It is estimated that around 350 Maltese were killed in battle. Thousands died of starvation and its complications. This was a veritable trauma inflicted on the islands. This epoch in local history deserves to be remembered.

After two years besieged within the bastions, blockaded from the sea and land, the brave French general, Claude-Henri Belgrand de Vaubois, succumbed to the inevitable. The number of deaths among the French garrison is not know, but it must have been considerable. Deprived from all necessities of life, Vaubois surrendered to the British.

Barely able to stand on their feet, the ‘walking skeletons’ were transported to France aboard British ships, with Canon Cassar of Gozo providing their food. Was Queen Maria Carolina avenged? Indeed, she may have asked for more! We will never know. Our forefathers had paid a very high price.

Malta will always remain vulnerable. Our forefathers had the vision to seek protection from those who could provide it. They learned the lesson that the Maltese cannot fight for their rights with an empty stomach. The rest is history.

I consider this epoch as a defining period for the country. This was the only instance in local history when the Maltese, on their own, sacrificed their lives for what was most dear to them – their faith, their family, and, if he was a farmer, the field he tilled.

Acknowledgements
The author used the following sources for this article: Dr Charles Testa, The French in Malta; William Hardman, A History of Malta; Joe Scicluna, Blockade.

Thomas Zerafa is a retired civil servant. He is an amateur historian focusing on Malta’s long and unique process towards independence.