A few weeks ago, the Palace published the proceedings of one of The Presidency Culture Symposium Series, launched by President Emeritus George Vella, which was held in 2021 under the title of Malta and France: Shared Histories and New Visions, containing research by a number of Maltese and French academics. This particular symposium had been organised by the Office of the President and the Embassy of France in Malta.
Besides addresses by the former president and the former French ambassador to Malta, Brigitte Curmi, and other dignitaries from the two countries, this 250-page volume, edited by Charles Xuereb, amply covers a section on diplomatic and other archives in contributions by Nicholas Chibaeff, director of archives at the French ministry of foreign affairs, and Charles J. Farrugia, Malta’s national archivist.
Beginning in 1660, France has had a diplomatic and consular presence in Malta for more than three-and-a-half centuries. Most revealing is the fact that in 1960, a collection of 194 archive boxes, covering the period from 1672 to 1959, were repatriated from Malta to the Quai d’Orsay in Paris from where they were transferred to Nantes in 1987.
The Nantes archives centre is currently undertaking a very challenging task in order to restore most of this damaged collection, which has rarely been consulted by researchers so far.
Historians Alain Blondy and Xuereb address two intriguing periods of history concerning Malta’s relations with France. The former gives reasons for a misunderstanding between Malta and France in 1798, while the latter speaks of Franco-Maltese relations during the following British colonisation.
French historian Anne Brogini from the University of Côte d'Azur focuses on Maltese-French relations in the early modern period, mostly covering the era of the Order, with the aid of original coloured graphs and maps illustrating shipping and trade with Malta, highlighting French, Spanish, Italian and German movements.
In a section dedicated to the arts, science and culture, Martina Caruana reveals fascinating knowledge about Parisian illuminated printed books of hours in Malta, while Claude Busuttil outlines the influence of French military engineers on the Maltese architecture during the reign of Louis XIV.
Carmen Depasquale speaks of initiatives towards Franco-Maltese relations in the 18th century.
In a concluding section entitled ‘Through Human Exchanges’, Maltese contemporary musicians in France, Karl Fiorini and Simon Schembri, relate their experiences with Karsten Xuereb, while Geneviève Falgas, a French academic of Maltese origin, traces migrations to France and French North Africa.
Two other features include a study by Adrian Grima of Maltese migrant to North Africa Concetta Brincat’s 1919 upublished novel, while Carmen Depasquale, in homage to academic François Cunen, delves into the works of three French authors of Maltese origin.