In the respectful silence that pervades the Memorial building, an integral part of the National War Museum at Fort St Elmo, a solitary high-backed wooden pew invites contemplative remembrance of the dead. 

The site of the recently established memorial is a 1722 chapel that contains the remains of those knights who were slaughtered defending the fort in the Great Siege of 1565. The memorial is a quiet testament to a collective memory embodied in the hundreds of war medals, the Remembrance Book, Rolls of Honour, a copy of the illuminated scroll donated to Malta by US President F.D. Roosevelt, models of monuments and other items. 

The remembrance book records the names of around 7,000 servicemen and servicewomen and civilians who died in Malta or as a result of their connection to Malta during World War II.

Substituting for an altar, the remembrance book records the names of around 7,000 servicemen and servicewomen and civilians who died in Malta or as a result of their connection to Malta during World War II. The sombre roll call of the dead includes both Maltese and British Commonwealth and Empire civilians and servicemen, comprising the many who perished on the convoys. 

Nearby, a poignant silver sculpture of the crucifixion features an amputated Christ encircled with barbed wire. Symbolising the horror of war and commissioned by Italian trainee military pilots from the aeronautical section in Legnano, the sculpture was presented to the National War Museum in 1993 as a gesture of reconciliation. 

Giovanni Teuma’s round bronze memorial plaque with the words ‘He died for freedom and honour’.

Giovanni Teuma, an ordinary seaman (1st Class) with the Royal Navy, served on HMS Arethusa during the Battle of Heligoland Bight in the North Sea and the combined naval and air operation of Cuxhaven during World War I. For this, he was awarded the ‘1914-1915 Star’ medal. Teuma was killed in action on Christmas Day 1914 during the first year of the drawn-out war. The round bronze memorial plaque with the words ‘He died for freedom and honour’ and his name inscribed on it would have been sent to Teuma’s family as a token of appreciation for the ultimate sacrifice. His other medals, including a war medal given to all the armed forces and a ‘Victory Medal with Mention in Dispatches Oak Leaf’, were also awarded posthumously. 

“In Fort St Elmo, their courage, hopes and dreams will live on forever”

Raymond Mayhew Lewin, a pilot officer with the Royal Air Force, was awarded the George Cross for risking his life to save those of his crew. Shortly after take-off on a night-bombing mission, the Wellington Bomber he was piloting began to dip and crashed into a hill in the limits of Tal-Ħandaq where it burst into flames. 

Raymond Mayhew Lewin, a pilot officer with the Royal Air Force, was awarded the George Cross for risking his life to save those of his crew.

Dated March 11, 1941, the London Gazette reports how, in November 1940, Sergeant Lewin extricated himself out of the burning aircraft and, notwithstanding his own injuries, including a cracked kneecap and several contusions on his face and legs, he “ran around the blazing wing in which full petrol tanks were burning and crawled under it to rescue his injured pilot”. Dragging the pilot some 40 yards from the aircraft to a hole in the ground in the darkness, Lewin flung himself on the man just as the bombs exploded.

November seems to have been an unlucky month for Lewin, who was  eventually promoted to captain. Only one year later, he was killed in action on the 21st of that portentous month when aboard another Wellington Bomber.

Kathleen E. Gulia, a staff officer (Grade 3) with the St John’s Ambulance Brigade, was one of the many women rewarded for their contribution to the war effort.

Kathleen E. Gulia, a staff officer (Grade 3) with the St John’s Ambulance Brigade, was one of the many women rewarded for their contribution to the war effort. Besides receiving a ‘Member of the Order of the British Empire’, Gulia was also awarded an ‘Officer of the Order of St John’ medal, a ‘Defence Medal’, a ‘Coronation Medal’ bestowed on June 2, 1953, and a ‘Service Medal with Bar of the Order of St John’. The medals, donated by Fr Charles Cini, are also on display within the Memorial.

For Charles Debono, curator for the National War Museum, one man’s story stands out. He slides out a drawer which contains an impressive array of 12 medals belonging to Maltese chief petty officer Steward Paul Camilleri, evidence of his excellent service record. 

Camilleri was stationed on a Polish submarine, ORP Sokol, for most of the war, which operated from Malta and received medals for action in the Mediterranean campaign. The British crown also awarded him a ‘Mention in Dispatches’ oak leaf war medal in recognition of ‘distinguished service’ in 1941 and another for ‘Long Service and Good Conduct’. 

Furthermore, Camilleri was the recipient of the ‘Polish Cross of Valour’, the ‘Cross of Liberty and Independence with Swords’ and the ‘Polish Navy Medal’, all bestowed upon him by the Polish government in exile. Despite the high mortality rate for those serving on submarines in World War II – German U boats, for instance, were referred to as ‘iron coffins’ – Camilleri survived the war and lived long enough to receive a Russian medal commemorating the 40th anniversary of victory.

Fr (Giles) Egidio Galea was awarded the ‘Member of the British Empire ‘ civil medal for helping Jewish and escaped Allied POWs evade Nazi capture or persecution.

Fr (Giles) Egidio Galea was awarded the ‘Member of the British Empire’ civil medal for helping Jewish and escaped Allied POWs evade Nazi capture or persecution. Under the leadership of the indomitable Irish Mgr Hugh O’Flaherty, Fr Galea, along with other Maltese priests, hid these POWs within the Vatican and in apartments in the environs, constantly moving them from one location to another to avoid detection during the German occupation of Rome between September 10, 1943 and June 4, 1944. Surmounted by a crown, the cross features the profiles of the British monarch in a medallion encircled by the motto ‘For God and the Empire’. 

Lawrence Zarb, chief petty officer in the Royal Navy, was fortunate enough to have survived the two world wars he served in. As a result, he was chosen to be a member of the Maltese contingent, taking part in the 1946 Victory Parade held on June 8 in London. A photograph depicts King George VI, accompanied by the leader of the Maltese contingent, Lieutenant Colonel A.J. Dunkerley, Royal Malta Artillery, walking towards CPO Zarb when His Majesty visited the Maltese contingent at Kensington Gardens. 

Zarb was the recipient of four medals for serving during World War I and another four for duties carried out in World War II. He was also awarded the ‘King George V Silver Jubilee Medal’ and another for ‘Long Service and Good Conduct’.

King George VI (second from right), accompanied by Lieutenant Colonel A.J. Dunkerley, Royal Malta Artillery, walking towards CPO Lawrence Zarb when the king visited the Maltese contingent at Kensington Gardens during the Victory Parade in London on June 8, 1946.

The Memorial aims to keep alive the memories of these brave men and women and all those who lost their lives in the two great wars of the 20th century. Their photos may have faded with the passage of time. Others may not have any descendants to be remembered by; their lives tragically cut short in the first flowering of their youth. However, in Fort St Elmo, their courage, hopes and dreams will live on forever. 

Warren Bugeja is executive communications, Heritage Malta.

Medals explained

The choice of ribbon colour and the width of each colour band often have symbolic meanings attached to them. The pale, sand-coloured background to the ‘Africa Star’ medal (second from left) refers to the Sahara Desert and thus the continent itself. For centuries, the British Army’s uniform had always been red. The wide red middle band on the ‘Africa Star’ ribbon attests to the importance of the British Eighth Army offensive and counter-offensives in North Africa. On the left of the central red strip, the narrow blue band commemorates the input of the Royal Navy, while the narrow pale blue band on the right, that of the Royal Air Force.

On the other hand, the colours of the Italian flag define the ‘Italy Star’ medal ribbon (third medal from left, next to Africa Star medal in photo). The two medals form part of a collection of eight medals awarded to John Gatt of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary for services rendered in World War II and beyond.