On July 4, the Maltese Lieutenancy of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre signed a historic agreement with Heritage Malta, where it was granted the use of the Enceinte Hall located in Valletta’s Fort St Elmo for 25 years.

This milestone agreement sealed months of collaborative discussions between the two parties. The agreement was signed by the Order’s Lieutenant Roberto Buontempo and Heritage Malta chief executive Noel Zammit, in the presence of the Order’s council members and officials from Heritage Malta.

This prime site will serve as the official seat of the Lieutenancy and will continue to strengthen the Order’s presence in Malta. The Order also committed to help Heritage Malta in promoting the historic fort through the organisation of its formal events, meetings and social activities.

The Order, which is a central entity of the Church and is fully recognised by the Holy See, was set up in Malta as a Magisterial Delegation in 1996, and was elevated to a Lieutenancy four years later. Today the Lieutenancy has 100 members, comprising knights, dames and ecclesiastics. Earlier this year a delegation for Gozo was formally established.

Its primary mission is to assist the Christians in the Holy Land, through the funding of schools and hospitals, among other projects. During the recent pandemic, the Order also helped the Maltese community. Around 50 members and dependants will be visiting the Holy Land later this month on a one-week pilgrimage, where they will also meet the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem.

The Order will be inaugurating its new seat later on this year when the Maltese Lieutenancy will host the Italian-speaking lieutenants, which include Malta and Switzerland, for their annual meeting.

The Order also has the custody of the Santa Marija ta’ Doni church in Rabat for 25 years, following an agreement with the Archdiocese of Malta.