Before the early 19th century, Sliema did not exist. In fact, the site on which the town now stands was an expanse of arable land that supported a small rural community of farmers and herdsmen.

The only ecclesiastical building in the area was a small chapel in what is now known as Tigné, built in the early 17th century, situated across Marsamxett Bay from Valletta. This chapel, which was dedicated to the Nativity of Mary, is reputed to be the origin of the toponym ‘Sliema’, as the crews of vessels sailing past used to salute the Virgin Mary by saying the Ave Maria (Sliem għalik Marija).

After some time this chapel fell into disuse and was desecrated in 1659; it was replaced by another chapel on the same site in 1741. In 1798, this second chapel was completely destroyed during the French Blockade.

Six years later, another church was built further inland and this survives to the present day and is known as the chapel of the Virgin of Divine Graces. It was completed in 1804 and for a long time stood alone in open countryside. It is now surrounded by a dense urban complex.

The chapel of the Virgin of Divine Graces (or Il-knisja ż-żgħira as it is now popularly known), boasts two important paintings by Mattia Preti. Two functional bells were found on the roof suspended from a beam, while a third bell is cracked. Tradition has it that one of these bells used to be rung whenever someone was hung on the gallows situated across Marsamxett Bay in Floriana. The three balls are now found in the parish museum.

This chapel continued to serve the religious needs of the community for a number of years. By the middle of the century the population had increased considerably and the chapel of Divine Graces, with a maximum capacity of 50 worshippers, became totally inadequate.

The need for a new church was felt, and in 1851 a number of respected residents signed a petition to Bishop Mario Sant in which they pointed out the inadequacy of the existing chapel and proposed the building of a new church. The Cathedral Chapter owned land known as Tal-Katidral opposite the chapel and, in early 1852, the chapter donated this land. Permission for the building of the new church was soon granted and the first stone was laid on April 28 by the Diocesan Vicar, Mgr Vincenzo Chapelle.

Architect Giuseppe Bonavia, who had been involved in the negotiations for the grant of the land, was entrusted with the design of the new church. The building works started right away but, just before building began, a problem cropped up concerning “the bad condition of the rocks” on which the foundations were to be laid, incurring additional expenses.

On August 9, 1853, 52 Sliema re­si­dents signed a petition address­ed to the Governor, Sir William Reid, in which they requested the donation of a bell formerly at the chapel of the Civil Hospital in Merchants Street, Valletta, and then lying at the arsenal of the Royal Engineers. In support of their pe­tition they cited the mentioned unexpected increased ex­penses connected with the foundations.

The petition was looked upon favourably by the governor, who had already contributed to the funds being raised for the building of the church, and it was granted on October 10. The church was completed two years later when it was blessed by Mgr Chappelle on August 11, 1855, and dedicated to Our Lady Star of the Sea, or as commonly known, Stella Maris.

The new church had a simple construction. The only entrance was framed by a simple moulding in front of which a neo-classical portico was erected featuring ionic columns surmounted by a triangular pediment. Above the roofline, a short blocking course served as the basis for two small structures acting as bell cots.

Fonderia Enrico Bianchi of Varese, Italy, submitted an offer to supply and deliver the five bells for £1,189

This façade is no longer in existence as the church was further enlarged and redesigned in the late 19th century. This work took longer than expected and was completed in 1909. In the meantime, Bishop Carmelo Scicluna had blessed and separated the church of Stella Maris from its parent parish of Birkirkara in 1878.

The enlarged church featured a completely new two-storey façade divided into three sections: a large central portico flanked by twin bell towers. These bell towers have a combination of early Christian and Renaissance motifs, and the sculptural reliefs at the top are very distinctive, having a pleasing impact on the skyline.

The bell cots of the old church housed three bells, two of which are still hanging in the new bell towers. The smallest one bears an inscription stating it was donated by Dun Karm Casha Gerada and that it was manufactured by Giulio Cauchi in 1875. It now strikes the quarter hours.

The mid-sized bell, which now strikes the hours, bears the arms of the Order of St John and the date 1796. It was cast by the renowned bellfounder Gioacchino Trigance.

The Trigance family came to Malta with the Order in 1530, and between 1700 and 1798 they were responsible for the Order’s foundry in Valletta. I have not been able to confirm whether this was the bell that was given to the Sliema petitioners by Governor Sir William Reid in 1853.

The largest bell, which has a beautiful tone, was manufactured in Għajn Dwieli by Giulio Cauchi in 1885 and weighed nine qantar (just over 700kg). It remained in the new bell towers of the new church until 1937 when it was sold for £50 to the parish of Marsaxlokk after the installation of a new set of five bells.

Following the completion of the new church façade, the parishioners of Stella Maris felt the need for a new set of bells that would complement the beautiful bell towers. Accordingly, an ad hoc committee with parish priest Fr Raffaele Capurro as honorary president was set up in 1933 tasked with raising the necessary funds and with the eventual purchase of the new bells; the minute book of this committee is still found in the parish archives.

The prime movers of the committee, entitled ‘Pro fondo Campane Chiesa Mat. E Parr. Stella Maris’ were Fr Carmelo Micallef, who made several personal contributions to the expenses incurred, and treasurer Fr Edmondo Tabone.

The committee was successful in raising the necessary funds and issued a tender for the purchase of the new set of five bells. This was awarded to Fonderia Enrico Bianchi of Varese, Italy, whose representative in Malta was Maestro Ettore Lucia. They had submitted an offer to supply and deliver the five bells and accessories for the sum of just over 120,000 lire, equivalent at the time to £1,189.

Following inspection in Varese by members of the committee, the bells arrived in Malta in early August 1937 on the Italian vessel Donizetti and they were transported on trailers to the courtyard of St Patrick’s Institute, a short distance away from the parish church. Here they were consecrated on Sunday, August 8 by the Bishop of Gozo, Mgr Michael Gonzi, who was representing the Bishop of Malta, Dom. Mauro Caruana.

The bells were given the following names: Maria Stella (4,495kg, ‘sol’, sponsored by Vicar-General Mgr Pawlu Galea); Maria Dolores (2,012kg, ‘si’, sponsored by Marchioness Violet Scicluna, Baroness of Tabria), Maria Rosaria (1,150kg, ‘re’, sponsored by Carmelo Cassar Torreggiani, hon. president of the Stella Maris Band), Giuseppina (664kg, ‘fa’, sponsored by Carmelo Agius, president of the Stella Maris Band Club) and Carmela-Teresa-Raffaela (485kg, ‘sol’, sponsored and donated by parish priest Fr Raphael Capurro).

Each of the bells bore a suitable Latin inscription related to its name. That of Maria Stella translates as follows: “I praise the true God – I summon the people – I assemble the clergy – I pray for the souls of the departed – I calm the tempests – O holy, powerful immortal Lord – Praised be the name of God ‒ Look to the star, call on Mary”.

As already mentioned, these five bells are supplemented by the two smaller bells originally found in the pre-1909 church which are now used in conjunction with the church clock which had been installed by Mikelanġ Sapiano of Luqa in 1875.

The new bells were transported to the parish church on August 14 and 15, accompanied by the Stella Maris Band. The delicate job of hanging the bells was supervised by committee member Salvu Calleja, who had also made the necessary preparation in the bell towers for the hanging of the new bells on steel beams. Calleja paid for these works out of his own pocket.

Stella Maris parish church sustained severe damage during World War II when it was hit by enemy bombs on March 1, 1942, but, fortunately, the two bell towers were not hit and the bells survived intact.

The church was reopened on December 20, 1942, after heroic work by the parish priest, Don Giuseppe Inguanez, and master mason Felice Mifsud.

The feast of Stella Maris is being celebrated this week, albeit in a reduced form due to COVID-19 restrictions. The bells will, of course, still be ringing out in praise of Our Lady, Star of the Sea.

Acknowledgements

I am indebted to the Archpriest of Stella Maris, Mgr Anton Portelli, Dr Charles Delicata, Mr Victor Calleja (grandson of Salvu Calleja) and John Bisazza for their invaluable assistance. I am also grateful to Vincent Peresso who first drew my attention to the petition to Governor Sir William Reid at the National Archives. A lot of the information in this article is based on the book by the late Maurice Busietta, Tas-Sliema – Il-Knisja u l-Paroċċa ta’ Stella Maris, published in 1977.