Clemente Tabone ( mt, Klement Tabone, 1575 – 11 March 1665) was a Maltese landowner and

militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

member who is known for his courage in the

Raid on Żejtun The Raid on Żejtun, also known as The Last Attack ( mt, L-aħħar ħbit), was the last major attack made by the Ottoman Empire against the island of Malta, which was then ruled by the Order of St. John. The attack took place in July 1614, wh ...

, the last major Ottoman attack on Malta, in 1614. He built a tower and a chapel on some of his lands on the outskirts of Żejtun. The tower no longer exists, but St. Clement's Chapel remains intact and is still in use today.

Biography

Tabone was born in Casal Pasqualino (today part of

Żejtun Żejtun ( mt, Iż-Żejtun ) is a city in the South Eastern Region of Malta, with a population of 11,218 at end 2016. Żejtun is traditionally known as Città Beland, a title conferred by the grandmaster of the Order of the Knights of Malta, F ...

) in around 1575 to Pietro Tabone and Dorothea née Cumbo. He was the only son within a rich family, and he had six sisters. On 18 March 1589, he seems to have received a clerical tonsure which brought him under the Church's jurisdiction, protecting him from the powers of the Order of St. John who at the time ruled Malta. Tabone did not continue to study to become a priest. He acted as an attorney for his father during a property deal in 1596, and his father later gave him some pieces of land through two notarial deeds. He subsequently became a wealthy landowner, renting out some of his fields and buying others. His lands included a number of fields and buildings, including part of the archaeological site of

Tas-Silġ Tas-Silġ is a rounded hilltop on the south-east coast of the island of Malta, overlooking Marsaxlokk Bay, and close to the town of Żejtun. Tas-Silġ is a major multi-period sanctuary site with archaeological remains covering four thousand year ...

and salt pans in Bengħisa. Tabone built the Ingraw Tower on one of his lands in 1603, and decades later, he used part of the land acquired in 1596 to construct St. Clement's Chapel. Tabone married three times. He first married Helena Testaferrata on 11 January 1597 in

Birgu Birgu ( mt, Il-Birgu , it, Vittoriosa), also known by its title Città Vittoriosa ("''Victorious City''"), is an old fortified city on the south side of the Grand Harbour in the South Eastern Region of Malta. The city occupies a promontory of ...

, but she died the following year on 2 August 1598. His second marriage was to Margherita Pace, the daughter of a nobleman from

Siġġiewi Siġġiewi ( mt, Is-Siġġiewi, ), also called by its title Città Ferdinand, is a city and a local council in the Southern Region of Malta. It is the third largest council in Malta by surface area, after Rabat and Mellieħa respectively. It ...

, and they married on 3 February 1602. He eventually began an extramarital affair with Aloisetta Veron, and he married her on 14 January 1657. They had four children, two of whom – Dorothea and Angelo (or Archangelo) – were born out of wedlock and later legitimized. Their fourth child, Archangela, was born after Clemente's death. Tabone and his family had moved to

by 1609, but he seems to have also returned to Żejtun at some points in his later life. He made wills in 1646, 1659 and finally in 1661. He died in Birgu on 11 March 1665, and was buried in the Parish Church of St. Lawrence. His son Angelo died a day after him. Tabone had an

Ethiopian Ethiopians are the native inhabitants of Ethiopia, as well as the global diaspora of Ethiopia. Ethiopians constitute several component ethnic groups, many of which are closely related to ethnic groups in neighboring Eritrea and other parts of ...

servant named Gregorio in 1646. In his later life, he had at least two black slaves, Gugliemo and Madalena, who were eventually set free.

Raid of 1614

Clemente Tabone is mostly known for his role in the 1614

, in which a fleet of Ottoman galleys landed some 6,000 men in St. Thomas Bay in

Marsaskala Marsaskala ( mt, Wied il-Għajn), also written as Marsascala and abbreviated as M'Skala, is a seaside town in the South Eastern Region of Malta which has grown around the small harbour at the head of Marsaskala Bay, a long, narrow inlet also know ...

and pillaged the village of

which had been abandoned by its inhabitants after they heard about the attack. Tabone's exact role is unclear; some sources state that he was a member of the ''dejma''

, while others state that he was attacked by Ottomans on the outskirts of Żejtun. He might have lost his sword during this fight. 18th-century sources state that Tabone showed a lot of courage during the 1614 raid, but no direct contemporary sources which state Tabone's exact role are known. Tabone might have been part of the ''dejma'' that responded to the cannon fire from St. Lucian Tower after the Ottomans' failed attempt to land at

Marsaxlokk Marsaxlokk () is a small, traditional fishing village in the South Eastern Region of Malta. It has a harbour, and is a tourist attraction known for its views, fishermen and history. As at March 2014, the village had a population of 3,534. The ...

, or he might have been part of the cavalry force that drove the invaders out of Żejtun.

Buildings

House in Żejtun

Tabone was given a house in Żejtun by his father in 1596. It is described in contemporary documents as consisting of rooms built around a courtyard, also containing a cistern, a small adjoining field and half of a tower (the other half of this tower seems to have belonged to the heirs of Tabone's uncle). The house at 40, St. Clement's Street has traditionally been considered to be Tabone's house. It contains a courtyard, cistern and a nearby field, matching the description, and the date "1624" is reportedly inscribed inside the building. However, no sources which explicitly state that the building belonged to Tabone are known, and his ownership of the building is therefore uncertain. The design of the house is similar to the auberges of the Knights in Birgu. It has a main door in the middle with an imposing window decorated with a local Melitan moulding. The building has other entrances and windows at ground floor but are simple. The upper floor is mostly not built.

Ingraw Tower

The Ingraw Tower ( mt, Torri Ingraw) was built by Tabone in 1603 in Ħal Tmin or in the area of Misraħ Strejnu. It bore the following inscription, but it has been lost: The tower was built for defensive purposes since the area was prone to attacks by the

Barbary pirates The Barbary pirates, or Barbary corsairs or Ottoman corsairs, were Muslim pirates and privateers who operated from North Africa, based primarily in the ports of Salé, Rabat, Algiers, Tunis and Tripoli, Libya, Tripoli. This area was known i ...

. A number of other towers were built in the area, including Tal-Mozz Tower in the immediate vicinity and Mamo Tower some distance away. The Ingraw Tower had been dismantled by 1927, and its stonework was used to build a nearby rural structure. A stone bearing the date "1603" and another bearing the coat of arms of the Tabone family can still be seen in the room's façade.

St. Clement's Chapel

Tabone had first made plans to construct a chapel in the 1620s, but when he described the wish to be buried in this chapel in his 1646 will, it is mentioned that the building was still to be constructed. Located in Ħal Tmin, the chapel is believed to have been built in 1658, since that date is inscribed on its façade beneath Tabone's coat of arms. It was described as complete in 1661. An inscription above the main doorway of the chapel reads: It is often stated that the chapel was built to commemorate deliverance from the 1614 attack, but a definite link between the raid and the chapel has not yet been established. The church has a simple façade and a small parvis.

Pope Clement I Pope Clement I ( la, Clemens Romanus; Greek: grc, Κλήμης Ῥώμης, Klēmēs Rōmēs) ( – 99 AD) was bishop of Rome in the late first century AD. He is listed by Irenaeus and Tertullian as the bishop of Rome, holding office from 88 AD t ...

is the subject of the chapel's titular painting, which was painted in 1662 and is attributed to Stefano Erardi. The painting contains a depiction of an elderly Tabone. A small painting depicting the

Pietà The Pietà (; meaning "pity", "compassion") is a subject in Christian art depicting the Virgin Mary cradling the dead body of Jesus after his body was removed from the cross. It is most often found in sculpture. The Pietà is a specific form o ...

, attributed to

Francesco Zahra Francesco Vincenzo Zahra ( mt, Franġisk Żahra, 15 December 1710 – 19 August 1773) was a Maltese painter who mainly painted religious works in the Neapolitan Baroque style. His works may be found in many churches around the Maltese Islands, as ...

, is also found in the chapel. The chapel remains intact and it is still in use.