Sir Ugo Pasquale Mifsud (12 September 1889 – 11 February 1942) was a Maltese politician, the 3rd

Prime Minister of Malta The prime minister of Malta ( mt, Prim Ministru ta' Malta) is the head of government, which is the highest official of Malta. The Prime Minister chairs Cabinet meetings, and selects its ministers to serve in their respective portfolios. The P ...

under British home rule, and the first to serve a full term in power.Historical Dictionary of Malta
by Uwe Jens Rudolf, 2018 He held office from 1924 to 1927 and from 1932 to 1933. He was a member of the Nationalist Party and the Maltese Italian community.Office of the Prime Minister
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Biography

Born in

Valletta Valletta (, mt, il-Belt Valletta, ) is an administrative unit and capital of Malta. Located on the main island, between Marsamxett Harbour to the west and the Grand Harbour to the east, its population within administrative limits in 2014 wa ...

to Judge Gio Batta Mifsud and Philomena Marianna Muscat, Ugo P. Mifsud studied at Malta's Lyceum and Royal University, graduating as a lawyer in 1910. He married Maria Beatrice ("Blanche") Francia in 1928. Specialised in

international law International law (also known as public international law and the law of nations) is the set of rules, norms, and standards generally recognized as binding between states. It establishes normative guidelines and a common conceptual framework for ...

, Ugo P. Mifsud published in leading international journals such as the ''London International Law Notes'' and was appointed a member of the

International Law Association The International Law Association (ILA) is a non-profit organisation based in Great Britain that — according to its constitution — promotes "the study, clarification and development of international law" and "the furtherance of international ...

, set up in

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

, actively participating in its two-yearly international conferences. In 1928 Mifsud chaired the aerial and radio law committee at a conference in

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

, and represented Malta at a conference of the Empire Parliamentary Association in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. In 1934 he chaired the

trade marks A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a type of intellectual property consisting of a recognizable sign, design, or expression that identifies products or services from a particular source and distinguishes them from other ...

committee at a conference in

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

. When Sir Filippo Sciberras rallied a Maltese legislative assembly to draft a liberal Constitution to submit to the British colonial government, Mifsud was elected secretary of the sitting. At the 1921 elections under the Amery-Milner Constitution, Mifsud was elected to Parliament for the '' Unione Politica Maltese'' (UPM) for the Legislative Assembly. In 1924, at 35, Mifsud succeeded to Francesco Buhagiar, becoming the youngest Prime Minister in the

British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts e ...

. Following the merger of the UPM with Enrico Mizzi's PDN, in 1926 Mifsud became co-leader of the newly formed '' Partito Nazionalista'' (PN). In 1927 he was knighted. At the

1927 Events January * January 1 – The British Broadcasting ''Company'' becomes the British Broadcasting ''Corporation'', when its Royal Charter of incorporation takes effect. John Reith becomes the first Director-General. * January 7 ...

and

1932 Events January * January 4 – The British authorities in India arrest and intern Mahatma Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel. * January 9 – Sakuradamon Incident: Korean nationalist Lee Bong-chang fails in his effort to assassinate Emperor Hiro ...

elections Mifsud was re-elected in a landslide, holding again the premiership till 1933, when the 1921 Constitution was withdrawn by the colonial authorities. During this term, in 1932, he travelled with a delegation to London to submit a memorandum to Sir Philip Cunliffe-Lister, Secretary of State for the Colonies, with a formal request for Malta to be placed under the

Dominions Office The position of Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs was a British cabinet-level position created in 1925 responsible for British relations with the Dominions – Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa South Africa, officially t ...

as an independent member of the Commonwealth. Mifsud also held several ministerial portfolios in the same period: Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries (1921–22, 1923–24), Minister for Posts (1921–22, 1923–24), Minister for Industry and Commerce (1921–24, 1932–33), Minister of Finance (1924–26), Minister of Justice (1926–27, 1932–33). In 1939, Sir Ugo Mifsud was elected Member of the Council of Government. The only

Nationalist Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Th ...

MP in Parliament during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

, he vehemently opposed the deportation and internment in

Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa. The country is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the south by Tanzania. The sou ...

of fellow Maltese politicians accused of anti-British and pro-Italian activities, including Enrico Mizzi. On 9 February 1942, as the Council was debating, as a matter of urgency, the British Government's intention to deport several Maltese citizens, Mifsud suffered a heart attack as he was delivering a speech against the government's intention. Two days later he died. He is buried at the

Lija Lija ( mt, Ħal Lija) is a small village in the Central Region of Malta. It forms part of the Three villages of Malta, along with Attard and Balzan. Lija has a baroque parish church and seven other small chapels. The parish church is dedicat ...

cemetery. On the 21st anniversary of his death a marble monument at Floriana was erected to his memory.

References

External links

Passport application - National archives
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mifsud, Ugo Pasquale 1889 births 1942 deaths Maltese knights Prime Ministers of Malta Nationalist Party (Malta) politicians Maltese people of Italian descent People from Valletta 20th-century Maltese politicians Leaders of the Opposition (Malta) Agriculture ministers of Malta Fisheries ministers of Malta Finance Ministers of Malta Industry ministers of Malta Justice ministers of Malta Posts ministers of Malta Trade ministers of Malta

Biography

See also

References

External links