Victoria (, meaning "the city Victoria"), also known among the native Maltese as Rabat (which is the name of the old town centre) or by its title Città Victoria, is an administrative unit of

Malta Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...

, and the main town on

Gozo Gozo ( ), known in classical antiquity, antiquity as Gaulos, is an island in the Malta#The Maltese archipelago, Maltese archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea. The island is part of the Republic of Malta. After the Malta Island, island of Malta ...

. Victoria has a total population of 6,901 (as of March 2014), and is the most populous settlement in Gozo. The area around the town, situated on a hill near the centre of the island, has been settled since

Neolithic The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...

times. Victoria is the name given on 10 June 1887 by the British government on the occasion of the

Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria The Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria was celebrated on 20 and 21 June 1887 to mark the Golden jubilee, 50th anniversary of Queen Victoria's accession on 20 June 1837. It was celebrated with a National service of thanksgiving, Thanksgiving Serv ...

, at the request of Pietro Monsignor Pace, Bishop of Gozo. Many Gozitans, mainly older Gozitans, still often refer to it by the name Rabat. It is usually known as Rabat, Gozo to distinguish it from the town of

Rabat Rabat (, also , ; ) is the Capital (political), capital city of Morocco and the List of cities in Morocco, country's seventh-largest city with an urban population of approximately 580,000 (2014) and a metropolitan population of over 1.2 million. ...

on the main island of Malta. NZ_Grog_Shop_Rabato_Gozo_c1916

Architectural heritage

*The

Cittadella Cittadella () is a medieval walled city in the province of Padua, northern Italy, founded in the 13th century as a military outpost of Padua. The surrounding wall has been restored and is in circumference with a diameter of around . There are fo ...

, including: ** Cathedral of the Assumption ** Gozo Museum of Archaeology ** Gran Castello Historic House (Folklore Museum) ** Natural Science Museum ** Old Prison * St George's Basilica *Heart of Gozo: Il-Hagar Museum *War Memorial (Independence Square) * Banca Giuratale (Independence Square) * St Francis' Church (St Francis Square) *War shelter under the Cittadella (

) *War Shelter under Triq id-Dejqa (Narrow Street) *War Shelter under St Augustine's Square ( St Augustine's Convent) ;Churches in Victoria * Cathedral of the Assumption * St. George's Basilica, Malta * St Francis Conventual Church (Franciscan Friars) * St James the Greater Church * Nativity of Mary Church (Savina) * St Augustine Church (Augustinian Friars) *St John Bosco Oratory Church *St Martha's Church * Annunciation Church *Cana Movement Church *Good Shepherd Church *Manresa Church (Jesuits) *Our Lady of Grace Church (Capuchin Friars) *Our Lady Help of Christians Church (Salesian Nuns) *Immaculate Heart of Mary Church (Franciscan Nuns) * Our Lady of Pompei Church (Dominican Nuns) *St Barbara's Church (Citadel) * St Joseph's Church (Citadel) *Immaculate Conception Church (Seminary) *Nazareth Chapel (Poor Clares) Savina church gozo

Cittadella

In the heart of Victoria lies the Cittadella (Citadel), formerly known as ''il Castello'', which has been the centre of activity of the island since

times, but is known to be first fortified during the

Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...

c. 1500 BC. It was later developed by the

Phoenicians Phoenicians were an ancient Semitic group of people who lived in the Phoenician city-states along a coastal strip in the Levant region of the eastern Mediterranean, primarily modern Lebanon and the Syrian coast. They developed a maritime civi ...

and continued into becoming a complex

Acropolis An acropolis was the settlement of an upper part of an ancient Greek city, especially a citadel, and frequently a hill with precipitous sides, mainly chosen for purposes of defense. The term is typically used to refer to the Acropolis of Athens ...

Roman times In modern historiography, ancient Rome is the Roman civilisation from the founding of the Italian city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingd ...

. The north side of the Citadel dates back to the Aragonese domination period. The south flank, overlooking Victoria, was re-constructed under the Knights of St. John, namely between 1599 and 1603, after Ottomans invaded the city in 1551. The massive defensive stone walls of the fortifications rise above the town and were built by the Knights to protect the village communities from foraging corsairs attempting to take slaves and threatened invasion of Moslem forces fighting Christendom. Within its walls lies a fine 17th century

baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

Cathedral designed by Lorenzo Gafà, the Maltese architect who also built the Cathedral of

Mdina Mdina ( ; ), also known by its Italian epithets ("Old City") and ("Notable City"), is a fortifications of Mdina, fortified city in the Western Region, Malta, Western Region of Malta which served as the island's former capital, from antiquity ...

. It is said that it lies on the site where a Roman temple dedicated to Juno once stood. It is most famous for the ''

trompe-l'œil ; ; ) is an artistic term for the highly realistic optical illusion of three-dimensional space and objects on a Two-dimensional space, two-dimensional surface. , which is most often associated with painting, tricks the viewer into perceiving p ...

'' painting on its ceiling, which depicts the interior of a dome that was never built. The Cathedral is built on one of the oldest religious sites in Gozo, if not the oldest, with evidence of some sort of temple dedicated to a goddess or female figure long before the Romans. The Cathedral houses a statue of the Assumption of Mary, donated to the Cathedral by the Leone Philharmonic Society (1863). The statue was originally bought by the band from Rome from the Fabbrica di Statue Religiose of Francesco Rosa in 1897, when the band had its first disagreement with its first 'daughter-band' the La Stella Philharmonic Society (1880), and the Leone Band took control of the feast of the Assumption of Mary, and the La Stella Band took control of the feast of St. George. The statue was then donated to the Cathedral on April 29, 1956 after many other disagreements between the bands. File:Cathedral St Marija interior Victoria Gozo Malta 2014 1.jpg, The interior of the Cathedral of Assumption inside the citadel in Victoria. File:GozoCathedral.JPG, The exterior of the Cathedral of Assumption.

St George's Parish

St. George's Basilica, Malta, caters for half of the population of Victoria, as it is a personal parish (as opposed to other parishes who are territorial) operating in the city of Victoria. Its

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...

, dedicated to

St George Saint George (;Geʽez: ጊዮርጊስ, , ka, გიორგი, , , died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was an early Christian martyr who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to holy tradition, he was a soldier in the R ...

, has the status of a

Basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica (Greek Basiliké) was a large public building with multiple functions that was typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek Eas ...

. This church was built in the 1670s and suffered severe damage in the earthquake of 1693. A new façade was built in 1818. The dome and the aisles are of recent construction (1930s and 1940s). There are several works of art in this church which include the painting of the dome and ceiling by Gian Battista Conti of Rome and other paintings and sculptures by

Mattia Preti Mattia Preti (24 February 1613 – 3 January 1699) was an Italian Baroque artist who worked in Italy and Malta. He was appointed a Member of the Order of Saint John. Life Born in the small town of Taverna in Calabria, Preti was called ''Il Ca ...

, Giuseppe d'Arena, Stefano Erardi, Alessio Erardi, Francesco V. Zahra, Giuseppe Calì, and contemporary Alfred Camilleri Cauchi and John L. Grima. The titular statue of St George was carved from solid wood by Pietro Paolo Azzopardi in 1838 and is the first titular statue on the island. The area over which the church is built is of considerable archaeological interest. The parish celebrates two feasts during the year: 23 April, the official date celebrating the death of the martyr, and the third Sunday of July, when the solemn festivities in honour of

's patron saint are held. In February 2013, the Basilica opened the doors to its new modern museum, one of a kind in the country. It is the first building built for the purpose of a museum. The Museum and cultural centre, named a
Heart of Gozo: Il-Hagar
displays a rich collection of historical and artistic artefacts previously inaccessible to the general public. The museum is found on the left side of the Basilica. File:Sudika San Gorg Rabat-2.jpg, Saint George's Basilica. Image:Victoria - Chiesa di San Giorgio interno.jpg, Interior of St George's Basilica

Villa Rundle Gardens

These gardens are situated between Republic Street and the Main Car Park in Victoria. One can see in these gardens a bronze bust of the Gozitan 18th-century historian and grammarian Canon Giovanni Pietro Francesco Agius de Soldanis and another of Gozo born French poet and writer Laurent Ropa. One can also find a memorial commemorating the invasion of Gozo by

Ottomans Ottoman may refer to: * Osman I, historically known in English as "Ottoman I", founder of the Ottoman Empire * Osman II, historically known in English as "Ottoman II" * Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empir ...

in 1551.

Notable people from Victoria

Ċensu Tabone Vincent "Ċensu" Tabone, (; 30 March 1913 – 14 March 2012) was the fourth president of Malta who also served as Minister and Nationalist Party (Malta), Nationalist MP. Early years Vincent Tabone was the son of Niccolò and Elisa Tabone, the y ...

, 4th

President of Malta The president of Malta () is the constitutional head of state of Malta. The president is indirect election, indirectly elected by the House of Representatives of Malta, which appoints the president for a five-year term and requires them to sw ...

* Gaetano Pace Forno, Bishop of Malta *Ġorġ Pisani, Poet * Giovanni Pietro Francesco Agius de Soldanis, Archpriest * Giuseppe Monsignor Pace, 7th Bishop of Gozo * Joseph Farrugia, (Archpriest Emeritus of St George's) * Joseph Monsignor Mercieca, Archbishop of Malta * Sir Pietro Monsignor Pace,

Titular Archbishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox an ...

Rhodes Rhodes (; ) is the largest of the Dodecanese islands of Greece and is their historical capital; it is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, ninth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Administratively, the island forms a separ ...

and Bishop of Malta * Alfred Xuereb, private secretary to

Pope Francis Pope Francis (born Jorge Mario Bergoglio; 17 December 1936 – 21 April 2025) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 13 March 2013 until Death and funeral of Pope Francis, his death in 2025. He was the fi ...

* Mary Meilak, poet * Ninu Cremona, author

Zones in Victoria

*Belliegħa *Ċittadella (Citadel) *Demnija * Gelmus *Għajn Lukin *Il-Ġnien *Qasam San Ġorġ *Sellum *Ta' Ħamet *Tal-Ibraġ *Ta' Mliet *Ta' Wara s-Sur *Taċ-Ċawla *Taflija *Tal-Far *Tal-Grazzja *Tal-Maltija *Tal-Mejda *Villa Rundle *Wied Tal-Grazzja *Kapuċċini

Victoria's main roads

*Pjazza Fuq it-Tomba (Tomba Square) *Pjazza Indipendenza (Independence Square) *Pjazza San Frangisk (St Francis Square) *Pjazza San Gorg (St George's Square) *Pjazza Santu Wistin (St Augustine Square) *Triq Dingli (Dingli Street) *Triq Enriku Mizzi (Enrico Mizzi Street) *Triq Fortunato Mizzi (Fortunato Mizzi Street) *Triq Gedrin *Triq George Borg Olivier *Triq Għajn Qatet *Triq Ġużè Ellul Mercer (G. Ellul Mercer Street) *Triq id-Dawwara *Triq il-Kappuċċini (Capuchins' Street) *Triq il-Papa Ġwanni Pawlu II (Pope John Paul II Street) *Triq ir-Repubblika (Republic Street) *Triq it-Tabib Anton Tabone (Dr Anton Tabone Street) *Triq l-Ewropa (Europe Street) *Triq l-Imgħallem (Foreman Street) *Triq Mejlak (Mejlak Road) *Triq Monsinjur S. Lanzon (Mgr. S. Lanzon Street) *Triq Ninu Cremona (Ninu Cremona Street) *Triq Putirjal (Main Gate Street) *Triq Sant' Orsla (St Ursola Street) *Triq Ta' Kerċem (Kercem Road) *Triq Tomba (Tomba Street) *Triq Viani (Viani Street) *Triq Wara s-Sur (By the Bastion Street) *Triq Wied il-Lunzjata (Lunzjata Valley Road)i

Feasts of Victoria, Gozo

Five feasts are celebrated in Victoria, the island of

, the two main feasts are the feast of St. George and the feast of

Assumption of the Virgin Mary The Assumption of Mary is one of the four Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church. Pope Pius XII defined it on 1 November 1950 in his apostolic constitution as follows: It leaves open the question of whether Mary died or whether she was ra ...

. The feast dedicated to St. Mary, devoted in its Cathedral situated in the centre of the Citadel dominating the whole island is celebrated on 15 August. The other one is dedicated to

St. George Saint George (;Geʽez: ጊዮርጊስ, , ka, გიორგი, , , died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was an early Christian martyr who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to holy tradition, he was a soldier in the ...

, the patron saint of

celebrated on the 3rd Sunday of July in St George's Basilica. In Victoria, there is the feast of the Immaculate Conception in the church of St Francis. This feast is celebrated on 8 December of every year by the Franciscan conventual friars. A feast of Our Lady of Divine Grace is celebrated as the last feast of the feast season by the Franciscan capuchin friars in the church dedicated to Our Lady of Divine Grace. The feast of St. John Bosco is celebrated in the Don Bosco Oratory.

Sport

Victoria is home to three

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

clubs, S.K. Victoria Wanderers, Victoria Hotspurs and Oratory Youths.

Twin towns – sister cities

Victoria is twinned with: * Nichelino, Italy

References

External links

Ministry of Gozo - VictoriaVictoria Local CouncilGozo Culture & Information Office
{{Authority control 1887 establishments in Malta States and territories established in 1887 Local councils of Malta Gozo Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria