St John's Square (Maltese: ''Pjazza San Ġwann'', or ''Piazza san Giovanni'') is found in front of

St John's Co-Cathedral St John's Co-Cathedral () is a Catholic co-cathedral in Valletta, Malta, dedicated to Saint John the Baptist. It was built by the Order of St. John between 1573 and 1578, having been commissioned by Grand Master Jean de la Cassière as the Conv ...

Valletta Valletta ( ; , ) is the capital city of Malta and one of its 68 Local councils of Malta, council areas. Located between the Grand Harbour to the east and Marsamxett Harbour to the west, its population as of 2021 was 5,157. As Malta’s capital ...

, the capital 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 ...

. It has several outdoor cafés, surrounded by a graceful

arcade Arcade most often refers to: * Arcade game, a coin-operated video, pinball, electro-mechanical, redemption, etc., game ** Arcade video game, a coin-operated video game ** Arcade cabinet, housing which holds an arcade video game's hardware ** Arcad ...

. In the middle of the square, facing the

parvis A parvis or parvise is the open space in front of and around a cathedral or Church (building) , church, especially when surrounded by either colonnades or porticoes, as at St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. It is thus a church-specific type of forec ...

and entrance to the cathedral, there is a small monument to former

Prime Minister of Malta The prime minister of 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 prime minister holds office b ...

Enrico Mizzi Enrico Mizzi (20 September 1885 – 20 December 1950) was a Maltese politician, leader of the Maltese Nationalist Party from 1926 and briefly Prime Minister of Malta in 1950.Michael J. Schiavone, Louis J. Scerri, Maltese Biographies of the Twen ...

, sculpted in 1964 by

Vincent Apap Vincent Apap, Order of the British Empire, OBE (; 13 November 1909 – 15 February 2003) was a Maltese people, Maltese sculptor who is well known for designing various public monuments and church statues, most notably the Triton Fountain (Malta) ...

(1909–2003). To the left and right of the cathedral entrance, are the Lion and Unicorn fountains, sculpted out of the native limestone by Maltese sculptor Mariano Gerada (1766–1823), which originally featured water transported to Valletta from the highlands around

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 ...

by means of the

Wignacourt Aqueduct The Wignacourt Aqueduct () is a 17th-century Aqueduct (water supply), aqueduct in Malta, which was built by the Knights Hospitaller, Order of Saint John to carry water from springs in Dingli and Rabat, Malta, Rabat to the newly built capital ci ...

. Although this ''pjazza'' is today a favourite meeting place in the heart of Malta's

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 ...

capital city, its origins are relatively recent. It did not form part of the original plans of the city, as drafted by the Knights' architect, Francesco Laparelli. Prior to the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, two large apartment buildings with street-level store fronts stood on this location, divided by the narrow street then referred to as ''Strada San Zaccaria'' (now, ''Triq San Żakkarija''). However, these buildings suffered massive damage due to aerial bombardment during the War. During the reconstruction years following the War, the Government of Malta requisitioned the central portion of both these buildings, to create the square that exists today. St. John's Square is one of the few "green" areas in Valletta, as it has several large

ficus ''Ficus'' ( or ) is a genus of about 850 species of woody trees, shrubs, vines, epiphytes and hemiepiphytes in the family (biology), family Moraceae. Collectively known as fig trees or figs, they are native throughout the tropics with a few spe ...

trees that were planted along the facade of the cathedral in the 1920s. A decision to remove some or all of these trees due to the potential damage that their roots might cause to the cathedral's priceless marble floors, was met with considerable public outcry. These trees are considered an important bird area for the

white wagtail The white wagtail (''Motacilla alba'') is a small passerine bird in the family Motacillidae, which also includes pipits and longclaws. The species breeds in the Palearctic zone in most of Europe and Asia and parts of North Africa; it also has ...

, which migrates from European breeding grounds every year to spend the winter in the Mediterranean, the Middle East and northeastern Africa. This decision is being challenged by, among others, the Valletta Rehabilitation Project, whose executive co-ordinator has been quoted as saying, "St John's is mostly built on solid rock, so there are no vaults through which the roots could penetrate the church as has been suggested."

References

External links

* {{coord, 35, 53, 51, N, 14, 30, 44, E, display=title Squares in Malta National squares Buildings and structures in Valletta Geography of Valletta