Set the scene.
The monastery appears in the Order’s registers in 1453. That surviving record gives a firmer starting point than guesses about its earliest origins.
Here’s the twist.
Expansion was already under way when the earthquake of 1693 made rebuilding urgent. Work to Ferdinandu Valletta’s designs was completed in 1717.
Why it still matters.
Inside the church, Mattia Preti’s 1694 altarpiece depicts St Augustine with other saints. Compare the dates: painters and builders could be working while a religious community recovered from disaster.
🧠 One to think about +
What does this story change about the way you see Malta today? Pick one detail you’d tell a friend — then check its source below.