Unveiled 3 May 1954 Total commemorated 2,298 | Opened 3 May 1954 | |
Similar War Memorial, Air Forces Memorial, Portsmouth Naval Memorial, Triton Fountain, Siege Bell War Memorial | ||
The Malta Memorial is a commemorative war memorial monument to the 2,298 Commonwealth aircrew who lost their lives in the various Second World War air battles and engagements around the Mediterranean, and who have no known grave.
After the war ended, and with its pivotal contribution to the air war in the Mediterranean, Malta was the chosen location of the memorial. Built on land generously donated by the Government of Malta, it is located in the area of Floriana, to the south side of the Triton Fountain close to City Gate, the entrance to Malta's capital city, Valletta. It was inaugurated by Queen Elizabeth II on 3 May 1954.
The Malta Memorial is identified by the gilded bronze golden eagle which surmounts the 15 m (49 ft) column of Travertine marble, from Tivoli in the Sabine Hills near Rome. It is carved with a light netted pattern and surmounted by a gilded bronze eagle 2.4 m (7 ft 10 in) high. The column stands on a circular base around which the names are inscribed on bronze panels. At the base of the column itself, a bronze panel bears the following inscription:
The Latin epigram may be rendered in English: AN ISLAND RESOLUTE OF PURPOSE REMEMBERS RESOLUTE MEN.
Those remembered on the memorial include: