Formation 1981 (1981) | Location Victoria, Gozo | |
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Wirt Għawdex (English: Gozo Heritage) is a voluntary non-governmental organisation founded in 1981 with the aims of fostering the knowledge of Gozitan heritage amongst all levels of society and to strive to safeguard the natural, archaeological, historical and anthropological patrimony of the Maltese islands of Gozo and Comino.
Contents
History
Since the early seventies, there has been a continuous attempt to safeguard the historical sites of Gozo and Comino.
Anton Spiteri and a group of other Gozitans wanted to highlight the poor state of repair the Citadel was in and they strongly felt that they should strive to protect this part of the island’s heritage. At first the work was limited to the Citadel and the name of the society was “Il-Belt il-Qadima” (the Old Citadel). Their first project was the restoration of the old St. Joseph’s chapel which was opened again in time for St. Joseph’s feast in 1974. This work was done under the leadership of Fr. T. Mercieca, and a plaque is in place today to commemorate this event. Other work included the cleaning of the old clock at the citadel, removing weeds from the fortification walls and cleaning of the cannons and the old prison.
Later, the society felt that their scope should extend to cover the whole of Gozo and Comino and, at the committee meeting of July 6, 1981, the decision was made to broaden their work and to change the society’s name to reflect this. The name “Wirt Għawdex” was chosen and the society has kept this name to this day.
Sites
Wirt Għawdex has the following sites under its care :