Hastings Gardens
Hastings Gardens is a public garden in Valletta, Malta. It is located on top of St. John's Bastion and St. Michael's Bastion, on the west side of the City Gate. The garden offers views of Floriana, Msida, Sliema, and Manoel Island.[1] Inside the garden is a monument placed by the Hastings family in honor of Francis, Marquis of Hastings, who was a governor of Malta. Lord Hastings died in 1827 and is buried in the garden.[2]
It is also a Maltese legend that the Gardens took only 4 hours to be built. This legend comes from the fact that the Maltese people are hard workers. Adriano DeVina is the only known architect of these gardens.
On 22 December 2009, a khachkar was unveiled at Hastings by the Armenian community in Malta. The Khachqar was specially made in Armenia and delivered to Malta. Members of Maltese Parliament, the Mayor of Valletta and other guests were present at the ceremony. The memorial board at the khachkar says:
| “ | In token of friendship between the Maltese and Armenian people. Armenia thanks Malta for its support to Armenians who found refuge in this island in the tragic years of 1375 and 1915 |
” |
The Sette Giugno Monument, originally located in the square in front of the Grandmaster's Palace in Valletta, was moved to storage in June 2009 after works were being made in the square.[3] A year later, in 2010, the monument was moved to Hastings Gardens. It is supposed to be relocated in the new parliament building project once that is completed.[4]
References
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Hastings Gardens. |
- ↑ "Hastings Gardens". City of Valletta. Retrieved 2 October 2014.
- ↑ "Hastings Garden". Malta.com. Retrieved 2 October 2014.
- ↑ "Palace Square dug up as regeneration project gets underway". Times of Malta. 9 June 2009. Retrieved 11 December 2014.
- ↑ "Sette Giugno monument to move to Hastings Garden". Times of Malta. 12 May 2010. Retrieved 11 December 2014.