Ballou S Pictorial Drawing Room Companion

Malta is a country of conquests and colonisers. Maturin Murray Ballou's book, first published in 1893, covers its 7,000 years from a golden Neolithic period, through to the Phoenicians, the Carthaginians, the Romans and the Byzantines. In 60 A.D. St. Paul was shipwrecked on the island while en route to Rome and brought Christianity to Malta. The Arabs conquered the islands in 870 A.D. The Knights took Malta through a new golden age, making it a key player in the cultural scene of 17th and 18th century Europe. In 1798, Napoleon Bonaparte took over but the French presence was short lived. British rule in Malta lasted until 1964 when Malta became independent. Modern Malta became a Republic in 1974 and joined the European Union in May 2004.