The George Cross Island Association is a charitable organisation that was initiated to honour and remember those that suffered during the Siege of Malta (World War II). [1] [2] The association has branches across the UK and a branch in Malta. The Patron of the G.C.I.A. is The Duke of Edinburgh, KG, KT, Prince Philip who himself served in Malta. [3]
The George Cross Island Association was founded by retired British Navy man Fredrick James Plenty (1921 to 1996). [4] With the help of his one time Captain and a group of like minded veterans and servicemen, the association was initiated in July 1987. [5] [6] As Founder Member, Fred Plenty was also Life Vice President. [7]
The George Cross Island Association initiated and assisted in the funding of the Siege Bell Memorial. [8] Designed by sculptor Michael Sandle, the memorial was inaugurated in May 1992 to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the awarding of the George Cross to the island of Malta, and is situated overlooking the Grand Harbour, Valletta, Malta. [9]
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. He was the consort of the British monarch from Elizabeth's accession on 6 February 1952 until his death in 2021, making him the longest-serving royal consort in history.
Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, is the youngest child of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. He is 14th in line of succession to the British throne.
Alfred was the sovereign duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha from 1893 to 1900. He was the second son and fourth child of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. He was known as the Duke of Edinburgh from 1866 until he succeeded his paternal uncle Ernest II as the reigning Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha in the German Empire.
The George Cross (GC) is the highest award bestowed by the British government for non-operational gallantry or gallantry not in the presence of an enemy. In the UK honours system, the George Cross is equal in stature to the Victoria Cross, the highest military gallantry award. This has been the case since the introduction of the award in 1940. It is awarded "for acts of the greatest heroism or for most conspicuous courage in circumstance of extreme danger", not in the presence of the enemy, to members of the British armed forces and to British civilians. Posthumous awards have been allowed since it was instituted. It was previously awarded to residents of Commonwealth countries, most of which have since established their own honours systems and no longer recommend British honours. It may be awarded to a person of any military rank in any service and to civilians including police, emergency services and merchant seamen. Many of the awards have been personally presented by the British monarch to recipients or, in the case of posthumous awards, to next of kin. These investitures are usually held at Buckingham Palace.
The Pontifical Equestrian Order of St. Gregory the Great was established on 1 September 1831, by Pope Gregory XVI, seven months after his election as Pope.
David BryceFRSE FRIBA RSA was a Scottish architect.
Victory Day is a public holiday celebrated in Malta on 8 September and recalls the end of three historical sieges made on the Maltese archipelago, namely: the Great Siege of Malta by the Ottoman Empire ending in 1565; the Siege of Valletta by the French Blockade ending in 1800; and, the Siege of Malta during the Second World War by the Axis forces ending in 1943.
Elizabeth II was Queen of Malta as head of state of Malta from 1964 to 1974. Malta was an independent sovereign state and a constitutional monarchy, sharing a monarch with other Commonwealth realms, including the United Kingdom. Elizabeth's constitutional roles in Malta were mostly delegated to a governor-general.
The Knights Templar, full name The United Religious, Military and Masonic Orders of the Temple and of St John of Jerusalem, Palestine, Rhodes and Malta, is a fraternal order affiliated with Freemasonry. Unlike the initial degrees conferred in a regular Masonic Lodge, which only require a belief in a Supreme Being regardless of religious affiliation, the Knights Templar is one of several additional Masonic Orders in which membership is open only to Freemasons who profess a belief in Christianity. One of the obligations entrants to the order are required to declare is to protect and defend the Christian faith. The word "United" in its full title indicates that more than one historical tradition and more than one actual order are jointly controlled within this system. The individual orders 'united' within this system are principally the Knights of the Temple, the Knights of Malta, the Knights of St Paul, and only within the York Rite, the Knights of the Red Cross.
St Mary's Cathedral or the Cathedral Church of Saint Mary the Virgin is a cathedral of the Scottish Episcopal Church in the West End of Edinburgh, Scotland. It was built in the late 19th century in the West End of Edinburgh's New Town. The cathedral is the see of the Bishop of Edinburgh, one of seven bishops within the Episcopal Church, which is part of the Anglican Communion. Designed in a Gothic style by (Sir) George Gilbert Scott, the cathedral is now protected as a category A listed building. and part of the Old Town and New Town of Edinburgh World Heritage Site. Reaching 90 metres (295 ft), its spire makes the building the tallest in the Edinburgh urban area.
The 42nd Regiment of Foot was a Scottish infantry regiment in the British Army also known as the Black Watch. Originally titled Crawford's Highlanders or the Highland Regiment and numbered 43rd in the line, in 1748, on the disbanding of Oglethorpe's Regiment of Foot, they were renumbered 42nd and in 1751 formally titled the 42nd (Highland) Regiment of Foot. The 42nd Regiment was one of the first three Highland Regiments to fight in North America. In 1881 the regiment was named The Royal Highland Regiment , being officially redesignated The Black Watch in 1931. In 2006 the Black Watch became part of the Royal Regiment of Scotland.
Prince Carlo of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Duke of Castro is one of the two claimants to the headship of the former House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies.
The Order of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau is a chivalric order shared by the two branches of the House of Nassau.
Michael Sandle is a British sculptor and artist. His works include several public sculptures, many relating to themes of war, death, or destruction.
The Bromley Parish Church Memorial commemorates the deceased parishioners of World War I. The war memorial was designed and constructed by British sculptor Sydney March, of the March family of artists.
Villa Guardamangia, formerly known as Casa Medina and sometimes referred to as Casa Guardamangia, is a 16,791 square feet (1,559.9 m2) townhouse in Gwardamanġa, Pietà, Malta, which served as the residence of Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh, and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, between 1949 and 1951, while Philip was stationed in Malta as a naval officer.
The Malta George Cross Memorial, also known as the Maltese Memorial, is a war memorial in London, built to commemorate the Siege of Malta in the Second World War, which led to the island's being collectively awarded the George Cross in April 1942. The memorial was unveiled in 2005, near All Hallows by the Tower.
Malta Command was an independent command of the British Army. It commanded all army units involved in the defence of Malta. Once mobilised the Command deployed its headquarters to underground hardened shelters and its combat units were deployed to fixed points in the Maltese countryside, from where they operated from. This mobilised, but largely static army garrison would be tested by aerial bombardment and naval blockade during the Second World War. Whilst Malta Command was already a functioning command structure before 1939, it had existed in the Great War and was specifically mentioned in a House of Commons debate of 12 February 1917; the Second World War would see the Command operate as a genuine war-fighting headquarters, albeit in a static defensive role.
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, husband of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms, and the longest-serving royal consort in world history, died in Windsor Castle at the age of 99 on the morning of 9 April 2021, two months before his 100th birthday. The official statement from the royal family said he "died peacefully". His funeral took place on 17 April. The death certificate, certified by Sir Huw Thomas, head of the Royal Medical Household, stated the cause of death as "old age".