Grand Master's Palace and Courtyards

The original armory, on the first floor, has been the House of Representatives since 1976. The present armory is housed in the stables, off the courtyard.

A knight's armor became the property of the Order after his death and the armory contains 5,000 pieces in its comprehensive collection of 16th - 18th century military hardware. Just about every piece of armor of the 15-piece jigsaw that was needed to envelop a crusading knight is displayed. Also on display are swords, arquebuses, forks and halberds designed to penetrate the armor.

Originally planted with orange trees, Prince Alfred's Courtyard was rearranged by Governor le Marchand in 1858 and named after Queen Victoria's second son.

Recently restored, the palace clock was a gift from the grand master in 1745. In 1861 the statue of Neptune was moved to Neptune's courtyard from the fish market in the south of the city. The large wall fountain behind Neptune bears the Perellos escutcheon.

The Chapter Hall of the Order became the Hall of St Michael and St George after the inception of the British chivalric Order of the same name in 1818. The frieze is a contemporary and vivid account of 12 salient events from the Great Siege of 1565, painted by Matteo Perez d'Aleccio not long after the siege was raised.

In the interior of the palace is the famous Council Chamber, hung with valuable Gobelins tapestries woven in France for the Grand Master, Ramón Perellos y Roccaf.1 (1697-1720). They depict exotic scenes from the then little-known Caribbean area and from South America.

The other rooms and passages of the palace are also splendidly furnished with objets d'art and old arms and armor. Particularly notable are the former Hall of the Supreme Council of the Knights (fine frescoes), the Hall of the Ambassadors (portraits of Grand Masters and European rulers) and the Yellow State Room, its walls hung with yellow brocade.

On the basement floor is the very interesting Armory, one of the largest collections of its kind in the world, though reduced to a fraction of its former size by the depredations of the French.

Among its principal treasures are a suit of armor made in Milan for the Grand Master, Adrien de Wignacourt (1690-97) and a full-length panoply made for the Grand Master, Martin Garzes by Sigismund Wold of Landshut.

The corridors were undertaken by the Siennese Nicolo Nasini in the 1720s and paved by Governor le Marchand in the 1860s. Nearly all the lunettes tell of victorious sea battles against the Turks and the pictures are of grand masters and European aristocrats.

The Armory Corridor leads to the House of Representatives or Parliament, which is closed to the public.

To the left is the Council Chamber of the Order or the Tapestry Chamber, where the old legislative assembly sat. This room contains the exquisite Gobelin Tapestries "Les Tentures des Indes." Among the most colorful are "The Animal Fight" and "The Fisherman." They were woven in France based on paintings given to Louis XIV in 1679.

Armory and state rooms are open to the public.

This was the waiting room for the 16 boys who were enrolled in the Order as pages by their European parents before they were 12-years-old. When they were 18 they could apply to become a knight. The frieze here is by Matteo Perez d'Aleccio and depicts various noteworthy events from the Order's 13th century history prior to its departure from the Holy Land. Also worth note are the four 16th century Urbino Majolica vases, and de Favray's portrait of de la Vallette.

The frieze in this room is by Matteo Perez d'Aleccio. It illustrates episodes from the 200 years of the Order's history before its arrival in Malta. There is also a painting by de Favray of Grand Master d L'Isle Adam receiving the keys to Mdina after the Order was given the islands in 1530.

This room was badly damaged during World War II. It holds some portraits of British royalty from George III to a youthful Queen Elizabeth II.

On Palace Square opposite the Grand Master's Palace is a Classical-style building with Doric columns, the Main Guard, which formerly housed the Grand Master's bodyguard and is now occupied by the Libyan and Italian Cultural Centers. On the northeast side of Palace Square is the 17th century Hostel de Verdelin.