On Saturday 5 July 2014, between 08:30 and 13:30, Wirt iz-Zejtun will be holding its second national symposium which will mark the 400th year anniversary from the Turkish raid that took place on the 6th July 1614 on iz-Zejtun and il-Mellieha. As an inscription in the old parish of Zejtun confirms, on the 6th July 2014, a fleet of 60 Turkish ships made a surprise attack on this village and its neighbouring areas, after hundreds of soldiers landed on the beaches of Marsascala and St Thomas bay. Their attack led to severe damage to many places, amongst which also the old parish of Zejtun which today is known as St Gregory’s. After being defeated at iz-Zejtun, the Turks sailed to Mellieha bay and landed in the area wherein once again, they set on fire a number of farmhouses and destroyed much of the crops.

The symposium includes the presentation of the following eight papers:

A Failed and Final Attempt: A Historical Account of the Ottoman Invasion of 1614 by Giulia Privitelli.

The Turkish Razzia on Mellieha by Charles Debono.

Art, Patronage and Resistance: Three altar paintings and the aftermath of the 1614 Ottoman attack by Sandro Debono.

Clemente Tabone: the man, his family and the early years of St Clement’s chapel by Dr Anton Bugeja.

Folklore impressions of an Ottoman attack by Fiona Vella.

The effect of hostile Ottoman incursions on the shaping of a village and its community by Godwin Vella.

The south east of Malta and its defence up to 1614 by Prof. Stanley Fiorini.

Hospitaller defensive strategy at the turn of the seventeenth century – the need for coastal defences by Dr Stephen C Spiteri.

The presentations and speeches during the symposium will be delivered in Maltese. However Wirt iz-Zejtun will be publishing these papers in English by end of summer 2014.

The public is invited to participate in this symposium. Registration fee is €5 per person and should be paid by cheque addressed to Wirt iz-Zejtun, PO Box 25, Zejtun.

More information is available on www.wirtizzejtun.com or on Facebook.