79i 
Thevenot’j Travels 
with Aflies for a great Way *, this liland is aifo much 
infefled with Earthquakes. It has been under the Do- 
minion of many Nations, viz. Greeks., Carthaginians 
and French j at this Time fubjedt to the King of Spain, 
who has always a Vice-Roy there, that has his Refidence 
half a Year at Palermo, and the reft at Mejftna. From 
all thefe Nations the Sicilians have derived fome Vices 
which makes them revengeful, haughty and jealous, ef- 
pecially of the French, whom judging by their vindic- 
tive Temper, they fufped; not to have forgotten the 
Sicilian Vefpers, and for that Reafon always wear their 
Daggers by their Side even in their Shops and Work- 
Houfes. They are of a fubtle and malicious Wit, ready 
to contrive or execute any Mifchief. 
From JVJeffina he failed to Agoufta, which is but an > 
■ordinary Town with one Street, but the Country about 
it produces excellent Wine, which has a ftrong Fla- 
vour of Violets : Then coailing along by Syracufe, now 
corruptly called Saragoujia, formerly the Metropolis of 
Sicily, and Birth-place of Archmedes, the Country about 
which produces excellent Mufcadine, he made the Ifle 
of Malta, anciently call’d Melita, from the Plenty of 
Honey it yielded. 
3. This Ifle is low, and the Soil a foft Chalky Rock, 
yet it produces very good Fruits, as Figs, Melons, 
which grow fo eafily, that they require no Care but to 
preferve them ; Grapes very good to eat, but not for 
Wine ; Cotton, but little or no Corn, for that is 
brought from Sicily thither. The Air is fo hot, that 
there is no Walking in the Sun; and the Nights are 
as intollerable, if not through the Heats, yet through 
the Stinging of Musketoes; yet is fo wholfome for old 
Men, that they can hardly die. They drink their Wine 
with Ice. Head-aches and fore Eyes, caufed by the 
Whitenefs of the Earth, are there common and dano-e- 
rous. There are^ no venomous Beafts in the Ifle, m)r 
can any live in it, which the People a^ttribute to St. 
PauV% Benedidion, and they^gjve tfie^ Earth of the 
Grott, where he lived, for an Antidote againfl; Poifon, 
with greater Succefs than dierra Sigillata. The Ifland is 
populous : The People are of a brown Compleefliion and 
are very revengeful. The Women are beautiful, and 
familiar, for though they hide their own Faces with 
their Mantle, they fee every Body’s elfe. 
They fpeak Arabick, but Italian is alfo common. 
Here are feveral Ports and Creeks, but the chief Ha- 
vens are the Great Port, and that called Marfamouchet , 
In the great Port are all the Gallies of the Order laid 
up, and all the VelTels that are to make any Stay at 
Malta, either to load, careen or refit, put in there, fhut 
with an Iron Chain : The Port of M.arJamouchet is for 
Ships to perform their Quarantine in, before they 
have Accels to the Town, and for fuch as by Reafon of 
foul Weather can’t get into the great Port, as alfo for 
the Corfairs, who come only for a little Time, and fo 
will not go into the great Port, becaufe it is hard to 
get oul again. As foon as the King of Spain had given 
the Ifland of Malta to the Knights of St.yohn, Sultan 
Solyman refolving to extirpate them, who had given him 
fb much Trouble, lent a powerful Army to take it. 
The Turks landing near the Mount Pelegrino, attack’d 
the Caftle of St. Erme, kill’d all that defended it, and 
cook it. Then they turned againfl the Ifle de Sangle, 
but were afTaulted fo furioufly by the Caflle of St. An- 
gelo, who firing their Cannon, level with the Water, 
upon them, funk their Boats and drown’d their Men* 
which being repeated feveral Times, the Turks defpair- 
ing of Succefs, and finding Recruits come to them out 
of Europe, drew off, and left the Ifle in the End of 
September, 1 565. 
After the Turks were gone, the Knights refolv’d to 
build a new Town, where the Great Mafler with all the 
Order might conveniently dwell'. They pitched upon 
the Tongue of Land where the Caftle of St. Erme 
Hands, from whence the Turks had fo furioufly driven 
them. The Great Mafter John la Vdetta laid the firft 
Stone of It, March 28. 1566. and from himfelf called 
It Faletta\\.- has been fo fortified fince, that none exceed, 
and few Places can equal it. The Entry into the Port 
Book I, 
is defended by the Caftle of %i.Erme, the Baraque, 
which has nine Pieces of Cannon, and the Baftion of 
Italy, and on the other Side by the Caftle of St Anzelo 
^d a Tower, which has two or three Pieces of Cannon’ 
The Town is no lefs ftrong by Land than towards the 
Sea being begirt with good Walls, built upon very 
high Rocks, with feveral Baftions and other Pieces of 
Fortification, which are equally fair and ftrong. The 
l^raque is very delighful, being covered with lovely 
Orange and Lemmon-Trees planted in Rows, and hav- 
ing a great many Fountains, where the Water-works 
playing very high, give mighty Diverfion. 
From the Port you go up an Hill to the Town, 
which is fmall, but very pretty. It hath but two Gates 
one leading to the Port, the other into the Country’ 
There are feveral Churches in it, but that of St. John 
IS the Chief. On one Side of it is a lovely Piazza,‘'and 
at each Angle a Fountain. It is a large Buildino- 
and pretty high, paved with beautiful Marble, and 
adorned above with many Colours taken from’ Infi- 
dels. In this Church they pretend to have many 
fine Rehques, viz. St. John Baptift*& Right-Hand, and 
many others. ' 
There are feveral admirable Buildings in the Town 
among others, the ftately Palace of the Great Mafter’ 
in which is a Magazine of Arms for 35 or 40000 Men’ 
kept very clean and in great Order, and among them 
the Arms of fuch great Mafters as have been wounded in 
^y Aeftion, are to be feen with the Marks upon them. 
This Palace looks into a large Square, in the Middle 
of which is a charming Fountain, which throws up 
Water in great Quantities, and very high, and fup- 
plies the wnole Town. The Palaces of the Con- 
fervatory and Treafury are fair Buildings, and fo are 
the Inns. 
The Hofpital is very well built, and the Hall for the 
fick Knights is hung with Tapeftry, where they are at- 
tended by Knights, and ferv’d in Plate. Poor Tra- 
vellers find Entertainment here, till they can get Paf- 
fage to the Place they are bound to, and then they 
are furniflied with Provifion, and their Charges are 
born through their Voyage. The Jefuits have 
a very well built Houfe and a College there, 
and even the meaneft Houfes make a good Show’ 
being built of a large fquare white Stone, which retains 
its Colour long and feems always new : They are all flat 
Roofed. The Streets of the Town are incommodious, 
becaufe one goes always up Hill and down, but they are 
wide and ftrait. The faireft reacheth from the Caftle 
of St. Erme to the Royal Gate, which is almoft a Mile 
long, and in it they make the Horfes and Aflfes run 
the Pallio upon their Days of Rejoicing. The Country 
about it is full of Gardens and very agreeable Places of 
Pleafure. About twelve Miles from the City the Gjrand 
Mafter hath a Palace, built in Form of a Caftle, and 
very uniform, the Halls of which are adorn’d with ex- 
cellent Paintings, and it has very neat Gardens full of 
Orange, Citron and Olive-Trees, with feveral lovely 
Fountains. At a little Diftance from the Houfe is a 
Grove flock’d with Game for his Diverfion. 
Five Miles from Malta is the Ifle of Gozo, which is 
thirty Miles in Circuit, twelve in Length, and fix in 
Breadth. It is a very wholfome Air, and though 
mountainous, is almoft all cultivated, for the Inhabi- 
tants delight more in tilling the Land for Corn, than 
any other Sort of Husbandry, though it has m.any Pla- 
ces well watered, and fit for Gardening and Pafture. 
On qur Lady-Day, September the 8th, the Knights keep 
a Rejoicing yearly for the Turks railing the Siege of 
Bourg, with Mafs, Shooting, Feafting, Races of the 
Pallio, and many other Diverfions. 
4. Leaving Malta, Thurfday Nov. 1655, he failed by 
the Ifle of Sapienza, and having weathered Cape Mata- 
pan, came to an Anchor in the Bay of St. Nicholas, in 
the Ifle of Cerigo. Cape Matapan is a Promontory of 
the Morea, formerly called Tenarus, where Arion, car- 
ried by a Dolphin, was put on fliore. This Country is 
inhabited by the Meinots, a People who lived in the 
Mountains without Law or Government, and are fub- 
