| Admiralty House | |
|---|---|
 Façade of Admiralty House | |
 Interactive map of Admiralty House | |
| Former names | Casa Miari Palazzo Don Raimondo and several other names |
| General information | |
| Status | Intact |
| Type | Palace |
| Architectural style | Baroque |
| Location | Valletta,Malta |
| Coordinates | 35°53′54″N14°30′33″E / 35.89833°N 14.50917°E /35.89833; 14.50917 |
| Current tenants | National Museum of Fine Arts |
| Construction started | 1569–1570 |
| Renovated | 1761–1763 |
| Owner | Government of Malta |
| Technical details | |
| Material | Limestone |
| Floor count | 2 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Andrea Belli |
Admiralty House (Maltese:id-Dar tal-Ammirall),[1] formerly known asCasa Miari,Palazzo Don Raimondo and by several other names, is apalace inValletta,Malta. It was originally built in 1569–70 as two private houses by Fra Jean de Soubiran dit Arafat, a knight of theOrder of St. John. The houses were later leased to various owners, including Fra Raimondo de Sousa y Silva, who rebuilt them a single residence between 1761 and 1763.
In 1808,Louis Charles, Count of Beaujolais was received at the house, where he died of tuberculosis. From 1821 to 1961, the building was the official residence of the Commander-in-Chief of theMediterranean Fleet, hence its name. The building housed theNational Museum of Fine Arts from 1974 to 2016. Currently there are plans to restore Admiralty House and convert it into the Office of the Attorney General.[2]
The site of the Admiralty House was originally occupied by two houses which were built by the French knight Fra Jean de Soubiran dit Arafat in 1569–70. The properties passed down to another knight François le Petit de la Guerche, and were taken over by the Treasury of theOrder of St. John upon his death in 1663. From 1668 onwards, the houses were leased to various knights.[3]
In the 1760s, the two houses were occupied by Fra Raimondo de Sousa y Silva, a wealthy Portuguese knight who was theBalì of Lessa. The Treasury rebuilt the houses to their present form between 1761 and 1763 so as to better accommodate the Balì,[3] and the building became known asPalazzo Don Raimondo after him.[4] The reconstruction is attributed toAndrea Belli, the architect who also redesignedAuberge de Castille.[5] The building was constructed fromlimestone quarried atFloriana.[6]
De Sousa died in 1782, and from 1783 to 1785 the house was divided into several apartments. It was subsequently converted back to a single residence, and was again let to a number of knights. Throughout its history, the house was known by a number of names depending on its occupants, includingMaison Arifat,Casa de Guerche andMaison Fleurigny.[4] In the late 18th and early 19th century, it was known asCasa Miari after Fra Antonio Miari di Belluno, Secretary to Grand MasterFerdinand von Hompesch zu Bolheim, who lived in the house from 1795 to 1798.[3]
During theFrench occupation of Malta, the government offered the building to BishopVincenzo Labini as a seminary, but these plans were never implemented due to theMaltese uprising and blockade of 1798–1800.[3] At this point, the coats of arms on the façade were defaced according to orders issued byNapoleon.[7]
After Malta became a British protectorate in 1800, the house was occupied byCivil CommissionerAlexander Ball. It was then let to Alexander Macaulay, Secretary to the Civil Commissioner, between August 1802 and June 1803. In 1808, the palace receivedLouis Philippe, Duke of Orléans andLouis Charles, Count of Beaujolais during their visit to Malta. Louis Charles died oftuberculosis there on 29 May 1808, and was buried atSaint John's Co-Cathedral in Valletta.[3]
From 1808 to 1820, the British military authorities occupied the building without paying any rent. In 1821, the building was officially leased to the naval authorities as the official residence of the Commander-in-Chief of theMediterranean Fleet, becoming known asAdmiralty House.[8] The building received various notable personalities as residents or guests, includingLord Mountbatten,Winston Churchill, KingGeorge V and Queen Elizabeth.[9] The building was handed over to theGovernment of Malta in 1961.[3][8]
The building was subsequently restored and on 7 May 1974 it was inaugurated by MinisterAgatha Barbara as theNational Museum of Fine Arts. Among those present were the director of the museum, Francis Mallia, and the President of Malta,Anthony Mamo.[8][10][1] Plans to move the museum from Admiralty House toAuberge d'Italie began in 2013,[11] and it was officially announced that the move will occur and the new museum would be calledMUŻA (from theMaltese acronymMużew Nazzjonali tal-Arti) in September 2014.[12]
In early 2013, plans were made to transfer the Ministry for Tourism and the Malta Tourism Authority into Admiralty House and two nearby buildings (Casa Scaglia and8, Old Mint Street) after the transfer of the museum.[13] In November, of that year, it was concluded that further development of the buildings would not be appropriate and the three joined houses are not adequate to host the entire ministry with its necessities and to accommodate roughly 200 people as working staff.[14] The Ministry for Tourism has moved to new premises in 233, Republic Street, and the Malta Tourism Authority is set to move toSmart City,[15] so the use of Admiralty House after the museum is transferred was unclear until November 2013.[16][17]
The National Museum of Fine Arts closed on 2 October 2016.[18] There are plans to restore the building and convert it into the offices of the Attorney General, which is currently housed in part of theGrandmaster's Palace.[19]
Admiralty House is a Grade 1 monument and it is also listed on theNational Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands.[10]
Admiralty House is an example of lateBaroque architecture, although it has also been described asItalianate[10] orRococo.[20] The building consists of halls built around a centralcourtyard,[10] and it has two floors above ground along with a basement.[13]
The façade was originally decorated with escutcheons containing the coats of arms of the Order and of Grand MasterManuel Pinto da Fonseca, but these were defaced during the French occupation of 1798–1800.[7]
The building has a monumental free-standing staircase, which is said to be one of the finest in Malta.[8][10][17] It might have been influenced by the staircases atAuberge de Castille in Valletta,Würzburg Residence in Bavaria andPalais Kinsky and theUpper Belvedere in Vienna.[21]
