When Napoleon was trying to conquer the whole of Europe a hundred
years ago, he proceeded to take Malta.
But the Maltese people rose, and held the rest of the island against
him, and sent and asked the British under Lord Nelson to come to their
assistance.
This was promptly done, and the British Fleet laid siege to the French
in Valetta, so that no supplies of food could be brought to the
French, and some British troops were landed to help the Maltese.
Thus the French were defeated, and the Maltese handed themselves and
their island over to become a colony of the British Empire.
One celebrated officer who largely helped to defeat the French in
Malta was Admiral Troubridge.
Someone was condoling with Nelson once on his losing his right arm in
action. The gallant seaman replied cheerily:
"My good sir, I have got three right arms. Here is one (raising his
left arm), and there are my other two (pointing to Capt. Ball and
Capt. Troubridge)."
At the time of the British investment of the French in Malta, the
Maltese themselves were suffering from famine, and their state was so
deplorable, and the British authorities so slow to help them, that
Commodore Troubridge could bear it no longer, and to ease their
sufferings he caused some grain ships at Messina to be seized and
brought to Malta and their contents to be given out to feed the
starving people.
Commodore Troubridge began life as a ship's boy at fifteen, and rose
from seaman to be an officer through his steady attention to his duty,
so in all ways he was a good example for a Scout to follow.
Malta remains to-day a British colony, small in size--not much bigger
than the Isle of Wight--but having a numerous population of people
speaking their own language, and at the same time loyal to King George
and the British Empire.
Malta is chiefly valuable as having a harbour, dockyard, and coal
stores for our Mediterranean Fleet, and is therefore strongly
fortified and garrisoned by British troops, both infantry and
artillery.
The Maltese themselves supply some companies of Fortress Artillery and
two battalions of Infantry Militia.
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