Marsamxett Harbour

The south eastern shore of the harbour is formed by the Sciberras peninsula, which is largely covered by the town of Floriana and the city of Valletta.

[citation needed] Along its partner the Grand Harbour, Marsamxett lies at the centre of gently rising ground.

[2] In 1551, Ottomans landed at Marsamxett and marched upon the Grand Harbour, but did not attack as they found strong defences built by the Order of Saint John.

During the siege, the Ottoman fleet was based at Marsamxett, and cannons were stationed at Tigné Point in order to bombard Fort Saint Elmo.

It was dismantled a year later, but a permanent Lazzaretto was built in its place in 1643, which was improved a number of times until its closure in 1929.

In 1977, the 1st (Maritime) Battery of the Armed Forces of Malta moved its base to Hay Wharf in Marsamxett.

[3] Sliema, Gżira, and Ta' Xbiex on the northern end of the harbour have seen a lot of development in recent years.

On 10 September 2006, during the Maltese round of the Aero GP series, a mid-air collision between two planes above the harbour caused the death of one of the pilots, Gabor Varga.