Inside Gozo’s Cittadella

View from inside the Cittadella at Fosse Street

When you arrive in Gozo, it won’t take long until someone tells you to visit the Cittadella. Sitting on top of Victoria, the walled city has protected the Gozitans for centuries. Knowing about the tourist crowds, we visited the Cittadella early morning when the alleys were still quiet and quiet.

Cathedral Square

Wedding scenes at the cathedral

As you walk through the entrance gate you are already standing at the bottom of the stairs that lead up to the Cathedral of the Assumption, a beautiful baroque church made of warm yellow stone. To our surprise, a Maltese wedding took place right now. A red carpet was rolled out and a classic Mercedes limousine was waiting for the newly weds.

Originally the site has been a prehistoric settlement and later became a Roman temple. After Malta and Gozo became Christian, the temple was turned into a church dedicated to the Virgin Mary. It was rebuilt several times — after destruction during Arab rule, the Ottoman attack in 1551 and an earthquake. The current cathedral was completed in 1711.

Walking through the Alleys

Alley view

There are many buildings you can enter such as the Cathedral, the Folklore Museum, the Natural Science Museum, the Museum of Archeology and small prisons. The ruins of old houses in the northern part of the Cittadella still show where people once lived.

Until 1637, locals were actually forced to sleep within the fortress every night — for their own protection. Same as in Mdina, we are asking ourselves how much history these stones have seen.

St. Michael’s Bastion

Cannon protecting the main gate

Along the outer parts of the Cittadella you’ll find old bastions and narrow slits where cannons used to point at unwanted visitors and invaders. We ended our walk at St. Michael’s Bastion. From here we had a great view towards most of Gozo’s countryside.

View from St. Michael’s Bastion

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