Malta · Series: Constitutional History of Malta, 4th issue, 50 years of independence

Issue date3 Jun 2014

Total mintage432,500

EU maximum400,000

Editions3

Edge lettering2 ✠✠ × 6, alternately upright/inverted

InscriptionMALTA – Independence 1964 / 2014

DesignerĠanni Bonnici

mintKoninklijke Nederlandse Munt, Utrecht

Issue occasion

The coin commemorates Malta’s independence and the Independence Constitution of 1964, through which Malta became an independent nation after centuries of foreign rule. The design depicts part of the bronze statue created by Gianni Bonnici in 1989 to symbolise independence: a young woman representing Malta and carrying the Maltese flag. The inscription “MALTA – Independence 1964” runs in a semicircle on the right.

The design

This coin commemorating Malta’s 1964 Constitution of Independence is the fourth in a series of five coins dedicated to important stages in Malta’s constitutional history. With the Constitution of 1964, Malta became an independent nation after centuries of foreign rule. The national side of the coin depicts part of the bronze statue designed by Gianni Bonnici in 1989 to symbolise independence. It shows a young woman symbolising Malta and carrying the Maltese flag. On the right-hand side, the inscription “MALTA – Independence 1964” is engraved in a semicircle, and the year of issue “2014” is engraved along the lower edge.

The outer ring of the coin depicts the twelve stars of the European flag.

Background on the topic

Malta initially came under French rule in 1798. Following an uprising by the Maltese population and a British blockade, the French troops withdrew in 1800. Subsequently, the islands came under British protection; in 1814, they formally became part of the British Empire. Because of its location between Europe and North Africa, Malta served as a naval and military base. During the Second World War, the island was exposed to heavy air attacks. The George Cross awarded to the population in 1942 was later incorporated into the Maltese flag.

Political self-government developed in several stages and was temporarily restricted again at times. After the Second World War, disputes over Malta’s future status intensified. A plan pursued for a time envisaged closer integration into the United Kingdom, with parliamentary representation in London, but it was not implemented. Thereafter, the government led by Prime Minister George Borg Olivier advocated state independence. The new constitutional order was approved in a referendum in 1964.

Malta initially remained a constitutional monarchy in the Commonwealth. The British head of state was simultaneously Queen of Malta and was represented on the islands by a Governor-General. It was not until 1974 that the country became a republic. British armed forces remained in Malta under treaty arrangements until 1979. These later steps show that the transition from colonial rule was not concluded by a single political act.

The figure depicted forms part of the Independence Monument in Floriana, which was erected for the 25th anniversary of state independence. The coin was part of a five-piece Maltese series on constitutional history. Its motifs dealt chronologically with the first elected popular representatives of 1849, majority representation in 1887, self-government in 1921, the change of status in 1964 and the proclamation of the republic in 1974. The occasion was therefore not chosen in isolation, but as the fourth stage in a series tracing Malta’s path from limited political participation to a republican form of government.