<the auberges in birgu>
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When settling down in
the harbour town Birgu, the Knights erected seven auberges, one for each tongue
of the Order (the tongue of Provence and the Auvergne shared one hostel). The
Birgu auberges were built between 1533 and 1535; their architect is not known.
The three surviving auberges, the Auberge d'Auvergne et Provence, the Auberge de France and the Auberge d'Angleterre, all consist of two floors. On the ground floor one could find the kitchen, stables and store rooms, while on the first floor the main rooms for meetings and dinners could be found. |
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| courtyard of the auberge d' angleterre |
auberge d'angleterre |
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All auberges are similar in plan: They have an open courtyard, which is surrounded by two wings. In two of the surviving auberges, the main entrance leads into a hall with a tunnel-vault. The facades also share many common features. The main door is usually placed in the centre of the facade. Each auberge also has side entrances. On the mezzanine floor one can find small windows, which are mostly frameless, and the main floor, the piano nobile, shows larger, rectangular windows, which are surrounded by the typical Maltese window frame, the so-called "Melitan triple roll moulding" or "Melitan fat moulding". |
| auberge de france | |
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This decorative feature can be found on many buildings in Malta from the 16th and 17th centuries. It is used on windows and doors. Most probably it was introduced to Malta by the Knights of St. John, because it does not appear on any buildings before 1530. A frame which looks very similar to the "Melitan triple roll moulding" can be found around the windows of a court building in Rhodes. |
| auberge d'auvergne et provence |
