If you grew up assuming Malta only got an archbishop in the 20th century, you’re basically right, but also not. On 3 March 1797, Pope Pius VI issued a papal brief that gave the Bishop of Malta archiepiscopal dignity by attaching to the Maltese see a prestigious titular title, Archbishop of Rhodes. The first man to carry it was Vincenzo Labini, who from that point could be styled Archbishop of Rhodes and Bishop of Malta. That wording matters because it wasn’t the same thing as

On 23 February 1721, Malta had just started its Carnival season under the rule of Grand Master Marc’Antonio Zondadari. This is the period most historians link to the introduction of the kukkanja into Maltese Carnival. Sources are clear on the year 1721 and on Zondadari’s role, but they do not give a clean, documented “first performance” date for the Kukkanja tradition. What we do know is that the kukkanja was introduced in 1721 and that it was a Neapolitan tradition. The kukk