St Elmo's Fort, Valletta's main fortification, is accessed from the City Gate by the main Republic Street. This fortification was built on the site of a lone watchtower in 1551. Fifteen years after the fortress was built, a huge Turkish armada appeared at its walls. The Great Siege of the island began. And the new fort resisted the Ottomans for almost a month. It was captured after all. When the Knights Hospitallers liberated Malta, Fort Sant'Elmo was in ruins. It was rebuilt after local architect Francesco Laparelli was asked to design a new system of fortifications. Since then, the fort, despite restoration work in the 17th and 18th centuries, has hardly changed.
It is not easy to get into the Fort of Sant'Elmo, which is often closed without explanation. It is currently home to the Police Academy and the Military Museum. The easiest way to see the fortress from the inside is to catch one of the costume shows that take place here several times a month. In the In Guardia show, actors in the uniforms of the Johannite Knights recreate some of the military campaigns of the past. Another historical reenactment is called "Alarme!". It focuses on the clashes between the Maltese and the French between 1798 and 1800.
The military museum, although located within the fort, still has a separate entrance. It operates without interruption. The exhibition of equipment, weapons and uniforms of the Second World War occupies the premises of the former gunpowder warehouse. Here is kept and St George's Cross, which was awarded to Malta for bravery in the battles on the side of the Allies.
