A “pro-cathedral” is a church with cathedral status though not being the main cathedral. St Paul’s is one of three cathedrals of the Anglican Diocese of Gibraltar in Europe; the others being in Gibraltar and Brussels.
Queen Adelaide came to Malta in 1839 for three months to recover from the death of her husband King William the Fourth who was succeeded by his niece Queen Victoria in 1837. Dismayed there was no Anglican place of worship she paid to have St Paul’s Pro-Cathedral built. (It cost her £20,000.) Today it maintains a distinctly Anglican atmosphere – no smells or bells here, thank you, have some coffee and cake.
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Diary of Reverend Reginald Nicholls, Chancellor of St. Paul’s Anglican Cathedral, Valletta, 1931 to 1944.
21st February 1941.
”This morning I had a very moving incident at 8 o’clock. We were saying Matins preparatory to Mass when I heard the click of the Cathedral door opening. I got up and went to meet the newcomer. I saw an old soldier coming up the aisle. His heavy hob-nailed boots scratching upon the tiled floor. He wore the ribbons of the 1914/18 and two other veteran medals; his hair was greying; his face lined with toil and his hands stained.
“I’ve just come to say a prayer; I only get leave once in 8 days” he said. I explained that we were about to have Holy Communion and that if he had time, would he wish to receive the holy Sacrament? “I’ve been confirmed’ he said “in 1916”. So we started the service. He seemed to follow it as I heard his soft voice joining in. When we reached the Communion, he rose from his place without hesitation and knelt at the rail holding up his two huge hands high for the Bread of Life. I was much moved and with difficulty finished the service.
Most soldiers are young; here was one relatively old, dragged from his home to serve 2,000 miles away. Not a conscript, he said but a pensioner, and member of the London Fire Brigade. “A soldier’s got to be practical’ he said, “but I always go to church at home. This is a lovely building”. And so we parted.
2nd September 1941.
Tomorrow is the second anniversary of the declaration of war. What a time it has been. If an Armistice came tomorrow, I think that the time would seem to have been short; and, apart from our loss of our son Anthony, I should feel that I had not suffered in health in spite of having lost three stones. My wife I think, has suffered more. She has never spent a whole summer here before, to say nothing of two, with the possibility of a third…
We have had a whole week free from night raids. But the moon is now once again nearly at the full, and it has begun again. Last night there was 4 or 5 hours of it but we were out at Birkirkara and though I heard three ‘Alerts’ … I went into the garden to have a look. I heard what I thought was a plane very near and very low, I ran like a stag, dropping one slipper in the garden! It dropped a small bomb in Sliema; I heard the bang and saw the burst.”
