Europe

Flag of Malta

Malta is a small Mediterranean archipelago south of Sicily and one of the world's smallest and most densely populated countries. Its strategic location has made it a crossroads of civilisations for millennia, ruled by the Phoenicians, Romans, Arabs, Normans, Knights of St John, French, and British. The island has an extraordinary concentration of prehistoric temples, Baroque architecture, and ancient fortifications, and joined the EU in 2004.

CapitalValletta
RegionEurope
Current flag since1964
Main coloursWhite, Red
Populationabout 530,000
Areaabout 320 km²
GeographyIsland nation
Flags in history4

Population and area are rounded.

What the flag of Malta means

White and red are traditionally linked to Count Roger I of Sicily, who is said to have given the Maltese these colours in 1091, though the story is a legend. The George Cross was awarded to the island by King George VI in 1942 for the bravery of its people during the Axis siege in the Second World War. The flag was adopted at independence in 1964.

How to recognise it

Vertical white-red with a George Cross medal in the white canton.

Did you know?

Malta is one of the world's smallest and most densely populated countries.

Easily confused with

Malta's flag is often mixed up with these. Learn to tell them apart:

Poland

Latvia

Flag history of Malta

Every flag that has flown over Malta, from today back through time.

1964–present

White-red with George Cross

At independence in 1964 the blue canton was dropped and the George Cross, edged in red, was placed directly on the white field so it would appear less prominent.

1943–1964

George Cross in a blue canton

The George Cross, awarded to the Maltese people by King George VI in 1942 for their WWII bravery during the Siege of Malta, was added to the flag in 1943 on a blue canton.

1813–1943

British Malta

Malta became a British colony in 1813 and a vital naval fortress guarding the Mediterranean, flying the Union Jack (and a colonial blue ensign at sea) until the George Cross was added in 1943. Its strategic harbour made it one of the most heavily bombed places on earth during WWII's Siege of Malta.

1530–1798

Order of Saint John (Knights of Malta)

For over 250 years Malta was ruled by the Knights Hospitaller — the Sovereign Military Order of Saint John — who flew a plain white cross on red. Granted the islands in 1530, the Knights famously withstood the Great Siege of 1565 by the Ottomans before Napoleon expelled them in 1798. Their eight-pointed white cross endures as the "Maltese cross."

Related historical states

Empires, kingdoms and republics that once covered part of Malta.

1113–present

Sovereign Military Order of Malta

The white eight-pointed Maltese cross on red is the Knights Hospitaller's 'works' flag; the eight points are traditionally said to represent the eight Beatitudes.