Malta and the Treaty of Paris of 1814

Abstract

The Treaty of Paris (1814) confirmed Malta as a British possession after the French were expelled in 1800. Though the Treaty of Amiens (1802) had proposed returning Malta to the Order of St John, the Maltese declared loyalty to Britain, and the plan was never implemented. Britain recognized Malta’s strategic naval and commercial importance, particularly during Napoleon’s continental blockade. Calls for Maltese rights were ignored, and in 1813 Sir Thomas Maitland imposed direct military rule amid plague and economic hardship. The 1815 Congress of Vienna and the second Treaty of Paris reaffirmed Malta’s status under Britain, shaping its colonial future.