Cemeteries and Crypts

On entering a Christian cemetery, one is treading Holy Ground, in fact, just like a Church, a cemetery is Consecrated with a particular Liturgical rite. Until a hundred and fifty years ago there was still a lot of burying inside churches and chapels. One can note graves of Knights in both Cathedrals in Malta. Early during British rule, this was prohibited for the common folk and even Pastors were buried in Cemeteries after a while. From 1869 onwards, burials in churches were completely prohibited except for special cases as Bishops and Cloistered nuns.

During the Plague of the 15th century, the disposal of dead bodies was a problem in all towns and villages. The dead of Valletta were mostly buried on Manoel Island, and for a time some of the victims from the Three Cities too. Soon, cemeteries were opened on the outskirts of these towns. In the villages old rural chapels were used as burial places. Where there were no such chapels or not enough space inside, the authorities of the village would requisition a field for use as a cemetery. The plague had frequently spread havoc among the Maltese even since before feudal times, but the worst was in the 19th century when it visited seven times.

Many cemeteries and chapels for plague victims are dedicated to St.Roque to whom the Maltese prayed to protect them from this calamity. Some cemeteries do not even have a dedication because of the volatile situation at the time of their creation. Many were deconsecrated and the bodies exhumed in the 19th century, the bones taken to be reburied at the Addolorata Cemetery, which was then just finished, being set up to serve all of Malta.

In many of the cemeteries there is a church or Chapel, sometimes functioning independently of the cemetery nearby and is used for regular liturgy. There are of course smaller Cemeteries in use or not in use, which do not have a Chapel.

A few, though some not exclusively, are also Military cemeteries. Most functioning cemeteries are run by the Maltese Ecclesiastical Authorities while some are run by the Civil Authorities.