| Britain's Queen Elizabeth came to the British throne | | | | of her hard fought for independence and national |
| when she was only 25, and at her side has been | | | | identity to adopt the Euro as her official currency. |
| Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, who married the | | | | The modern Malta the Queen and Prince Philip visited |
| Queen in 1947. | | | | as part of their 60th wedding anniversary |
| In the modern world of celebrities, celebrity | | | | celebrations has been transformed into a holiday |
| relationships, marriages and highly publicised | | | | island, with cheap flight to Malta deals bringing in |
| breakdowns - including that of her son Prince Charles | | | | tourists from the United Kingdom, and increasingly |
| and Princess Diana - it is easy to forget that the | | | | from Italy, although the UK remains Malta's most |
| Queen has acted with grace and seldom complains of | | | | important market. |
| press coverage when it is unfavourable - unless it is | | | | Meanwhile, the population of Malta has swollen from |
| simply untruthful, when the British Press Complaints | | | | just over 300,000 in 1950 to over 400,000 now, with |
| body intervenes. | | | | the Maltese people moving away from the rural areas |
| And the Queen now celebrates over sixty years of | | | | to the capital Valletta and towns such as Sliema. |
| marriage to Prince Philip, and in typical fashion chose a | | | | Mellieha, a sleepy village on Malta's north coast then, |
| low key couple of days on the island of Malta to | | | | is becoming a popular holiday resort with hotel and |
| celebrate, before heading off to Uganda on official | | | | villa holidays popular with British and German holiday |
| business as Head of the Commonwealth. | | | | makers. |
| Five years older than the Queen, Prince Philip first | | | | Since the 1970's Malta has been a holiday destination |
| met the then Princess Elizabeth when she was 13, | | | | and a large part of her economy now relies on the |
| but it was some seven years later before they | | | | Malta holidays industry. A few years of decline have |
| started courting and became engaged, and married at | | | | been reversed by the acceptance of low cost |
| Westminster Abbey in November 1947. | | | | airlines, not just from the UK but other parts of |
| The time they spent together before Elizabeth | | | | Europe too, and the island is able to offer both 5 star |
| acceeded to the throne is thought to be among their | | | | Malta holidays but also cheap Malta holidays too. |
| happiest memories. Prince Philip was still a Royal Navy | | | | When Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip lived on the |
| Officer when they married and he was stationed in | | | | island few if any people were taking a holiday in |
| Malta. The island was quite different then from what | | | | Malta, and the population was Maltese with British and |
| it is now, with hotels in Malta now dotting the | | | | some Commonwealth military and civilian workers. |
| landscape. | | | | Until recently the vast majority of those taking a |
| The island of Malta allowed Queen Elizabeth and | | | | Malta holiday were British, but the cheap airlines are |
| Prince Philip to live a life as near as possibly could be | | | | allowing diversification with tourists not just from the |
| called normal as an heir to the British throne. | | | | UK - although it remains Malta's prime market, but |
| The Malta of today is unrecognisable from the Malta | | | | from Italy, Germany, Spain and the Scandanavian |
| when the Queen lived there. The island had been | | | | countries. |
| involved in the Second World War and gallantly held | | | | It's worth bearing in mind just how long Queen |
| out as the German and Italian air forces tried to | | | | Elizabeth and Prince Philip have been married - sixteen |
| bomb her into submission, and Malta was awarded | | | | years already before the Beatles had their first |
| the George Cross on April 15 1942 by the Queen's | | | | number 1 and they weren't far off their silver |
| father, King George VI. | | | | wedding anniversary when Neil Armstrong became |
| Accommodation in Malta | | | | the first man to walk on the moon and the Beatles |
| In 1942 61 RAF Spitfires, famous for their role in the | | | | were splitting up and Paul McCartney was first |
| Battle of Britain, arrived on the island to fight off the | | | | thinking of his new group Wings. |
| German and Italian airforces and Malta survived to | | | | Malta will be hoping the Royal couple visit the island |
| become today a member of the EU, and from | | | | again for their 70th wedding anniversary for a |
| January 1 this year even voluntarily surrendered part | | | | vacation. |