Bormla has been inhabited since
Neolithic times. The
Phoenician
colony there was known as Maleth, established at some point after
sea level rise destroyed earlier coastal settlements during the 10th century BC. By the arrival of the
Order of Saint John, it was known as Bormla. Its fortifications, protecting both the town and its neighbours
Birgu and
Isla, were begun in 1638 but not completed for another 70 years. In 1722, Grand Master
Marc'Antonio Zondadari declared Bormla a city and in view of its strong bastions named it Città Cospicua. In 1776, the Order of St. John started to construct a
dockyard, which was to play a vital role in the development of this city. the
First World War and during the years preceding the
Second World War. Bormla, along with the rest of the area around the
Grand Harbour, was heavily bombed during this last war as Malta was
under siege by the
Axis powers. As Malta became an independent country, the city's dockyard frequently became a bone of contention between the
General Workers' Union, to which most of its employees belonged, and successive governments. In the early 21st century the dockyard was substantially downsized under the
governance of the
Nationalist Party after it was found that the cost of operating the site was responsible for around 25% of Malta's national debt. Plans are now underway for the transformation of an area of the dockyard into a commercial and tourist centre. Bormla is also known as
Belt l-Immakulata or the City of the Immaculate, referring to the
Immaculate Conception or the
Virgin Mary, who is the
patron of the city. Every year a feast is being held on 8 December. File:Cospicua_in_1846._Calotype_by_Calvert_Jones.jpg|Cospicua in 1846.
Calotype by
Calvert Jones File:Calvert Jones, Square in Burmola, Malta 1846.jpg|Cospicua in 1846.
Calotype by
Calvert Jones File:Richard_Ellis,_Cannavò_barber_shop.jpg|Cannavò barber shop on Cospicua's waterfront, 1910s, by
Richard Ellis File:Fenech_photography_studio,_Cospicua.jpg|19th-century Fenech photography studio ad in Cospicua ==Culture==