On 9 April 1942 a German bomb came through the dome of the Rotunda at Mosta during an afternoon service. About three hundred people were inside. The bomb hit the floor, skidded across it and did not go off.
What the building is
The Rotunda is the parish church of Mosta and is dedicated to the Assumption of Our Lady. It was built in the nineteenth century and it has one of the largest unsupported domes in Europe.
The dome explains why the story is told the way it is. There was nothing between the sky and the congregation except that shell of stone.
The bomb did not go off
Two other bombs hit the church that day and bounced off without breaking through. The third came through the dome.
Nobody was killed. The bomb was taken out and disposed of at sea by a bomb disposal team.
A replica is kept in the sacristy at the back of the church, in a small display you can walk into. It is not the original, and the church does not claim it is.
Why Malta was being bombed
Malta sits between Sicily and North Africa, on the supply route between them. Holding it meant being able to attack Axis convoys going to Rommel.
Between 1940 and 1942 the islands were bombed almost continuously. The Grand Harbour and the airfields took the worst of it.
The George Cross
In April 1942, the same month as the Mosta bomb, King George VI awarded the George Cross to Malta as a whole. It is on the national flag, in the top corner nearest the mast. It is the only time the award has been given to a country rather than a person.
Going to see it
The Rotunda is in the middle of Mosta and is open to visitors outside service times. There is a small charge for the sacristy display. Mosta is on the main bus routes from Valletta and sits roughly in the centre of the island, so it fits easily around other stops.
