Great siege of Malta defense against Islam Maltese and Jewish

[futuramark]

Just a few videos I put on youtube about the Muslim assault on my beloved Islands of Malta. They spared no one men women and child in their brutal march thrughout cities..enslaves all the people of one of our islands Gozo 5,000 people were enslaved.

However to the amazement of all Europeans we managed to hold off and defeat 40,000 Muslim Ottomans with just 500 knights and 3000 Maltese soldiers and Spanish reinforcements which arrived at the end.

vid 1

vid 2

vid 3


Jews in Malta during Renaissance
In 1530 Charles V of Spain gave Malta to the Knights of Saint John. The Knights ruled the island until 1798; many Sicilian conversos then moved here remembering the Knights' liberal policy towards the Jews of Rhodes, but they had to continue practicing their religion in secrecy. Jews volunteered for the desperate attempt to relieve Fort St Elmo during the Great Siege. Following this, was no free Jewish population in the country during the Knights' reign. They would often take passengers of merchant ships - including numerous Jews - hostage in order to get the ransom and it would be up to Jewish Societies for the Redemption of Captives to raise it. There were therefore many Jewish slaves in Malta during this period and Malta was frequently mentioned for its large enslaved Jewish population in Jewish literature of the period. Free Jews wishing to visit the country could only enter through one port in Valletta, which is still known as the Jews' Sallyport.

Modern
 
The majority of the contemporary Maltese Jewish community originates in Jewish immigration from Gibraltar, England, North Africa, Portugal and Turkey during the short period of French rule from 1798 to 1800 and British rule after that.From 1805 Jews were the targets of campaigns by the Maltese directed at all foreigners.[6] In 1846, a Tripolitanian became the country's first modern rabbi.

During the early 20th century the island did not always have a rabbi of its own and rabbis would be flown in from Sicily to perform ceremonies. In the time before World War II many Jews fleeing Nazism came to Malta as it was the only European country not to require visas of Jews fleeing German rule. Numerous Maltese Jews fought Germany in the British Army during the war.
end-

...Jews were an important part of our community in Mdina and never treated badly. Obviously they also risked being exterminated by the muslims and they helped out. One can learn about this by looking up..history of the Jews of Malta.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Jews_in_Malta