The Villa Frere Gardens of Pieta

The curious story of Villa Frere & its gardens in the Pieta neighborhood in Malta came into being when the Rt. Hon. John Hookum Frere, a renowned English scholar, politician, poet, & diplomat retired there accompanied by his ailing wife, Lady Elizabeth, Dowager Countess of Erroll and his sister Susanna in 1820.

They first resided in Valletta, but a year later, Frere took out a 99 year lease from Valletta’s nuns of St. Catherine on a property at the Pieta waterfront – which later became Villa Frere & its grand gardens.

In 1831 Frere lost both women to disease & was distraught enough to withdraw & focus all his energies into the villa & gardens. With the help of some of the best architects of the time he landscaped the rocky hillside behind the house into beautiful terraced gardens with several follies including a stately Doric temple folly at the top of the gardens, that was regarded for years as one of Malta’s best examples of Neo-Classical architecture.

While later creating a terrace for his vegetable garden, the ground gave way & a natural doline was created. After cleaning out the debris, they realized that the ravine fell down well over 60 feet to sea level. Seizing this opportunity to make a feature from a disaster, Frere ordered a tunnel to be excavated from the lower reaches of the garden in the native rock. Interestingly, the tunnel punctured the doline’s cavity roughly 1/2 ways down, thus creating a beautiful attraction for his visitors.

The Additions of Edward Price

After Hookum Frere died in 1846, the villa stood empty for a decade until 1856 when it was leased to a number of short-term tenants. This continued until 1876, when Count Rosario Messina took over the remaining lease of 55 years. Then, in 1886 Messina handed over the villa to his newly-married daughter, Josaphine & son-in-law Naval Captain Edward Price, who lived there for the remainder of the 99 year lease.

Price, an avid gardener, embarked on the restoration of the neglected garden with great enthusiasm, & in no time embellished the grounds with the addition of a cactus garden, a Japanese garden, and an English gnome garden. These enhancements continued to put Villa Frere in the spotlight – so much so that many famous personalities came to visit the gardens. Notables included Queen Mary, on her return from India with King George V in 1912, and Queen Marie of Romania in 1924. Both queens marked their visit by unveiling marble plaques in the royal gazebo. Villa Frere became so noteworthy that, in 1930 the prestigious British publication “Country Life” published a full feature in their monthly magazine – the 1st time ever that a Maltese garden was granted such ample coverage.

The Lease, the War, & the Government

Following the end of the private 99 year lease in 1920, the Maltese government was intent to construct a new Hospital next to the Villa for the centralized care of the people of Malta. Work was started in 1930, then often postponed due to the fascist movements prior to & during the 2nd World War. It was finished in time to serve during the Axis devastation of the island. During the war, the whole Pieta hilltop was an occasional target, so the villa & its gardens became damaged and unsafe. As a result it was left in disrepair until 1952, when it was leased by the government to the Spiteri family, who inherited a greatly reduced complex due to the multistory hospital complex. Later the footprint was reduced further with the addition of a new primary school built onto the Japanese garden.

And then – 30 years later – the government approved the construction of the hospital helipad on the site of the upper garden. To add insult to injury, the excess rubble & debris from construction was unceremoniously dumped down the doline by the contractors – ending the primary feature of the central garden . . .

Enjoy What Remains

What you see on your visit here now is unfortunately only 30% of the original footprint. But, take heart – there has been progress among several stakeholders to renovate & maintain the gardens as part of Malta’s national heritage.

Be a Part of the Changes . . .

This is not just a garden and an old building any more. It is now a national monument: Villa Frere was recently designated as a Grade 1 heritage monument by the government of Malta. This is the highest level a building can get here since they have major cultural, historical, and architectural value – and may not be altered by law.

Thanks to National media coverage, an official visit by the President of Malta, the involvement of Heritage Malta, The Planning Authority, & The Superintendence of Cultural Heritage between 2018 & 2020, the future of the gardens is looking better.

It is noteworthy that at the core of these government bodies sits “The Friends of Villa Frere” – a volunteer group solely dedicated to the rehabilitation of the site & its live gardens. Start by joining them on Facebook at Friends of Villa Frere, to learn more, then visit an open day, which is every first Saturday of the month and maybe help them in person when you can. The visitor entrance fee is only 5 euros, all of which goes towards the restoration . . .

Sources: Villa Frere Gardens handouts; Friends of Villa Frere on FB ; Times of Malta ; Planning Authority schedules ; Heritage Malta ; Cultural Heritage ; Maltatina ; GuideMeMalta ;