From the road, the first impression is a toy castle on a green hill: pale walls, notched battlements, a slim bell-cot and a balcony wrapped around the upper level. Selmun Palace looks like something drawn for a children’s book, and it has been drawing photographers up the lane towards Mellieħa for decades.
Why it was built
The palace takes its name from the Selmun peninsula nearby. In the eighteenth century a Maltese charity chose the site for a building meant to raise money. The organisation worked to ransom Christians captured by the Ottoman Empire and the Barbary pirates, and it received the land from a wealthy noblewoman, Caterina Vitale. The plan was practical: build a palace, rent it out and put the income into ransoms.
Because the charity was linked to the Knights Hospitaller, members of the Order became the tenants. They used it as a country house, a place to rest and to hunt away from the capital.
A castle that never fought
The palace looks defensive, with bastions, embrasures and thick walls, but it never served as a fortification. There is a story that its appearance frightened off pirates who mistook it for a real stronghold, though it is only an opinion. The style is Baroque, and traditional coats of arms decorate the walls.
Look at the details more than the overall shape. The crenellations are ornamental, the balcony is graceful rather than military, and the bell-cot gives the building a slightly religious air. It is an elegant country house wearing a soldier’s costume.
Hotel years and an uncertain present
In modern times the palace became part of a fashionable hotel complex owned by the national airline, which added new buildings and infrastructure. Some rooms became hotel suites, and the palace hosted special events. In 2011 the hotel closed because of the owner’s corporate restructuring, and the future of the historic building has been debated by government and society since.
For a visitor, this means a different kind of visit. You are looking at a landmark whose use is unsettled. The palace is best taken as an exterior: its walls, coats of arms and setting. Ask in Mellieħa if you want to know the current situation.
Walking around it
After you have taken your photographs, it is worth a walk around the palace and the lane that circles it. The elevation gives views of the sea, the village of Mellieħa and the Mistra valley, and in clear weather the colours are strong: blue water, green fields and stone walls.
The area is open and exposed. There is not much shade, and wind can pick up on the hill, even on warm days. The walk is easy, mostly flat and on lanes, and it suits anyone who wants a short outing without hard hiking.
Bring a camera with a decent zoom if you want details of the coats of arms or the bell-cot. A wide lens helps for the full façade, and the best angles are from a little below the palace, looking up across the field.
Combining it with the north
Selmun fits well into a day in the north of the island. Mellieħa Bay, with its long sandy beach, lies close by, and Popeye Village and the National Aquarium are among the other places people combine with it. A sensible plan is to see the palace in the morning, swim at Mellieħa Bay at midday and visit a family attraction later.
Mellieħa village has cafes and shops, and it is the natural place to stop for lunch. If you travel by bus, plan the last stretch carefully, since the lane to the palace is not a main route and a taxi is the simpler way to reach it.
Reading the setting
The palace was built in open country, and that still shows. Fields and low stone walls surround it, and the peninsula that gave it its name runs out towards the sea. A building meant to produce rent needed visible, easy land around it, and the hill gave the Knights views in every direction while they hunted.
Stand a little way down the lane and compare the palace with the farmhouses nearby. The difference in scale and ornament tells you quickly who it was built for.
Practical points
Allow around an hour for the palace, including photographs and a short walk. Wear sturdy shoes, because the lane surface can be rough, and carry water in summer. Because the building’s status can change, check locally before making a special journey.
Late afternoon is the best time: the stone takes on a warm tone, the sun is low, and the sea beyond the valley turns brighter. Stay until the light fades, then return to Mellieħa for dinner.
