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Fondazzjoni Wirt Artna is pleased to invite you to the following public lecture in English by Mr James Baldacchino about Malta’s Battlefront: Agriculture & Peasant Politics 1939-42. This public event is being held on Wednesday 17th April 2024 at 6.30 pm at the Ambassador Suite at the Embassy Valletta Hotel.Agriculture had never been high on the colonial authorities' agenda. As the Empire was sleepwalking into war, it had dawned on the government that Mediterranean shipping lanes could potentially be threatened by a belligerent Italy. Food – or lack thereof – was a major preoccupation. Slowly but surely, attention shifted to the rural country districts when logistics, supplies and food security became an existential issue.
The colonial government's intervention in the local agricultural sector had hitherto never been experienced before. A quasi-dictatorial regime directed farmers which crops were to be planted. Animal fodder was restricted, water was rationed and prices capped. Farmers were not idle victims of wartime policies; they took to protest and resistance, in the process impeding the government's work. A black market economy pervaded which gave rise to ill-feeling throughout. The National Farmers Union had garnered significant clout as the farmers' mouthpiece whereas the Church was employed as an instrument in the pacification of the countryside. New methods of reaching out to peasant farmers - propaganda - were deployed with varying results.
Entrance for this event is free but pre-booking is advisable to secure a seat. Bookings can be made by sending an email to [email protected] or by sending us a message on our FB page.
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Event Venue & Nearby Stays
The Embassy Valletta Hotel, Carcass - The City Bar, Triq id-Dejqa, Valletta, VLT, Malta,Valletta, Malta