GEROLAMO CASSAR
Gerolamo Cassar was born in Birgu, (or Gudja) circa 1520. He was an architect and a military engineer and was the official military architect of the Knights of the Order of St John.
Around 1560 Gerolamo married Mattea and they had five children, Vittorio, who became a military engineer himself, Gabrielle, Mariette, Battistina and Caterinella. He also had another son from an extra matrimonial affair called Gio Domenico.
Cassar started as a capomastro, that is a master builder who works in stone. During the sixteenth century, such a skill was acquired by experience when working as a scalpellino (stone mason). He was a pupil of Evangelista Menga an Italian military engineer. During the Great Siege of 1565, Cassar used his abilities to restore damaged fortifications. After the Siege, he was promoted as an assistant to the architect Francesco Laparelli and eventually took over the building of Valletta himself.
Gerolamo Cassar was vital in the construction of Malta’s new capital city building some of its most important edifices. To mention some – the Grand Masters’ Palace, Auberges, Sacra Infermeria, fortifications and various churches in Valletta. However, he is mostly famous for building the Co-Cathedral of St John the Baptist. Malta’s Co-Cathedral is a genuine baroque gem and has a particular arched nave; the nave is the central part of the church. The central nave of the Co-Cathedral is slightly pointed and not round as was customary back then. Probably Cassar built it that way to be sure the side aisles of the church strengthen the central nave. The pointed arch is hard to see because, during the seventeenth century, the Co-Cathedral was heavily decorated by Mattia Preti. Preti made it look rounder than it actually is. The façade of the church is fashioned in an austere style.
Gerolamo Cassar died circa 1592. He left a legacy that is now deeply rooted in Maltese culture and he is very representative of sixteenth-century military architecture.
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