Fortress Malta

Malta occupies a strategic position between Italy and North Africa, allowing British aircraft, ships and submarines to attack Axis supply routes. From 1940 the island endures sustained bombing, shortages and the risk of invasion while its population and garrison attempt to maintain the bases on which the wider Mediterranean campaign depends.

Holland interweaves the experiences of pilots, sailors, nurses, clerks and civilians with the operational struggle for convoys and air superiority. Relief depends on hazardous supply runs and the changing balance in North Africa. The island’s survival demonstrates how logistics and civilian endurance can determine the outcome of a campaign.