Podcasts · The Story of Malta: The Fortress Island of the Mediterranean — Fexingo History
The Falcone of Malta: A King's Tribute and a Falcon's Price
· 7:44 · S5 E214
Episode The Falcone of Malta: A King's Tribute and a Falcon's Price
In this episode of The Story of Malta, Lucas and Luna explore the curious and little-known history of the Tributo del Falcone — the annual tribute of a peregrine falcon that Malta owed to the King of Sicily for centuries. How did a bird become a diplomatic bargaining chip? Why did the Knights of St John continue the tradition even as they fortified the island against the Ottomans? From the medieval origins under the Normans to the last falcon sent in the eighteenth century, this episode traces the falcon's role as a symbol of vassalage, a tool of diplomacy, and a source of unexpected local pride. Along the way, we meet the falconers, the viceroys, the popes, and the knights who kept the tradition alive, and we ask what it meant for Malta's place in the Mediterranean world. A story of birds, tribute, and the delicate art of being a small island in a big sea.
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Transcript
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