Villa Guardamangia
| Villa Guardamangia | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Former names | Casa Medina |
| Alternative names | Casa Guardamangia |
| General information | |
| Status | Intact |
| Type | Villa |
| Architectural style | Vernacular and Neoclassical |
| Location | Gwardamanġa, Pietà, Malta |
| Coordinates | 35°53′32.1″N 14°29′42.2″E / 35.892250°N 14.495056°E |
| Completed | 18th century |
| Owner | Schembri family |
| Technical details | |
| Material | Limestone |
Villa Guardamangia (Italian – 'look' and 'eat'), formerly known as Casa Medina and sometimes referred to as Casa Guardamangia, is a townhouse in Gwardamanġa, Pietà, Malta, which served as the residence of Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh (later Queen Elizabeth II), and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, between 1949 and 1951, while Philip was stationed in Malta as a naval officer.
Villa Guardamangia was built in 1900 (not in the mid-18th century) and was called Casa Medina. The villa was formerly owned by Judge Sir Augusto Bartolo until the British royal family negotiated to rent it and eventually buy it. In more recent years it was purchased and refurbished by the politician Ġużè Schembri and still belongs to his family.
In around 1929, the villa was first leased to the Earl Mountbatten of Burma, who had interest in it because of its proximity to Marsa, which has a horse racing track and a golf course that suited his lavish entertainment lifestyle. When the royal couple came to Malta at first they lodged at San Anton Palace hosted by Gerald Strickland and his wife. The Earl of Mountbatten, known as "Uncle Dicky" by the royal couple, passed the villa to the royal couple, after their spending some time as "guests" at the villa. The villa was in a bad state and divided into apartments, leading the Mountbattens to reside at the Hotel Phoenicia in Floriana, in two rooms, while the house was being renovated. Mountbatten bought the villa after some time and frequented it while the Earl of Mountbatten was stationed in Malta as Commander in Chief of the Mediterranean Fleet in the 1950s. Elizabeth celebrated her 24th and 25th birthdays at the villa, that are the only birthdays of hers to be celebrated outside the UK.
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Wikipedia