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Valletta · Malta

St John's Co-Cathedral

Known locally as Kon-Katidral ta’ San Ġwann

A church, art site in Valletta that helps explain the religious, artistic and political culture of the Knights of St John.

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St John's Co-Cathedral Matthew Axiak · CC BY-SA 4.0
Typical visit
1 hour 30 minutes
Setting
Indoor
Region
Valletta
Last checked
9 Aug 2026

Why visit

St John's Co-Cathedral provides a focused way to understand the religious, artistic and political culture of the Knights of St John. Its restrained exterior gives little indication of the richly worked interior, where chapels, carved stone, marble funerary monuments and major paintings were assembled for the Order’s conventual church. Its value lies in the combination of surviving fabric, setting and interpretation, which places the site within the wider history of Malta and the central Mediterranean. Allowing time to examine the details rather than treating it as a brief photo stop gives context that is difficult to gain from the exterior or landscape alone.

What you will see

  • Baroque nave and side chapels.
  • Caravaggio’s The Beheading of Saint John the Baptist.
  • inlaid marble tombstones of members of the Order.

History

The church was built for the Order of St John between 1572 and 1577, under Grand Master Jean de la Cassière. Later Baroque decoration transformed the interior, while the building eventually became a co-cathedral with St Paul’s Cathedral in Mdina.

Visitor tips

  1. 1

    Pairing St John's Co-Cathedral with nearby places in the same region can reduce backtracking, but current access and transport arrangements should be checked on the day.

About Valletta

The fortified capital concentrates sixteenth-century planning, major churches, state rooms, museums and wartime sites within a compact peninsula.

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Grandmaster's Palace Valletta · Malta A palace, history site in Valletta that helps explain the institutional history of the Knights, British administration and the Maltese state. Fort Saint Elmo and National War Museum Valletta · Malta A fortress, museum site in Valletta that helps explain Malta’s strategic position at the entrance to the Grand Harbour. Upper Barrakka Gardens Valletta · Malta A garden, viewpoint site in Valletta that helps explain the relationship between Valletta’s bastions and the Grand Harbour. National Museum of Archaeology Valletta · Malta A museum, archaeology site in Valletta that helps explain Malta’s prehistoric sequence before visiting the megalithic sites themselves. MUŻA Valletta · Malta A museum, art site in Valletta that helps explain Maltese art within the architectural setting of an historic auberge. Lascaris War Rooms Valletta · Malta A museum, military-history site in Valletta that helps explain the command infrastructure used beneath Valletta during the Second World War.

Already worked out

Ready-made trips through Valletta

All ready-made trips
Malta Prehistory 3 days · 7 stops · Moderate pace Malta Prehistory links complementary places at a pace that leaves time for interpretation, short walks and changes of base. Current site access, sea conditions and transport arrangements should be checked before each travel day. Valletta and Grand Harbour 3 days · 10 stops · Moderate pace Valletta and Grand Harbour links complementary places at a pace that leaves time for interpretation, short walks and changes of base. Current site access, sea conditions and transport arrangements should be checked before each travel day. Valletta to Mdina Highlights 3 days · 8 stops · Moderate pace Valletta to Mdina Highlights links complementary places at a pace that leaves time for interpretation, short walks and changes of base. Current site access, sea conditions and transport arrangements should be checked before each travel day. Malta First-Visit Circuit 5 days · 13 stops · Moderate pace Malta First-Visit Circuit links complementary places at a pace that leaves time for interpretation, short walks and changes of base. Current site access, sea conditions and transport arrangements should be checked before each travel day.