Rapists, priest murderers, robbery pranksters, quarantine escapees and rebelling slaves all had the same ending 300 years ago, unless they managed to seek sanctuary in a church. New research by William Zammit gives detailed accounts of how and why people from all social backgrounds ended up 'kissing the gallows'. Antonio Cachia, also known as Biscarello, must have been homesick after months at sea, so he skipped quarantine, which was compulsory for most incoming sailors, to be with his relatives. The 19-year-old's stay at home in Żurrieq – and in this world – was unfortunately short-lived because he was captured and hanged on Manoel Island, where his corpse was left to decay until the Grand Master, who used to go fishing nearby, got sick of the sight. Some 60 years later, another young man had the same ending for stealing a silver crucifix from the Żebbuġ parish church as "a joke". Saverio Galea, who was pursuing clerical studies, had been sent to the galleys for life by the court, but the State – in this case, the Grand Master – overturned the sentence and he was hanged. Cachia and Galea are two of the hundreds of people condemned to hanging when the knights still ruled the...
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