Giuseppe is something of a curiosity because almost all official documents about him contradict each other.

He was one of my maternal great-grandfathers.

Giuseppe was born at 09:00 on Sunday 06 August 1871^{1 2} in Sliema, Malta^{3 4}, son of Giovanni Battista Felice and Ludcarda née Cremona^{5 6}.

His parents christened him two days later⁷ as Giuseppe Giovanni Battista Salvatore⁸, after his maternal grandfather.

Unusually, the state and church records don’t agree with each other. The state records show he was christened Giuseppe Giovanni Battista Salvatore(Act of birth of Giuseppe Felice. (1871). (2639) Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 2024] )). The church records claim he was christened Giuseppe Benedict Giovanni Paolo⁹.
There is no question that this is the same person because all other details line up.

His parents indicated he should be known as Giuseppe¹⁰. He was baptised in the Roman Catholic church of Stella Maris, Sliema¹¹. by the Reverend D. Carmelo Gerada¹².

Family

On Tuesday 10 November 1908, he married 22-year-old Florentina Farrugia¹³. They married at the church of St Catherine in Valletta¹⁴. Fr Giuseppe Muscat, the Ħamrun parish priest, officiated¹⁵.

The Birkirkara baptismal register for Giuseppe has a hand-written annotation showing the details of his marriage¹⁶.

They registered the marriage with the authorities 4 days later¹⁷.

Together they had eight children:

• Maria Carmela¹⁸
• John
• Beatrice, known as Bice
• Symphorosa
• Salvino
• Emma
• Philip, who died in 2006.
• Rita, who died in 1998.

Notable events

Occupation

In 1908, when he married, he was a Negoziante¹⁹ (EN: Shopkeeper).

In 1910, he describes himself as a “Bottegajo”²⁰. This is Italian for a kind of shopkeeper; especially someone who handles retail food.

Fifteen years later, his death certificate records him as “Operajo”²¹ which roughly translates as a “worker”.

A further twelve years later, on his daughter’s wedding certificate²², his family described him as a merchant.

Support me!

If you’re enjoying my site, help support my work and research with a token donation.

€20.00

Residence

He was born in Sliema²³ which, at the time, was a suburb of Birkirkara.

His family moved to Valletta²⁴.

He later moved to Ħamrun at some point²⁵.

Curiosities

It is unusual for the public record to contain inconsistencies. In Giuseppe’s case, there are many:

• The state record claims his name is “Giuseppe, Giovanni Battista, Salvatore” while his religious certificate claim “Giuseppe Benedetto, Giovanni, Paolo”. All other details match but this transposition is unusual.
• His daughter’s birth certificate claims he was 37 instead of 39. This is strange because he was the one who recorded the birth.
• His family registered his birth on 29 August. The certificate also states his family submitted the details on 2 September.
• His family registered his death with the state authorities a full 5 months after he died.

Death

He died at 03:30²⁶ on Tuesday 21 April 1925²⁷ at Zammit Clapp hospital in Sliema, Malta²⁸.

He died of cancer of the bladder²⁹.

His family buried him at the Addolorata Cemetery in Marsa, Malta³⁰.

References

1. Act of birth of Giuseppe Felice. (1871). (2639) Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 2024] [↩]
2. Certificate of Baptism of Giuseppe Felice. (1871). Baptism Records Held by the Basilica of St Helen, 15, p.108.[↩]
3. Act of birth of Giuseppe Felice. (1871). (2639) Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 2024] [↩]
4. Certificate of Baptism of Giuseppe Felice. (1871). Baptism Records Held by the Basilica of St Helen, 15, p.108.[↩]
5. Act of birth of Giuseppe Felice. (1871). (2639) Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 2024] [↩]
6. Certificate of Baptism of Giuseppe Felice. (1871). Baptism Records Held by the Basilica of St Helen, 15, p.108.[↩]
7. Certificate of Baptism of Giuseppe Felice. (1871). Baptism Records Held by the Basilica of St Helen, 15, p.108.[↩]
8. Act of birth of Giuseppe Felice. (1871). (2639) Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 2024] [↩]
9. Certificate of Baptism of Giuseppe Felice. (1871). Baptism Records Held by the Basilica of St Helen, 15, p.108.[↩]
10. Act of birth of Giuseppe Felice. (1871). (2639) Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 2024] [↩]
11. Certificate of Baptism of Giuseppe Felice. (1871). Baptism Records Held by the Basilica of St Helen, 15, p.108.[↩]
12. Certificate of Baptism of Giuseppe Felice. (1871). Baptism Records Held by the Basilica of St Helen, 15, p.108.[↩]
13. Act of marriage of Giuseppe Felice and Florentina Farrugia. (1908). Malta Government Public Registry. [online] Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 24 Jul. 2024][↩]
14. Act of marriage of Giuseppe Felice and Florentina Farrugia. (1908). Malta Government Public Registry. [online] Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 24 Jul. 2024][↩]
15. Act of marriage of Giuseppe Felice and Florentina Farrugia. (1908). Malta Government Public Registry. [online] Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 24 Jul. 2024][↩]
16. Extract of Baptism of Giuseppe Felice. (1871). Liber Baptizatorum 1869 – 1877, [online] Volume 15, p.108. Available at: https://www.maltaparisharchives.org [Accessed 13 Dec. 2025].[↩]
17. Act of birth of Giuseppe Felice. (1871). (2639) Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 2024] [↩]
18. Act of birth of Maria Felice; Malta Government state archives; 1910-05-18[↩]
19. Act of marriage of Giuseppe Felice and Florentina Farrugia. (1908). Malta Government Public Registry. [online] Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 24 Jul. 2024][↩]
20. Act of birth of Maria Felice; Malta Government state archives; 1910-05-18[↩]
21. Act of death of Giuseppe Felice. (1925). Malta Government Public Registry. [online] Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 24 Aug. 2024][↩]
22. Act of Marriage of Anthony Mary Darmenia and Mary Carmela Felice; (1937) [↩]
23. Certificate of Baptism of Giuseppe Felice. (1871). Baptism Records Held by the Basilica of St Helen, 15, p.108.[↩]
24. Act of marriage of Giuseppe Felice and Florentina Farrugia. (1908). Malta Government Public Registry. [online] Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 24 Jul. 2024][↩]
25. Act of birth of Maria Felice; Malta Government state archives; 1910-05-18[↩]
26. Act of death of Giuseppe Felice. (1925). Malta Government Public Registry. [online] Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 24 Aug. 2024][↩]
27. Act of death of Giuseppe Felice. (1925). Malta Government Public Registry. [online] Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 24 Aug. 2024][↩]
28. Act of death of Giuseppe Felice. (1925). Malta Government Public Registry. [online] Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 24 Aug. 2024][↩]
29. Act of death of Giuseppe Felice. (1925). Malta Government Public Registry. [online] Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 24 Aug. 2024][↩]
30. Act of death of Giuseppe Felice. (1925). Malta Government Public Registry. [online] Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 24 Aug. 2024][↩]

Family Tree