Marquis of Ghajn Qajjed

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The Marquis of Ghajn Qajjed is a title of Maltese nobility. The current holder of the title is Michael Formosa Gauci, the sixth Marquis. His heir is his brother, Josef Formosa Gauci, styled the Marchesino.

The title was first created in 1361 and bestowed upon the Pellegrino family, then the Calava family in 1531. The present holders of the title descend from Dr. Gerolamo Delicata LL.D, who was bestowed the title by the Grand Master de Rohan-Polduc in 1796, with the title passing to his legitimate and natural first born descendants in perpetuity.

The title received British crown recognition in 1878.

The Delicata family, the last to be ennobled by the Order, claimed they could not live off their rents. Their lucrative possession was the Grua field which in 1797, only rendered 116 scudi. The title survived in the Delicata family until 1917, and was then succeeded by descendants of the second Marquis, Luigi Manduca-Gauci, who became fourth Marquis and died unmarried in 1926.

The title moved to Luigi's second cousin once removed, the present holders, Rev. Victor Formosa-Gauci S.J., the fifth Marquis, also Count of Santa Sofia; his brother is the Marchesino di Ghajn Qajjied and Contino di Santa Sofia.

Appreciation of Fr. Victor Formosa Gauci, S.J. Mr. Carmel Hili, of Burmarrad, writes:

Some weeks ago Fr. Victor Formosa Gauci went to meet the Risen Lord. Fr. Victor was an exemplary person both as a monk and as an educator. All those of us who had the good fortune of having had him as our mentor know what a conscientious teacher he was: impeccably punctual with well prepared lessons on subjects he loved and taught well and willingly; always ready to help his wards, even after school hours.

As students, we may not have appreciated the treasure we enjoyed. We affectionately nicknamed him 'the rising sun' because whenever we gave him cause for concern we could watch his face change colour in slow stages. His genuine concern for our well-being and the discipline he maintained gave his students a solid foundation in the process of character formation.

Regardless of his academic qualifications or titles of nobility, he was never heard to refer to them at all. He was humility personified. He was uniformly obedient to his superiors and infallibly meticulous. I will never forget his calligraphy, which was everyday handwriting to him.

Much less can I ever forget the many hours of spare time spent in his company as a 12-year-old boy. He delighted in telling me about his recollections of ships, trains and trams in Malta of yesteryear and of his war experiences.

Those of his students who have followed in his footsteps to become educators retain his example as a permanent yardstick. He lives in our memories, our hearts and spirit, a reliable template to ensure a quality service in our noble profession.

Fr. Victor has our heartfelt thanks and our prayers for him to enjoy his just reward for a race well run and a fight well fought in the beauty, the glory and the awesome justice of God where we may be granted to meet again. Our condolences to his relatives and to his Brothers in the Society of Jesus.

[edit] References

• Said Vassallo, C.M., Unpublished research papers.
• Said Vassallo, C.M.,Charles Said-Vassallo's Research site and Maltese Nobility web site.
• Montalto, J., "The Nobles of Malta-1530-1800", Midsea Books Ltd, Malta, 1980.
• Burkes Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage of the UK.- 1914 ed.
• Cassar Desain, Marchese L.A., " Genealogia della famiglia Testaferrata di Malta." Malta, 1880.
• Gauci,C.A.," The Genealogy and Heraldry of the Noble Families of Malta", Gulf Publishing Ltd, Malta, 1981.
• Gauci,C.A.," The Genealogy and Heraldry of the Noble Families of Malta, Volume Two", Publishers Enterprises Group (PEG) Ltd, 1992.
• Gauci,C.A and Mallet, P.,"The Palaeologos Family- A Genealogical Review" ,Publishers Enterprises Group (PEG) Ltd, 1985
• Gauci, C.A.," A Guide to the Maltese Nobility", Publishers Enterprise Group (PEG) Ltd, Malta, 1986.
• Giles Ash, S., "The Nobility of Malta", Publishers Enterprises Group (PEG) Ltd, 1988.