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

He is 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 Cremona⁵.

His parents christened him Giuseppe Giovanni Battista Salvatore⁶, after his maternal grandfather. They also indicated he should be known as Giuseppe⁷. He was baptised the same day in the parish of Stella Maris, Sliema⁸

This would have been at the chapel of Our Lady of Grace, since the parish church didn’t exist yet.

Family

On Tuesday 10 November 1908, he married 22-year-old Florentina Farrugia⁹. They married at the church of St Catherine of Italy in Valletta¹⁰. Fr Giuseppe Muscat, the Ħamrun parish priest, officiated¹¹.

The Birkirkara baptismal register for Giuseppe has a hand-written annotation showing the details of his marriage¹².

They registered the marriage with the authorities 4 days later¹³.

Together they had eight children:

• Maria Carmela¹⁴
• John
• Salvino
• Beatrice, known as Bice
• Philip
• Emma
• Rita
• Symphorosa

Notable events

Profession

In 1908, when he married, he was a Negoziante¹⁵ (EN: Shopkeeper).

In 1910, he describes himself as a “Bottegajo”¹⁶. This is Italian for a kind of shopkeeper; especially someone who handles retail food.

Fifteen years later, his death certificate records him as “Operajo”¹⁷ which roughly translates as a “worker”.

A further twelve years later, on his daughter’s wedding certificate¹⁸, his family described him as a merchant.

Residence

His family moved to Valletta¹⁹.

He later moved to Ħamrun at some point²⁰.

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 03:30²¹ on Tuesday 21 April 1925²² at Zammit Clapp hospital in Sliema, Malta²³.

He died of cancer of the bladder²⁴.

His family buried him at the Addolorata Cemetery in Marsa, Malta²⁵.

Lineage

This person is one of my maternal great-grandfathers.

References

1. Act of birth of Giuseppe Felice. (1871). (2639) Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 2024] [↩]
2. 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].[↩]
3. Act of birth of Giuseppe Felice. (1871). (2639) Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 2024] [↩]
4. 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].[↩]
5. Act of birth of Giuseppe Felice. (1871). (2639) Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 2024] [↩]
6. Act of birth of Giuseppe Felice. (1871). (2639) Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 2024] [↩]
7. Act of birth of Giuseppe Felice. (1871). (2639) Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 2024] [↩]
8. 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].[↩]
9. 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][↩]
10. 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][↩]
11. 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][↩]
12. 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].[↩]
13. Act of birth of Giuseppe Felice. (1871). (2639) Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 2024] [↩]
14. Act of birth of Maria Felice; Malta Government state archives; 1910-05-18[↩]
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. Act of birth of Maria Felice; Malta Government state archives; 1910-05-18[↩]
17. Act of death of Giuseppe Felice. (1925). Malta Government Public Registry. [online] Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 24 Aug. 2024][↩]
18. Act of Marriage of Anthony Mary Darmenia and Mary Carmela Felice; (1937) [↩]
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 death of Giuseppe Felice. (1925). Malta Government Public Registry. [online] Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 24 Aug. 2024][↩]
23. Act of death of Giuseppe Felice. (1925). Malta Government Public Registry. [online] Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 24 Aug. 2024][↩]
24. Act of death of Giuseppe Felice. (1925). Malta Government Public Registry. [online] Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 24 Aug. 2024][↩]
25. Act of death of Giuseppe Felice. (1925). Malta Government Public Registry. [online] Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 24 Aug. 2024][↩]