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St. John’s Co-Cathedral

On the south side of Great Siege Square is the famous “St John’s Co-Cathedral (I673-77), one of Europe’s finest churches, designed by Gerolamo Cassar, the first architect of the Order of St John. Dedicated to St John the Baptist, it was built at his own expense by the French Grand Master, Jean l’Evêque de la Cassière as the conventual church of the Order. In 1816 Pope Pius VII granted it the status of Co-Cathedral, ranking equal with Mdina Cathedral.

The facade, flanked by two square Renaissance towers, is relatively austere, and the doorway, surmounted by a balcony on which the Grand Masters presented themselves to the Knights after their election, is also very modest.