Records show that the first branch of the Royal Legion in Malta was formed over a 100 years ago, on the 22nd February 1922. Chalmers, formerly of the Lancashire Fusiliers, being appointed as the first chairman on the 4th January of the same year. Little is known about his origins, apart from the fact that he was invalided out in 1919 on account of a chronic illness. On his arrival in Malta he married into a local family and had three children. Chalmers succumbed to his condition in 1925 and was buried with full military honours in Ta’ Braxia Cemetery. His ancestors can still be traced on the island till this very day. Apart from a brief break in the early 1900s, the Royal British Legion (then known as the British Empire League) has kept a presence on the island when on the 22nd January 1950, the present branch of the Royal British Legion of Malta was inaugurated and is still going strong. The branch has never looked back. With the vast reductions in ex-servicemen, our membership has dwindled from 3000 at it’s peak to around 200 at the present times. Our efforts at collecting funds from the annual Poppy Appeal Campaign continue with vigour and determination. The Legion is recognised as being the official body of the Custodians of Remembrance.
