Żabbar

During the British era a number of forts and batteries were built in the area. These were Fort Saint Rocco, Fort Saint Leonardo, Delle Grazie Battery and Żonqor Battery.

Fort Saint Rocco was built between 1873 and 1875. It was later expanded and 3 cannons were fitted. Also, Fort Saint Leonardo was fitted with 4 cannons. These two forts took care of the neighboring seas.

The two batteries also took care of the area altogether with the Rinella battery which contains the 100 ton Armstrong Gun.

A memorable date for the Żabbarin. The then Metropolitan Archbishop of Malta Michael Gonzi crowned the miraculous image of Our Lady of Grace venerated in her Sanctuary. A large crowd gathered in front of the Sanctuary on Sunday 2 September 1951. During 2001 a twelve star silver diadem was placed on it by Archbishop Joseph Mercieca, in celebration of the Golden Jubilee.

More recently, on 14 October 1975, Vulcan B. 2, XM645 of No.9 Squadron RAF, exploded over the village.[6] One wing full of fuel fell on Sanctuary Street, the main street of the village and several other parts fell on the school.[7][8] The children were having their break at that time and were safely evacuated by the supervising teachers and headmaster. The whole accident, which involved other parts of the city due to the violent explosion, claimed six victims. Five of them were crew members trapped in the plane. The sixth was a civilian, who was walking in the street at the time. Around 20 other individuals were injured.[7] Various items related to the crash, including part of the Vulcan, can be seen at the Żabbar Sanctuary Museum.[9] Some parts of this wing are now in custody of Charlene, who was present and vividly remembers this incident.

The city is very devout, particularly to Our Lady of Grace, to whom the city Sanctuary is dedicated. A vast number of paintings and other artefacts can be found in the Sanctuary Museum, most of which have 'VFGA' in some way or other imprinted on them. This is the Latin abbreviation for Votum Fecit, Gratiam Accipit, meaning that a grace has been asked for and it had been granted due to intercession by the Madonna tal-Grazzja (Our Lady of Grace). The paintings are about marine subjects and give large detail about ships of the Knights of Malta era. The Mattia Preti painting is found in the town's museum.

Parish Church of Our Lady of Grace, Żabbar

The building of the Church of Our Lady of Graces was started in 1641 at the instigation of the Parish Priest Don Francesco Piscopo and was completed around 1718 according to the commemoration plaque of the Consecration by Bishop Vincenzo Labini in 1784. A Maltese proverb says "a church is never finished", which is another way of stating that the people in a particular parish are never satisfied with their own church and, depending on their means, are forever the ambition that the church in one's village be better and bigger than the church in the next parish. The good people of Ħaż-Żabbar are no exception. Largely from the private funds of the Parish Priest Andrea Buhagiar, in addition to money collected from the people of Ħaż-Żabbar, work on embellishing the church was started in 1738. The Maltese architect Giovanni Bonavia redesigned the façade and two belltowers were erected; in addition the church was paved in marble and provided with a crypt. The main painting of the Madonna and Child is a work by the painter Alessio Erardi.

Ħaż-Żabbar hosts a village feast on the first Sunday after 8 September, which features a motorcycle and bicycle pilgrimage each starting from Mosta and Rabat respectively. This is done because Our Lady of Grace is the patron of cyclists. Strong competition exists between the village's two band clubs, Società Filarmonica Maria Mater Gratiæ and Għaqda Madonna Tal-Grazzja Banda San Mikiel.

Another feast celebrated in Ħaż-Żabbar includes St. Michael the Archangel on the third Sunday after 8 September. This feast includes a solemn mass at the Zabbar Sanctuary. During the evening a brass band march is held in the town centre. The band accompanies the statue of St. Michael the Archangel. The most sensational moment during this march is when the statue of St. Michael the Archangel passes in front of the monumental statue of Our Lady of Graces, the patron of Żabbar.

A procession of Our Lady of the Rosary is also held on 7 October.

Ħadd in-Nies or People's Sunday is celebrated on the first Sunday of Lent. An afternoon pilgrimage accompanied by the titular statue, having a different starting point each year, is led by the Archbishop of Malta and ends at the Our Lady of Grace Sanctuary where a pontifical mass is celebrated. Among the celebrations for this feast one can mention the Classical Music Concerts held by the two local band clubs in the Notre Dame Hall.

The Notre Dame Choir is associated with the Parish Church and Sanctuary of Our Lady of Graces. The main purpose of the choir is to take part in the liturgy of the main religious events in the parish.[2][10] The choir also presents concerts throughout the year such as during Lent and the Christmas period.[11][12]

There are two band clubs in Żabbar.

Società Filarmonica Maria Mater Gratiæ organises an annual Holy Week exhibition held inside the club where it is situated. The exhibition, which is named Pesah, consists of a life sized last supper, various models of the passion of the Christ, pictures made out of coloured semolina, a fretwork exhibition and other symbols which transform the whole building in an exhibition.[15]

Għaqda Madonna Tal-Grazzja Banda San Mikiel organises an annual Holy Week exhibition. This exhibition, held inside the World War 2 Shelter in the square where the Għaqda Madonna Tal-Grazzja Banda San Mikiel club is situated, includes life size figures depicting the Passion of Christ.[16]

• Żabbar Sanctuary Museum
• Hompesch Gate
• Mediatrix Place (War Memorial, Hompesch Monument and Mgr. Joseph Zarb Monument)
• Sanctuary Street, named The Most Beautiful Street In Malta in 2020[17]
• Saint James Square
• Fort Leonardo
• Il-Foss football ground
• San Klement Park[18]

• Radju Hompesch (90 FM). Owned by Gordon Caruana in Ħaż-Żabbar.

On the 27th of February 2022, a post was made on the Radju Hompesch Facebook page. The post announced that the radio has shut down its operations after 20 years of broadcasting.[36]

The system of local councils in Malta was set up in 1993.[37] This was commemorated by a set of 4 postage stamps depicting the coats of arms of the local councils.[38] The Żabbar coat of arms can be seen in the top right stamp.

In 1996, the Żabbar Local Council made a request to the Postmaster General to issue a set of stamps to commemorate 200 years of Żabbar having the tile of "Citta". In 1997, a set of 3 stamps depicting the 3 cities connected with Ferdinand von Hompesch (Żabbar, Siġġiewi, and Żejtun) was issued. The Żabbar stamp depicts the Hompesch Gate.[2][39][40]

Ferdinand von Hompesch himself was depicted on a postage stamp issued in 1998.[41]

In 2019, the titular statue of Our Lady of Grace was depicted on a stamp that was part of the Maltese Festa series.[42]

1993 Local Councils Stamp Set[38]	1997 Żabbar Postage Stamp[40]	1998 Ferdinand von Hompesch Postage Stamp[41]
All stamps as exhibited at the Malta Postal Museum