French occupation and the Maltese siege of Valletta

The third siege reverses the usual picture: French occupiers held Valletta while Maltese forces led by Emmanuel Vitale and Canon Francesco Saverio Caruana pressed them from the landward side and an Anglo-Portuguese fleet constrained them from the sea. The uprising is linked to French interference with Catholic institutions and the seizure of church property to finance the Egyptian expedition. Local institutions that might tolerate outside authority can become the basis of resistance when an occupier attacks them. Roughly 10,000 Maltese personnel surrounded a French garrison initially numbering about 6,000 to 7,000. An estimated 20,000 Maltese civilians died of disease during the siege, far exceeding the roughly 300 official Maltese combat casualties cited. Local forces, Portuguese ships, and British naval support steadily reduced the French position.