The Keep Military Museum in Dorchester will be hosting a special evening on the 13th November 2026 from 18:30-21:00.

The event will be held at the Dorchester Army Reserve Centre and will include a drinks reception followed by a special talk on the Devonshire and The Dorsetshire Regiment during the Siege of Malta. It will be hosted and presented by author and military historian Christopher Jary and battlefield guide and military historian Lt Col James Porter.

The Siege of Malta

Seventeen miles long by eight wide, tiny Malta (with her small garrison and her civilian population of 250,000) arguably contributed more to the defeat of Mussolini and Hitler than all the countries of Continental Europe put together.

Malta’s position sixty miles south of Sicily and two hundred miles north of Libya left her open to relentless bombing by the Italian and German air forces and vulnerable to invasion.  But it also enabled her to make a unique contribution to Allied success in the Mediterranean by providing a base for bombers, torpedo bombers, submarines and surface ships which could attack and sink large numbers of enemy ships supplying and reinforcing Rommel’s forces in North Africa.

Christopher Jary and James Porter will tell the proud story of the Second Siege of Malta (1940-43), describing the experiences of the men of the 2nd Devons, 1st Hampshires and 1st Dorsets who were brigaded together in the 1st Malta Brigade (later 231 Malta Brigade).  The story will be told against the backdrop of the air and sea battles which enabled the gallant people of Malta and their garrison – by the skin of their teeth! – to hold out and continue the fight.  Theirs is a story of hardship, starvation, endurance and selfless courage.

Places for this event will be strictly limited, so all tickets are sold on a first come, first served basis. All proceeds from the evening will go to support The Keep Military Museum, a registered charity devoted to the military history of the counties of Devon and Dorset.

The venue – the Dorchester Army Reserve Centre – is on Poundbury Road, Dorchester DT1 1TA. The Top O’Town car park is a couple of minutes’ walk away and free of charge from 6pm. The drinks reception will start at 6.30pm, followed by the talk at 7pm.

Our Speakers

Christopher Jary has written twelve books, including one about RAF Bomber Command and eight about the Hampshire, Devonshire and Dorsetshire Regiments. His 231 Malta Brigade Trilogy tells the story of the 2nd Devons, 1st Hampshires and 1st Dorsets in Malta, Sicily & Italy, and on D-Day. So Red a Road, tells the story of 130 Brigade (the 7th Hampshires and 4th & 5th Dorsets) from Normandy to Bremen and includes the Arnhem battle. His father, Sydney, fought as a subaltern in the 4th Somerset Light Infantry at Arnhem and won the Military Cross a month later.

James Porter was commissioned into The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers, commanded 5 RRF and served for a total of 41 years, the last 8 as Commander Defence Training Estates South West. He delivers a large range of talks on military history subjects, is the founder of the Wessex Military History group and is a battlefield guide. The son of a distinguished Devon officer, Roly, who served in Malta and Sicily and won the Military Cross in Italy. James played a major part in producing Roy’s Boys, Christopher Jary’s book on Sicily.

Purchase Your Ticket HERE

Tickets cost £15 per person and includes the following:

· Admission to the talk on the Devonshire and the Dorsetshire Regiment at the Siege of Malta

· Complimentary drink

Keep Friends and current museum volunteers enjoy a 10% discount on the ticket price.