Sir <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Maitland_(British_Army_officer)" id="mwMw" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="Thomas Maitland (British Army officer)">Thomas Maitland</a> is appointed as the first <a class="mw-redirect" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Governors_of_Malta" id="mwNA" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="List of Governors of Malta">Governor of Malta</a>, transforming the island from a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malta_Protectorate" id="mwNQ" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="Malta Protectorate">British protectorate</a> to a <i id="mwNg">de facto</i> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crown_Colony_of_Malta" id="mwNw" rel="mw:WikiLink" title="Crown Colony of Malta">colony</a>.