Professor Carmen Depasquale, a former Head of the Department of French at the University of Malta, obtained her doctorate from Sorbonne University (ex-Paris IV) with distinction. Her main areas of interest include works on French Knights of Malta, French travel literature on Malta and French writers of Maltese origin. She has authored books, among them, La Vie intellectuelle et culturelle des chevaliers français à Malte au XVIIIe siècle prefaced by Sorbonne Professor François Moureau, and numerous articles in peer-reviewed journals. She read papers at conferences, given public lectures in Malta and abroad and has been a guest lecturer at several European universities. She is a member of several academic societies. She was awarded the distinction of Officier dans l’Ordre des Palmes académiques by the French Government in recognition of her contribution towards French culture.