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Fortifications Of Malta
The fortifications of Malta consist of a number of walled cities, citadels, forts, towers, batteries, redoubts, entrenchments and pillboxes. The fortifications were built over thousands of years, from around 1450 BC to the mid-20th century, and they are a result of the Maltese islands' strategic position and natural harbours, which have made them very desirable for various powers. The earliest known fortifications in Malta are defensive walls built around Bronze Age settlements. The Phoenicians, Romans and Byzantines built a number of defensive walls around important settlements, but very little remains of these survive today. By the late medieval period, the main fortifications on Malta were the capital Mdina, the Cittadella on Gozo, the Castrum Maris and a few coastal towers or lookout posts. The fortifications of Malta were greatly improved while the islands were ruled by the Order of St. John between 1530 and 1798. The Hospitallers built new bastioned fortifications, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
History Of Malta Under The Order Of Saint John
Hospitaller Malta, officially the Monastic State of the Order of Malta, and known within Maltese history as the Knights' Period ( mt, Żmien il-Kavallieri, "Time of the Knights"), was a polity which existed between 1530 and 1798 when the Mediterranean islands of Malta and Gozo were ruled by the Order of St. John of Jerusalem. It was formally a vassal state of the Kingdom of Sicily, and it came into being when Emperor Charles V granted the islands as well as the city of Tripoli in modern Libya to the Order, following the latter's loss of Rhodes in 1522. Hospitaller Tripoli was lost to the Ottoman Empire in 1551, but an Ottoman attempt to take Malta in 1565 failed. Following the 1565 siege, the Order decided to settle permanently in Malta and began to construct a new capital city, Valletta. For the next two centuries, Malta went through a Golden Age, characterized by a flourishing of the arts, architecture, and an overall improvement in Maltese society. In the mid-17th century ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Valletta
Valletta (, mt, il-Belt Valletta, ) is an administrative unit and capital of Malta. Located on the main island, between Marsamxett Harbour to the west and the Grand Harbour to the east, its population within administrative limits in 2014 was 6,444. According to the data from 2020 by Eurostat, the Functional Urban Area and metropolitan region covered the whole island and has a population of 480,134. Valletta is the southernmost capital of Europe, and at just , it is the European Union's smallest capital city. Valletta's 16th-century buildings were constructed by the Knights Hospitaller. The city was named after Jean Parisot de Valette, who succeeded in defending the island from an Ottoman invasion during the Great Siege of Malta. The city is Baroque in character, with elements of Mannerist, Neo-Classical and Modern architecture, though the Second World War left major scars on the city, particularly the destruction of the Royal Opera House. The city was officially recogn ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Royal Engineers
The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is headed by the Chief Royal Engineer. The Regimental Headquarters and the Royal School of Military Engineering are in Chatham in Kent, England. The corps is divided into several regiments, barracked at various places in the United Kingdom and around the world. History The Royal Engineers trace their origins back to the military engineers brought to England by William the Conqueror, specifically Bishop Gundulf of Rochester Cathedral, and claim over 900 years of unbroken service to the crown. Engineers have always served in the armies of the Crown; however, the origins of the modern corps, along with those of the Royal Artillery, lie in the Board of Ordnance established in the 15th century. In Woolwich in 1716, the Board formed the Royal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Whitworth Porter
Whitworth Porter (1827–1892) was an English Major General of the Royal Engineers, known also as a historical writer. Life The second son of Henry Porter, of Winslade House, South Devon, he was born at Winslade, near Exeter, on 25 September 1827; his mother was Rose Aylmer, youngest daughter of Sir Henry Russell, 1st Baronet. Porter entered the Royal Military Academy at Woolwich on 14 November 1842, obtained a commission as second lieutenant in the Royal Engineers on 18 December 1845, and was promoted first lieutenant on 1 April 1846. After passing through the usual course of professional instruction at Chatham, Porter embarked for Dominica in the West Indies on 13 December 1847, having married the preceding October. He returned home from Dominica in March 1850, and was stationed at Limerick. He was promoted second captain on 3 January 1855. On 20 December 1853 he embarked for Malta, but in February 1855 was sent on active service to the Crimean War. He served in the trenches ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fort Campbell (Malta)
Fort Campbell ( mt, Forti Campbell or ), also known locally as ''Il-Fortizza ta' Selmun'', is a former fort in Mellieħa, Malta. It was built by the British between 1937 and 1938. It is notable as the most important fortification north of the Victoria Lines, and the last major fortification to be built in Malta. Today, it lies in ruins. History Fort Campbell is located on the Selmun peninsula, roughly halfway between Mistra Battery and the ruins of Għajn Ħadid Tower, and facing St Paul's Islands. It was built to protect the approach to both Mellieħa Bay and St. Paul's Bay. It also protected British seaplanes which landed in Mistra Bay. The fort took over the role of Wardija Battery, which had been built in 1915. Before construction of the fort began, Governor Charles Bonham-Carter visited the site. Work on the fort probably began in December 1937, and work was hurried after the Munich Agreement of September 1938. The fort was modified throughout the course of World War II ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Victoria Lines
The Victoria Lines, originally known as the North West Front, are a line of fortifications that spans 12 kilometres along the width of Malta, dividing the north of the island from the more heavily populated south. Location The Victoria Lines run along a natural geographical barrier known as the Great Fault, from Madliena in the east, through the limits of the town of Mosta in the centre of the island, to Binġemma and the limits of Rabat, on the west coast. The complex network of linear fortifications known collectively as the Victoria Lines, that cut across the width of the island north of the old capital of Mdina, was a unique monument of military architecture. Background When built by the British military in the late 19th century, the line was designed to present a physical barrier to invading forces landing in the north of Malta, intent on attacking the harbour installations, so vital for the maintenance of the British fleet, their source of power in the Mediterranean. Alt ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Polygonal Fort
A polygonal fort is a type of fortification originating in France in the late 18th century and fully developed in Germany in the first half of the 19th century. Unlike earlier forts, polygonal forts had no bastions, which had proved to be vulnerable. As part of ring fortresses, polygonal forts were generally arranged in a ring around the place they were intended to protect, so that each fort could support its neighbours. The concept of the polygonal fort proved to be adaptable to improvements in the artillery which might be used against them, and they continued to be built and rebuilt well into the 20th century. Bastion system deficiencies The bastion system of fortification had dominated military thinking since its introduction in 16th century Italy, until the first decades of the 19th century. The French engineer Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban, also devised an effective method to defeat them. Before Vauban, besiegers had driven a sap towards the fort, until they reached the g ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
British Empire
The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts established by England between the late 16th and early 18th centuries. At its height it was the largest empire in history and, for over a century, was the foremost global power. By 1913, the British Empire held sway over 412 million people, of the world population at the time, and by 1920, it covered , of the Earth's total land area. As a result, its constitutional, legal, linguistic, and cultural legacy is widespread. At the peak of its power, it was described as " the empire on which the sun never sets", as the Sun was always shining on at least one of its territories. During the Age of Discovery in the 15th and 16th centuries, Portugal and Spain pioneered European exploration of the globe, and in the process established larg ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
French Occupation Of Malta
The French occupation of Malta lasted from 1798 to 1800. It was established when the Order of Saint John surrendered to Napoleon Bonaparte following the French landing in June 1798. In Malta, the French established a constitutional tradition in Maltese history (as part of the French Republic), granted free education for all, and theoretically established freedom of the press, although only the pro-French newspaper ''Journal de Malte'' was actually published during the occupation. The French abolished nobility, slavery, the feudal system, and the inquisition. The only remaining architectural reminder of the French occupation is probably the defacement of most coats of arms on the façades of buildings of the knights. The Maltese soon rebelled against the French and drove the French garrison into Valletta and the Grand Harbour fortifications where they were besieged for more than two years. The French surrendered Malta when their food supplies were about to run out. French invas ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marsamxett Harbour
Marsamxett Harbour (), historically also referred to as Marsamuscetto, is a natural harbour on the island of Malta. It is located to the north of the larger Grand Harbour. The harbour is generally more dedicated to leisure use than the Grand Harbour. Description The harbour mouth faces north east and is bounded to the north by Dragut Point and Tigné Point. Its northwest shore is made up of the towns of Sliema, Gżira and Ta' Xbiex. The harbour then extends inland to Pietà and Msida. Off Gżira lies Manoel Island, now connected to the mainland by a bridge. The south eastern shore of the harbour is formed by the Sciberras peninsula, which is largely covered by the town of Floriana and the city of Valletta. At its tip lies the 16th century Fort Saint Elmo. The Sciberras peninsula divides Marsamxett from the larger parallel natural harbour, Grand Harbour. Along its partner the Grand Harbour, Marsamxett lies at the centre of gently rising ground. Development has grown up all ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Grand Harbour
The Grand Harbour ( mt, il-Port il-Kbir; it, Porto Grande), also known as the Port of Valletta, is a natural harbour on the island of Malta. It has been substantially modified over the years with extensive docks ( Malta Dockyard), wharves, and fortifications. Description The harbour mouth faces north east and is bounded to the north by Saint Elmo Point and further sheltered by an isolated breakwater and is bounded to the south by Ricasoli Point. Its north west shore is formed by the Sciberras peninsula, which is largely covered by the city of Valletta and its suburb Floriana. This peninsula also divides Grand Harbour from a second parallel natural harbour, Marsamxett Harbour. The main waterway of Grand Harbour continues inland almost to Marsa. The southeastern shore of the harbour is formed by a number of inlets and headlands, principally Rinella Creek, Kalkara Creek, Dockyard Creek, and French Creek, which are covered by Kalkara and the Three Cities: Cospicua, Vit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
