Fresnoy Redoubt ( mt, Ridott ta' Fresnoy), also known as Kalafrana Redoubt ( mt, Ridott ta' Kalafrana), was a '' tour-reduit'' in

Birżebbuġa Birżebbuġa (; sometimes shortened to B'Buġa) is a seaside town in the Southern Region of Malta, close to Marsaxlokk. It is approximately from the capital Valletta, and it has a population of 9,736 as of March 2014. The town is popular amon ...

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

. It was built by the

Order of Saint John The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem ( la, Ordo Fratrum Hospitalis Sancti Ioannis Hierosolymitani), commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), was a medieval and early modern Catholic military order. It was headq ...

in 1715–1716 as one of a series of coastal fortifications around the Maltese Islands. It was demolished in 1897.

History

Fresnoy Redoubt was built in 1715–1716 as part of a chain of fortifications that defended Marsaxlokk Bay, which also included three other redoubts, the large Saint Lucian Tower, two smaller

De Redin towers The De Redin Towers ( mt, Torrijiet ta' De Redin) are a series of small coastal watchtowers built in Malta by the Order of Saint John between 1658 and 1659. Thirteen towers were built around the coast of mainland Malta, eight of which still surv ...

, seven batteries and three entrenchments. The nearest fortifications to Fresnoy Redoubt were

Elminiech Battery Elminiech Battery ( mt, Batterija t'Elminiech, corrupted into Batterija ta' Mnieħ), also known as Figuella Battery ( mt, Batterija ta' Figuella), San Raimondo Battery ( mt, Batterija ta' San Raimond) or Oitelboura Battery, was an artillery batte ...

to the west and

Balbani Battery Balbani Battery ( mt, Batterija ta' Balbani), also known as Bengħisa Battery ( mt, Batterija ta' Bengħisa) or Saint Catherine's Battery ( mt, Batterija ta' Santa Katarina), was an artillery battery in Birżebbuġa, Malta. It was built by the O ...

to the east. Fresnoy Redoubt was one of four ''tour-reduits'' built in Malta, with the other three being

Spinola Redoubt Spinola Redoubt ( mt, Ridott ta' Spinola), also known as Birżebbuġa Redoubt ( mt, Ridott ta' Birżebbuġa), was a '' tour-reduit'' in Birżebbuġa, Malta. It was built by the Order of Saint John in 1715–1716 as one of a series of coastal forti ...

Vendôme Tower Vendôme Tower ( mt, Torri Vendôme, colloquially ''Torri tal-Vandomu'') is a '' tour-reduit'' in Marsaxlokk, Malta. It was built by the Order of Saint John in 1715 as one of a series of coastal fortifications around the coasts of the Maltese I ...

and

Marsalforn Tower Marsalforn Tower ( mt, Torri ta' Marsalforn) refers to two towers that stood near Marsalforn, in the limits of Xagħra, Gozo, Malta. The first one was built in 1616, as the fourth of six Wignacourt towers, and collapsed in around 1715. The second ...

. It had a semi-circular front, and a redan on the landward side, all of which were pierced by musketry loopholes. The redoubt was demolished by an order given by the Public Works Department on 22 February 1897. Its site is now occupied by part of the

Malta Freeport Malta Freeport (Maltese: ''Il-Port Ħieles'') is an international port on the island of Malta with a trade volume of 3.06 million TEUs in 2015.

. Other sources say it is occupied by Villa Pisana.https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/bitstream/123456789/54205/1/Batterji%20u%20Ridotti%20%282%29.pdf

References

Redoubts in Malta Fortified towers in Malta Hospitaller fortifications in Malta Military installations established in 1715 Buildings and structures demolished in 1897 Demolished buildings and structures in Malta Birżebbuġa Limestone buildings in Malta 18th-century fortifications 1715 establishments in Malta 1897 disestablishments in Malta 18th Century military history of Malta {{Malta-geo-stub