Qbajjar Bay () is a small

bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a ''gulf'', ''sea'', ''sound'', or ''bight''. A ''cove'' is a small, ci ...

near

Marsalforn Marsalforn (Pronounced: ''Mars al-Forn, , '' Maltese language, Maltese: ''Marsalforn''), also written as M'Forn for shortcut purposes, is a town on the north coast of Gozo, the second largest island of the Malta, Maltese archipelago. The t ...

, in the limits of

Żebbuġ Żebbuġ ( ), also known by its title Città Rohan, is a city in the Western Region of Malta. It is one of the oldest towns in the country, and its population is 11,074 as of June 2021. History and origins The parish church is dedicated to P ...

on the island of

Gozo Gozo ( ), known in classical antiquity, antiquity as Gaulos, is an island in the Malta#The Maltese archipelago, Maltese archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea. The island is part of the Republic of Malta. After the Malta Island, island of Malta ...

Malta Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...

. This small bay is part of Marsalforn. It is located between

Xwejni Bay Xwejni Bay () is a bay located in the northern part of Gozo, Malta, within the limits of the village of Żebbuġ. It is used as a bathing bay and starting point for divers. The nearest place on the coast is Marsalforn. The bay has a small pebbly b ...

to the west, and Marsalforn Bay to the east. The 18th century

Qolla l-Bajda Battery Qolla l-Bajda Battery ( or ) is an artillery battery in Żebbuġ, Gozo, Malta. It was built by the Order of Saint John in 1715 and 1716 as one of a series of coastal fortifications around the coasts of the Maltese Islands. It retained its origin ...

, one of the few surviving coastal fortifications in Gozo, is located between Qbajjar and Xwejni, on a promontory known as ''il-Ponta tat-Torri''. The bay, also has a few salt pans, where locals collect

salt In common usage, salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl). When used in food, especially in granulated form, it is more formally called table salt. In the form of a natural crystalline mineral, salt is also known as r ...

History

The Qolla Il-Bajda Battery

The

, also known as the Qbajjar Battery, is one of the many defensive structures built in the

Hospitaller The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem, commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), is a Catholic military order. It was founded in the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem in the 12th century and had headquarters there u ...

period, and continued to be used by

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

and

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. When it was originally built, it was made up of two blockhouses, a gun platform, a parapet and a small ditch. These enabled it to provide defense against invading forces. The blockhouses had small gun-holes, in case of an attack from land. Now, this historic monument lies abandoned. Qbajjar

The ''"Qolliet"''

The two Hillocks are one of the most visible geographical features in Marsalforn. One being in the yellowish color and the other in whitish. These translate to ''qolla is-safra'' (the yellow hillock) and ''the qolla il-bajda'' (the white hillock). The battery's name comes from the white hillock as they are within of each other.

List of locations

* The Qolla il-Bajda Battery * Some apartments for rent * A few Saltpans * Some restaurants * The bay itself. * Some residential buildings surrounding the bay. * Some Diving locations *''Qolla Il-Bajda'' *''Qolla Is-Safra'' Il-Qolla s-Safra - panoramio

References

{{Reflist Bays of Malta Żebbuġ, Gozo