Triq il-Wiesgħa Tower ( mt, Torri ta' Triq il-Wiesgħa), originally known as ''Torre della Giddida'' and also called Mwejġel Tower ( mt, Torri ta' Mwejġel or ), is a small

watchtower A watchtower or watch tower is a type of fortification used in many parts of the world. It differs from a regular tower in that its primary use is military and from a turret in that it is usually a freestanding structure. Its main purpose is to ...

near

Żabbar Żabbar ( mt, Ħaż-Żabbar, ), also known as Città Hompesch, is a city in the South Eastern Region of Malta. It is the sixth largest city in the country, with a population of 15,404 as of March 2014. Originally a part of Żejtun, Żabbar was gr ...

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 in 1659 as the ninth of the

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 ...

. The tower suffered extensive damage in the 20th century, with parts of the structure being demolished, but it was restored between 2008 and 2009 and it is now in good condition.

History

Triq il-Wiesgħa Tower was built in 1659 on the shore east of the

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, a ...

. Its name means "Wide Street", because of the wide stretch of coastline it had to defend. It follows the standard design of the

, having a square plan with two floors and a turret on the roof. Triq il-Wiesgħa Tower had

Santa Maria delle Grazie Tower Santa Maria delle Grazie Tower ( mt, Torri ta' Santa Marija tal-Grazzja), also known as Delle Grazie Tower ( mt, Torri tal-Grazzja), Madonna delle Gratie Tower ( mt, Torri tal-Madonna tal-Grazzja) or Blata Bajda Tower ( mt, Torri tal-Blata l-Bajd ...

in its line of sight to the west, and Żonqor Tower to the east, but these no longer exist as they were both demolished by the British military. In the 1870s, Fort Leonardo was built about away from the tower. The fort was on high ground and Triq il-Wiesgħa Tower did not fall in its line of fire. Had the tower fell within the line of fire, it would have most probably been demolished, as was done in other cases such as

Delimara Tower Delimara Tower ( mt, Torri ta' Delimara), originally known as ''Torre della Limara'', was a small watchtower on the Delimara Peninsula, in the limits of Marsaxlokk, Malta. It was built in 1659 as the tenth De Redin tower, and an artillery bat ...

and Bengħisa Tower, which were demolished to clear the lines of fire of

Fort Delimara Fort Delimara ( mt, Il-Fortizza ta' Delimara) is a polygonal fort in Marsaxlokk, Malta. It was built between 1876 and 1888 by the British as part of a chain of fortifications intended to protect Marsaxlokk Harbour. Today, the fort is still intact ...

and

Fort Benghisa Fort Benghisa ( mt, Il-Fortizza ta' Bengħisa) is a polygonal fort in Birżebbuġa, Malta. It was built between 1910 and 1912 by the British on high ground on the seaward face of Benghisa Point, the southern arm of Marsaxlokk Bay. It is the south ...

respectively. Towers and pillboxes in Marsascala

By the early 20th century, the rear part of the tower had collapsed and the tower was in ruins, but it was restored in the 1930s. The tower's parapet and turret were removed in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, and pillboxes were built in its vicinity. The tower was further damaged when an aircraft crashed nearby.

Present day

After the war, the tower fell again into a state of disrepair, with part of its foundations having collapsed. In 2004, it was handed to Fondazzjoni Wirt Artna. Restoration began four years later in September 2008, and was complete by March 2009. During the restoration, the features removed during World War II were also rebuilt.

References

External links

National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands
{{DEFAULTSORT:Triq il-Wiesgha Tower De Redin towers Towers completed in 1659 Żabbar National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands 1659 establishments in Malta

History

Present day

Further reading

References

External links