Vendôme Battery ( mt, Batterija ta' Vendôme), also known as Ta' Maċċu Battery ( mt, Batterija ta' Maċċu), is an

artillery battery In military organizations, an artillery battery is a unit or multiple systems of artillery, mortar systems, rocket artillery, multiple rocket launchers, surface-to-surface missiles, ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, etc., so grouped to fac ...

near

Armier Bay Armier Bay (in Maltese: ''Bajjet l-Armier''), is situated in the locality of Mellieħa, Malta. Armier Bay consists of two beaches, the biggest beach is known as Armier and the other one as Little Armier. The sea of this bay is crystal blue, like ...

, limits of

Mellieħa Mellieħa ( mt, il-Mellieħa ) is a large village in the Northern Region of Malta. It has a population of 10,087 as of March 2014. Mellieħa is also a tourist resort, popular for its sandy beaches and natural environment. Etymology The name ''M ...

, Malta. 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.

History

Vendôme Battery was built in 1715–1716 as part of the first building programme of coastal batteries in Malta. It was part of a chain of fortifications that defended the northern coast of Malta, which also included

Aħrax Tower Aħrax Tower ( mt, Torri tal-Aħrax), originally known as ''Torre di Lacras'', and also known as Armier Tower ( mt, Torri tal-Armier), Ta' Ħoslien Tower ( mt, Torri ta' Ħoslien) or the White Tower ( mt, Torri l-Abjad), is a small watchtower over ...

, several batteries, redoubts and entrenchments. The nearest fortifications to Vendôme Battery are

Qortin Redoubt Qortin Redoubt ( mt, Ridott tal-Qortin), also known as Eskalar Redoubt ( mt, Ridott t'Eskalar), is a redoubt in the limits of Mellieħa, Malta. It was built by the Order of Saint John in 1715–1716 as one of a series of coastal fortifications aro ...

to the west and

Crivelli Redoubt Crivelli Redoubt ( mt, Ridott ta' Crivelli), also known as Barriera Redoubt ( mt, Ridott tal-Barriera) or Armier Redoubt ( mt, Ridott tal-Armier), is a redoubt in Armier Bay, Mellieħa, Malta. It was built by the Order of Saint John in 1715–171 ...

to the east. The battery was named after

Philippe de Vendôme Philippe is a masculine sometimes feminin given name, cognate to Philip. It may refer to: * Philippe of Belgium (born 1960), King of the Belgians (2013–present) * Philippe (footballer) (born 2000), Brazilian footballer * Prince Philippe, Count ...

, the Prior of France, who donated 40,000 scudi to construct batteries and redoubts around Malta's coastline. Several other fortifications were named after Vendôme, including a ''tour-reduit'' in Marsaxlokk and a number of redoubts. Vendôme Battery was one of the largest batteries to be built in Malta. It has a semi-circular gun platform, having a parapet with nine embrasures. A

blockhouse A blockhouse is a small fortification, usually consisting of one or more rooms with loopholes, allowing its defenders to fire in various directions. It is usually an isolated fort in the form of a single building, serving as a defensive stro ...

is located at the centre of the battery, and its land front contains a large

redan Redan (a French word for "projection", "salient") is a feature of fortifications. It is a work in a V-shaped salient angle towards an expected attack. It can be made from earthworks or other material. The redan developed from the lunette, ...

. The entire structure is surrounded by a ditch and glacis. The battery was armed with five 8-pounder and four 12-pounder iron guns in 1785. Later on,

mortars Mortar may refer to: * Mortar (weapon), an indirect-fire infantry weapon * Mortar (masonry), a material used to fill the gaps between blocks and bind them together * Mortar and pestle, a tool pair used to crush or grind * Mortar, Bihar, a village i ...

were also installed in the battery.

Present day

Today, Vendôme Battery is still mostly intact, but is in a state of neglect. Its ditch is filled with soil and used to grow vegetables, while its walls are in a dilapidated state. Some stonework has been illegally removed to be used in the construction of nearby illegally built

boathouses A boathouse (or a boat house) is a building especially designed for the storage of boats, normally smaller craft for sports or leisure use. describing the facilities These are typically located on open water, such as on a river. Often the boats ...

, which have also damaged the battery's relationship with the sea.

References

External links

National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vendome Battery Batteries in Malta Hospitaller fortifications in Malta Military installations established in 1715 Mellieħa Limestone buildings in Malta National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands 18th-century fortifications 1715 establishments in Malta 18th Century military history of Malta