Wolseley Battery ( mt, Batterija ta' Wolseley) 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 ...

in Delimara,

Marsaxlokk Marsaxlokk () is a small, traditional fishing village in the South Eastern Region of Malta. It has a harbour, and is a tourist attraction known for its views, fishermen and history. As at March 2014, the village had a population of 3,534. The ...

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

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

between 1897 and 1899, and is located close to Fort Tas-Silġ. Today, the battery still exists, but it is not accessible to the public.

History

The Wolseley Battery is nicknamed by locals as ''Tal-Basal'', meaning "of the onions". It was built between 1897 and 1899 to defend the area stretching from Delimara Point to Xrobb l-Għaġin. It formed part of a new series of fortifications meant to house breech-loading (BL) guns. The 18th century Tombrell Battery was demolished in the 19th century to clear Wolseley Battery's line of fire. The battery has an oval plan with four gun emplacements, which originally contained two 9.2 inch and two

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BL guns. The gun emplacements are surrounded by a shallow ditch, which was originally defended by

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entanglements. The rear of the battery was sealed off by an iron fence. The battery also had

machine gun A machine gun is a fully automatic, rifled autoloading firearm designed for sustained direct fire with rifle cartridges. Other automatic firearms such as automatic shotguns and automatic rifles (including assault rifles and battle rifles) a ...

emplacements, and it was the first fortification in Malta to have these features. Wolseley Battery became obsolete by 1906, and its 6-inch guns were transferred to the newly built

Wardija Battery Wardija Battery ( mt, Batterija tal-Wardija) was an artillery battery in Wardija, a hilltop in the limits of St. Paul's Bay, on the northern coast of Malta. It was built by the British in 1915, and saw use during World War I. It became obsolete ...

near St. Paul's Bay in 1915. The battery was fully decommissioned a year later in 1916. A stone-clad

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was built behind the officers' quarters in the 1930s.

Present day

Today, the battery still exists, but there is no public access since it is private property. It is located close to the

Delimara Power Station The Delimara power station is located near Marsaxlokk in the southeast of Malta and is the newest power plant in Malta. It was put into operation in 1992 and redeveloped in the 2010s. Setup The Delimara Power Station includes four electricit ...

. In 2015, the battery was shortlisted as a possible site for the campus of the proposed American University of Malta. It was not chosen, and the campus was split up between Dock No. 1 in

Cospicua Cospicua ( mt, Bormla ), also known by its titles Città Cospicua or Civitas Cottonera, is a double-fortified harbour city in the South Eastern Region of Malta. Along with Birgu and Senglea, it is one of the Three Cities, located within the Grand ...

and Żonqor Point in

Marsaskala Marsaskala ( mt, Wied il-Għajn), also written as Marsascala and abbreviated as M'Skala, is a seaside town in the South Eastern Region of Malta which has grown around the small harbour at the head of Marsaskala Bay, a long, narrow inlet also know ...

References

Marsaxlokk British fortifications in Malta Batteries in Malta Military installations established in 1899 Military installations closed in 1916 19th-century fortifications {{Malta-struct-stub