Xlendi Tower ( mt, Torri tax-Xlendi) 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

Xlendi Xlendi is an urban village in Malta situated in the south west of the island of Gozo. It is surrounded by the villages of Munxar, Fontana and Kerċem. The village is administered by Munxar, but has its own coat of arms and motto. From March 2010 ...

Bay, within the limits of

Munxar Munxar ( mt, Il-Munxar) is an administrative unit of Malta, which lies on the southern side of island of Gozo. As of March 2014, its population was 1,454 people. Close by to this village, there is Xlendi Bay, a popular tourist resort engulfe ...

on the island of

Gozo Gozo (, ), Maltese: ''Għawdex'' () and in antiquity known as Gaulos ( xpu, 𐤂𐤅𐤋, ; grc, Γαῦλος, Gaúlos), is an island in the Maltese archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea. The island is part of the Republic of Malta. After t ...

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 ...

. The tower is one of the

Lascaris towers The Laskaris or Lascaris ( el, Λάσκαρις, later Λάσκαρης) family was a Byzantine Greek noble family whose members formed the ruling dynasty of the Empire of Nicaea from 1204 to 1261 and remained among the senior nobility up to the d ...

and dates to 1650; it is currently undergoing restoration. It is the oldest of the four surviving watchtowers on Gozo. The earlier Garzes and Marsalforn towers were destroyed in the 18th and 19th centuries.

History

Xlendi Tower was proposed in 1649 by the Baliff Baldassare de Demandolx. Construction began soon after, and it was complete by June 1650. The Università of Gozo paid the cost of construction. The tower is rectangular and its design is similar to that of the earlier

on Malta. Unlike the earlier Lascaris towers, Xlendi Tower has an additional platform with a slope to its base on the seaward side. It has a flat roof, where guns were mounted. Initially it held two 6-pounder guns, which were later replaced by two 4-pounder guns. Entrance to the tower is via an external flight of stairs that connects to the only doorway, which is situated on the second floor. Originally, the tower was under the command of a ''Capomastro'', assisted by a bombardier, and an ''Aggiutante'', all of whom were paid by the Università. At night, three men manned the tower. Salt pans are located close to the tower. By 1681 it was already in poor condition, needing renovation. During the British era the tower became the responsibility of the

Royal Malta Fencible Regiment The Royal Malta Fencible Regiment was an infantry battalion of the British Army which existed from 1815 to 1861 in Malta, then a British colony. The regiment was recruited and organised by Francesco Rivarola in 1815; Rivarola had proved himself ...

(1815–1861), which became the Royal Malta

Fencible The Fencibles (from the word ''defencible'') were British regiments raised in the United Kingdom, Isle of Man and in the colonies for defence against the threat of invasion during the Seven Years' War, the American War of Independence, the Frenc ...

Artillery (1861–81). When the Fencible Artillery was relieved of its coastal watch duties in 1873, the tower was abandoned. During

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 opposin ...

, the Coast Police manned the tower as an observation post. In 1954 the tower was leased to private persons but eventually it was abandoned.

Present day

The tower was handed to the Munxar Local Council and

Din l-Art Ħelwa () is a non-governmental and non-profit, voluntary organisation founded in 1965 by Maltese Judge Maurice Caruana Curran to safeguard Malta's cultural heritage and natural environment. Since its foundation, Din l-Art Ħelwa has restored numerous ...

in October 2009. They are restoring the tower, while sharing the expenses equally.

References

Notes

External links

National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands
{{Historic Watch Towers of Malta Lascaris towers Towers completed in 1650 Munxar National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands 1650 establishments in Malta