Swimming pool goes in emergency works on crumbling Fort St Angelo

The incongruous swimming pool perched on the bastions of Vittoriosa’s Fort St Angelo – a scar from the 1980s on the “unpolished gem” – has been eradicated as part of delicate emergency work that is under way.

Since Heritage Malta embarked on the project in June, following the awarding of tenders, other unstable eyesores have been removed, including a water tank on the cracked bastions, which stuck out like a sore thumb.

The removal of the pool was complicated due to the possibility of the bastions’ collapse, said conservation architect Ruben Abela from Heritage Malta, during a tour of the neglected site and the works that are being carried out to restore it to its former dignity. Trial trenches will be dug to understand what lies beneath and plan how to use the space freed up, Mr Abela said.

Complex works on the entrance to restore the vaulted ceiling from the time of the Knights of the Order of St John are also in hand. It was the target of a direct hit during World War II, leaving a crater, which the English shored up with concrete and metal beams.

With time and corrosion, these have had damaging effects on the stone structure, leading to a state of danger, explained Mr Abela. The remedial work of the English was being removed, mostly manually – about 700 cubic metres of material were discarded – following which a tender would be issued to reconstruct the stable roof of pre-war times.

Fort St Angelo’s main gate is also due to be completely restored – the last time it was touched was in the 1930s, but the stone used was of inferior quality and has deteriorated, requiring drastic intervention. Mr Abela said the tenders have been issued but were delayed due to an appeal.

Government funding of €1.5 million is being used to tackle the emergency works but it is hoped that a favourable answer to a European Regional Development Fund application, to the tune of around €16 million, will be received by the end of October to be used to transform the fort into an interpretation and visitors’ attraction.

It has been decided that the aim is to retain as much as possible of what dates back to 1979 – until which time the fort had the same military purpose, Mr Abela explained, adding that the water tank, which had structural problems, was an exception.

Heritage Malta senior curator Godwin Vella stressed on the importance of studying the site, saying the works had to be carried out in sequence and not simultaneously. Investigations were required to plan the next stage as every intervention could have repercussions on another area.

Research was a vital aspect of the project and it was important that the fabric was not damaged and information lost, he said, adding that, “in reality, we know little of its history”.

Even the backfill of the bastions proved interesting, offering a one-off chance to document and understand construction techniques of the past, Mr Vella said.

Excavation and fieldwork were also being carried out to better understand the site, he said, envisaging a number of “surprises” in the form of fortifications that even predate the Knights. Fort St Angelo was originally mediaeval and grew to reflect developments, taking its known shape in the 1690s, he said, pointing out that one of the major outcomes of the works under way would be the multi-layered aspect of the site and an appreciation of its development over time.

Land Parliamentary Secretary Jason Azzopardi, who yesterday visited the site with his tourism counterpart, Mario de Marco, referred to the coordinated work on the “unpolished diamond” as the first historic, serious and professional intervention in decades. Dr de Marco said the time had come to prioritise the country’s historical heritage which, in the past, had been neglected.

From the tourism point of view, he said year-round success could be achieved through investment in the restoration of these sites, which did not need a good climate to be visited. Figures showed that seasonality was already on the decline.