Juan Ameen
Knights’ defences uncovered through bastion restoration
Restorers have uncovered a unique stretch of 18th century outer work defences in the Vittoriosa bastions ditch, which had been used by the Knights to move across the fortifications in safety while firing at the enemy.
Restorers found a covered passage across a ditch around a fort, called a caponier. They also discovered a wall built to mask enemy fire and provide cover from an attacker, called a tenaille. They got an inkling of their presence after a chance discovery of old plans.
Both the structures were fitted with masonry banquettes – firing steps – and form part of important outer works designed and built by French military engineer Charles François de Mondion as part of the significant remodelling of the Vittoriosa front fortifications in the early 18th century.
Completed around 1728, the caponier and tenaille were built to allow the Knights protecting Vittoriosa to walk out of the fortress walls and reach the outer defences on the far side of the ditch in relative safety, protected from enemy musket fire and ricocheting cannon balls.
Vittoriosa is Malta’s first maritime fortified city and one of the few 16th century fortresses to have withstood the siege of the Ottoman Empire, giving the city its name.
Its ramparts and fortifications are a unique fusion of 16th, 17th, and 18th century forms of military architecture, together powerful architectural and sculpture qualities.
The Knights’ engineers continued to invest heavily in the re-fortification of Vittoriosa, kitting it out with all the defence facilities that 18th French military architecture could offer.
Stephen Spiteri, research co-ordinator in the Restoration Directorate, said the discovery of this “forgotten” but substantial remain was extremely important.
“A caponier combined with a tenaille is the only structure of its kind to have survived from the time of the Knights. Until the 19th century, nearly all the ditches of the Knights’ fortifications were fitted with similar devices. Unfortunately, nearly all were swept away and discarded,” Dr Spiteri explained.
It was also very encouraging to find features in the fortifications “which sadly disappeared”, and thought to have been totally demolished and lost, which may still be buried, he said.
The only known examples of similar discoveries in Malta were found in rock excavations at Fort Manoel, and Fort Ricasoli, which were roofed over by the British military and fitted with musketry loopholes.
The Vittoriosa caponier is made of two sets of stepped masonry banquettes, roughly two metres wide, separated by a sunken passageway. Each banquette is about two metres wide and built solidly enough to mount small grenade-throwing mortars.
Dr Spiteri explained that once restored, the caponier and tenaille would be reintegrated into the fortifications to be fully appreciated by the public. None of the residents could recall the buried fortifications. The rehabilitation of the ditch is part of a €36 million restoration project of around six kilometres of fortification in Malta.
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R. Gauci
Aug 21st 2011, 12:13
Haga tajba li jsiru dawn ir-restawri imma ftit passi l-boghod gewwa l-Isla, l-aktar bicca sur importanti u ikona Matija rreklamata madwar id-Dinja, il-Gardjola, qed taqa bicciet, ghad nistenbhu filghodu u nsibuha frak taht is-swar, sakemm ma toqtolx lil xi hadd li jinzerta ghaddej tahtha. Meta se nagixxu ha nsalvaw dan il-wirt nazzjonali?
Adrian Mallia
Aug 21st 2011, 15:27
Naqbel mieghek sur Gauci. Tajjeb wiehed jiftakar li fil-belt ta Bormla hemm kwazi madwar 12-il kilometru ta swar, u dawn kolla fi stat tal-biki. Hemm anke bibien skultarati li huma mbarati bil-gebel, li kienu jservu ta entraturi fi zmien il-kavallieri, u li llum jinsabu wkoll fi stat disastruz. Hemm ukoll ditch li jinsab vicin il-mina ta Santa Liena (l-uniku bieb fi stat tajjeb), li llum qed jintuza bhala maqjel (legalment??) Kemm il-gardjola u kemm is-swar ta Bormla jistu jkunu potenzjal turistiku enormi. Meta sa nagixxu ?????
Mr Carmel (Nenu) Aquilina
Aug 21st 2011, 22:34
@ R.GAUCI U ADRIAN MALLIA,
Skużawni, imma ta min jistaqsikom, jekk tgħixux f' Malta, jew inkella jekk toħorġux minn darkom?
Għaliex kull fejn tħares ma tarax għajr scofolding mas-swar u ma' bini artistiku, tibda mill-Imdina, il-belt Valletta u l-Kottonera .
U żgur li hemm xi ħadd li ilu li beda jaġixxi biex isalva il-wirt nazzjonali, imma mid-dehra intom Sinjuri Gauċi u Mallia lanqas kontu indunajtu!
Morru sal-belt Valletta n-naħa ta' Marsamxett araw xi ġmiel ta' swar hemm issa wara li ġew restawrati, ġew qishom ġodda!
Jiena ma niftakar qatt kampanja ta' restawr ġenerali hekk massiva u daqstant proffesjonali li qatt ġrat f' Malta mill-ebda gvern li iggverna dawn il-gżejjer sbieħ tagħna.
Mhux aħjar flok ingergru biex nagħmlu ħsara lill gvern, infaħru fiti lill ħaddiema Maltin li verament qed jagħmlu biċċa xogħol kbira ħafna, li l-ebda gvern qatt ma ħolom biex jagħmila, aħseb u ara kemm ta' l-bidu biex tibda isseħ.
Kif ma tistħux titkelmu u tiktbu dawn l-affarijiet ta' xejn verita?
Dan għalija huwa nuqqas ta' apprezzament lejn minn ħaqqu u lejn dan ix-xogħol kbir ta' restawr fiħ innifsu!
Tafu li qed ixxerdu ħwejjeġ li ma humiex eżatti mal-barrani, u li qed tagħmlu għajb u ħsara kbira lill Malta tagħna mad-dinja kollha minn fuq dan l-imbierek internet?
Ħbieb ejjew inqiesu ftit kliemna, u nibdew niktbu u nitkelmu ta' veru ċittadini onesti Maltin fuq dan l-internet!.
Sinjuri Gauċi u Mallia, taqtgħux qalbkom, ma għandkomx għalfejn tinkwietaw, għax kollox ser jitwettaq minn dan il-gvern u dak ta' warajħ,u dak ta' wara warajħ anke dawk in-naqriet li semmejtu intom, dan il-gvern ta' Gonzi baqgħalu ħafna iżjed snin ta' ħidma siwja quddiemu x'jigverna!
Prositt lil kull minn hu involut fuq dan ir-restawr kollu li qed jitwettaq bi'proffessjonalita kbira, li qed jibdel id-dehra ta' wiċċ Malta kompletament, Grazzi.
R. Gauci
Aug 24th 2011, 11:14
Is-soltu partiggjan tal-Gvern, Sur Aquilina, jekk il-Gardjola ta` l-Isla taqa x'jiswa terga tibniha moderna? U jekk tigi hawn vera waslet fit-tarf, kuljum insibu l-gebel tahtha, bit-tejp tal-Pulizija qeghda. Allura nitraskuraw Hagar Qim ghax flokhom nistghu naghmlu borg bricks!! Naghmlu x-xoghol urgenti l-ewwel mhux xoghol li jista jistenna, jekk jista jkun taghmel kollox imma jekk le tara fejn se jaqa l-ewwel. Imma issa drajnih il-Gvern, kuntent jonfoq miljun ewro fuq rawdebawt imbaghad l-arja kollha ta` madwarha traskurata.
Adrian Mallia naqbel mieghek 100%
Mr Tony Gatt
Aug 21st 2011, 09:34
It looks like the knights anticipated the type of trenches employed in WWI by some 300 years!
Claudio Laferla
Aug 21st 2011, 09:04
Well Done!
Kindly think about a good Knight Documentary. It will serve both for the past generations and to the present ones.