Lascaris Towers

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Qawra Tower (2008)
Lascaris Towers
Torri ta 'Xutu (2009)

The Lascaris Towers are a series of fortifications in Malta that were built during the reign of Grand Master Jean de Lascaris-Castellar from 1630 to 1647. These towers are named after him.

Purpose and construction

Compared to the Wignacourt Towers , built between 1609 and 1614 , the task of these towers had changed. Much smaller and less armed, they were primarily used as observation posts, from which the garrison in Valletta and other places should be alerted when an enemy fleet approached . For this purpose, the towers, together with the Wignacourt Towers and the de Redin Towers, were arranged within sight of one another, so that optical signals could be transmitted day and night. They were set up on sections of the coast where enemy troops could land due to the terrain.

The towers had a square plan, a width or depth of about eight meters and a height of about twenty meters. The ground floor was usually used as a storage room. The quarters for the tower crew were on the first floor. Access to this floor was via a ladder. From this floor a staircase led to the roof, on which a cannon was placed. From here optical signals could be given day and night. The observation post was protected from wind and weather by a small turret. It is documented that these towers were equipped with smaller cannons, which could mainly be used for signaling and less for defending the towers.

history

Fortification towers were built on the shores of Malta between 1609 and 1620 under the rule of the Grand Master Alof de Wignacourt . These towers were relatively large. In addition to observing the coasts and the offshore sea areas, they should also be able to repel smaller attacks by Muslim corsairs and at least be able to offer slow resistance if a larger fleet lands. In principle, their design had proven itself. However, the resources of the order did not allow the manning of a large number of such towers. Therefore, under the rule of Lascaris, the construction of smaller towers was adopted, the main purpose of which was to monitor and alert.

The following towers were built:

In 1649 the St Agatha's Tower was built on Marfa Ridge . Although built during the reign of Lascari, it follows the Wignacourt Towers in its construction.

From 1710, some of the towers were provided with additional, upstream batteries and thus adapted to the more modern requirements.

During the British colonial rule, these towers were initially still in use. In 1813, Captain Dickens proposed that the towers be reinforced and the order's coastal fortifications expanded. However, these plans did not come to fruition. In 1828, Captain Jones of the Royal Engineers suggested demolishing all the towers. He justified his suggestion with the fact that the towers would not withstand a bombardment with modern artillery for long, but an extension would be too expensive. The structural condition of the towers had deteriorated in the past few years, some were in a ruinous state, others needed repair. In 1832, Colonel Morshead, Chief Royal Engineer , ordered all towers to be demolished. Ultimately, demolition was abandoned and the existing towers were handed over to the local authorities.

literature

Web links

Commons : Lascaris towers  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k Quentin Hughes: Malta. A guide to the fortifications , pp. 95ff
  2. ↑ a b Stephen C. Spiteri : Naxxar and its fortifications. In: Military Architecture. Archived from the original on January 16, 2016 ; accessed on February 12, 2020 (English).
  3. ↑ Torri tal-bajja ta 'San Ġorġ / St George's Bay Tower. (PDF; 729 kB) In: National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands. Sovrintendenza tal-Patrimonju Kulturale, June 28, 2013, accessed on January 31, 2020 .
  4. ^ Torri tax-Xlendi / Xlendi Tower. (PDF) In: National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands. Sovrintendenza tal-Patrimonju Kulturale, June 28, 2013, accessed on December 19, 2019 .