Malta: St. Agatha's Tower, Mellie?a
Watercolour 23 x 37 cm.
To ward off the threat of invasion by barbarian pirates or the Ottoman navy, the Grand Master of the Order of Malta, Alof de Wignacourt (1547-1622), had a first series of six large, fortified towers built between 1610 and 1620. A generation later, this system was consolidated by a second series of ten towers of more modest dimensions, at the request of the Grand Master Giovanni Paolo Lascaris (1560-1567). Among them, located at the north-western end of the island, in Mellie?a, is the Saint Agatha Tower, built between 1647 and 1649, based on a square bastion model. It is the last fortified defence building built on the island. It could accommodate a garrison of 30 men, guarding the islets of Gozo and Comino, with 40 days' provisions.
Heavily damaged during the 19th century, during British rule, as can be seen in our drawing, it was nevertheless equipped with a telegraph. It has recently undergone a remarkable restoration by the Maltese heritage association Din l-Art ?elwa.
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