| Fort Manoel | |
|---|---|
Forti Manoel | |
| Manoel Island,Gżira,Malta[a] | |
_02_ies.jpg) View of Fort Manoel from the sea | |
| Site information | |
| Type | Star fort |
| Owner | Government of Malta |
| Controlled by | MIDI plc |
| Open to the public | Yes |
| Condition | Intact |
| Location | |
 | |
| Map of Fort Manoel | |
| Coordinates | 35°54′10″N14°30′19″E / 35.90278°N 14.50528°E /35.90278; 14.50528 |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1723–1733[b] |
| Built by | Order of Saint John |
| In use | c. 1734–1964 |
| Materials | Limestone |
| Battles/wars | French invasion of Malta (1798) Siege of Malta (1798–1800) World War II |
Fort Manoel (Maltese:Forti Manoel orFortizza Manoel) is astar fort onManoel Island inGżira,Malta. It was built in the 18th century by theOrder of Saint John, during the reign ofGrand MasterAntónio Manoel de Vilhena, after whom it is named. Fort Manoel is located to the north west ofValletta, and commandsMarsamxett Harbour and the anchorage ofSliema Creek. The fort is an example ofBaroque architecture, and was designed with both functionality and aesthetics in mind.
After a briefFrench occupation which began in 1798, the British military took over the fort in 1800, and it remained in their use until 1964. The fort was severely damaged inWorld War II, but it was restored in the early 21st century and is now in good condition.
Fort Manoel has been on Malta's tentative list ofUNESCOWorld Heritage Sites since 1998, as part of the Knights' Fortifications around the Harbours of Malta.[1]
In the 16th century, theMarsamxett Harbour was one of the two major harbours in the Maltese city ofValletta. In the centre of the harbour was an island, originally known asl'Isolotto and now known asManoel Island after the fort, which overlooked the city.
Shortly after Valletta's construction, the Order of Saint John realised this was a potential vulnerability in the city's defences. As early as 1569, it was proposed that a small fort with acavalier be built on the Isolotto to prevent the enemy from taking the island and building batteries on it. This proposal was presented byFrancesco Collignon.[2]
The threat was again highlighted by the Spanish military engineerScipione Campi in 1577, and by Giovanni Battista in 1582.[3]
The next proposal to build a fortification on the island was made by the Italian military engineerAntonio Maurizio Valperga in 1670. He proposed a roughly hexagonal fort with ahornwork, in the Dutch style of fortification. The proposal was criticized by the Order's engineers, and a third proposal was drawn up by the Flemish military engineerCarlos de Grunenbergh in 1687. Grunenburgh's proposal consisted of a fort with fourbastions and aravelin, surrounded by aditch,covertway andfaussebraye.[3]
Other proposals were made in 1715, this time by the knightRené Jacob de Tigné and a team of French engineers. There were several different plans, including building acoastalbattery and aredoubt. Other plans included building a four-bastioned fort, or combining all three (fort, battery and redoubt) for the defence of the island.[3]
Eventually, the final design was agreed in 1723, and it incorporated the work of de Tigné as well asCharles François de Mondion, the Order's military engineer. The new fort was to be square in shape, with four bastions and two cavaliers. The fort was financed by, and named after, the PortugueseGrand Master,António Manoel de Vilhena. He also set up the Manoel Foundation, a fund responsible for the maintenance and garrison of Fort Manoel and its outworks.[3]
The first stone was laid by de Vilhena on 14 September 1723, and work progressed rapidly. By 1727, the enceinte, cavaliers and gateway were complete. The ditch had been excavated by 1732,[4] while thechapel, barracks,magazines andcountermines were completed in around 1733. The fort was an active military establishment by 1734.[3] When Mondion died in 1733, he was buried in the crypt under the fort's chapel.[5]
In 1757,Lembi Battery was added nearTigné Point,Sliema. The battery was funded by the Manoel Foundation and it was considered to be an outwork of Fort Manoel, since it was intended to prevent an enemy from bombarding the fort's northern flank. It was decommissioned following the construction ofFort Tigné in 1795. The construction of the latter fort was also partially funded by the Manoel Foundation.[6]
By 1761, Fort Manoel was considered to be as one of the best completed fortifications, and Comte de Bourlamaque has commented that the fort is a "modèle de fortification fait avec soin."[7]
The fort first saw use during theFrench invasion of Malta in June 1798, in theFrench Revolutionary Wars. At the time, it was commanded by the Portuguese knight Gourgeau, and it was garrisoned by theCacciatori, who were a volunteerchasseur light infantry regiment,[8] as well as a few men from theBirchircara militia. The fort surrendered after Grand MasterHompesch officially capitulated toNapoleon.[3]
A French garrison of a few hundred men took over the fort on 12 June. During the subsequentMaltese uprising and insurrection against the French,Maltese insurgents builtGħargħar andSqaq Cappara batteries to bombard Fort Manoel. The Maltese attacked the fort on a number of occasions, and the French retaliated with their own bombardment at least once.[9] On 12 September 1799, a company of French troops from Fort Manoel attempted to silence an insurgent gun position inSan Ġwann, but were repelled by the Maltese insurgents.[9]
When Malta became aBritish protectorate in 1800, Fort Manoel was officially taken over by the British military that September. Thepiazza of Fort Manoel was the subject of the earliest known photographs of Malta, which were taken in 1840 byHorace Vernet while he was quarantined at the Lazzaretto, but are now believed to belost.[10] In the late 19th century, theechaugettes on the bastions facing Valletta were dismantled to make way for gun emplacements. Later on, significant alterations were made to St. Anthony Bastion, when itsgunpowder magazine was demolished to make way for a battery of threeQF 12-pounder guns.[11]
The British military finally decommissioned the fort's guns in 1906, although it remained a military establishment. In 1922, some refugees from theBurning of Smyrna were housed at the fort.[12] It was included on the Antiquities List of 1925.[13] The fort saw use again duringWorld War II, when a battery of3.7-inch heavy anti-aircraft guns was deployed there. The guns were mounted in concrete gun emplacements and deployed in a semicircle in and around the fort. The fort suffered considerable damage to its ramparts, barracks and chapel as a result of aerial bombing during the war.
From 1957 to 1961 three Commanders-in-Chief of the British Mediterranean Fleet (Lambe; Bingley; Holland-Martin) flew their flags from HMSPhoenicia, the Royal Navy name for its base in the fort.[14]
The fort was eventually decommissioned in 1964.[15]
After being decommissioned, Fort Manoel was abandoned and fell into a state of disrepair. Parts of it were also vandalized.[16] In 1970, theRoyal Malta Yacht Club acquired part of the fort as its club house, and the yacht club remained there until it acquired new premises inTa' Xbiex in 2008.[17]
In August 2001, the development company MIDI plc began restoration work on the fort. Phase One of the project, which included the restoration of the piazza and the reconstruction of the ruined chapel, was completed in 2009. The second phase, including the restoration of the outer fortifications and glacis, was approved by theMalta Environment and Planning Authority in 2012.[18] The restoration of Fort Manoel together with that of the nearbyFort Tigné cost a total of €30 million.[19][20]
Fort Manoel is built in the shape of a square, with a pentagonal bastion on each corner, giving it the shape of a star fort. The four bastions are called St. Helen, St. Anthony, St. John and Notre Dame Bastions.
St. Helen and St. Anthony Bastions are located on the seaward side, facing Valletta. They originally hadechaugettes andgunpowder magazines, but the echaugettes on both bastions were dismantled in the 19th century, and the magazine on St. Anthony Bastion was demolished to make way for three QF 12-pounder gun emplacements. The magazine on St. Helen Bastion is still intact.[11][21] Thecurtain wall linking these two bastions contains the main gate, which is protected by alunette known as the Couvre Porte.[22]
St. John and Notre Dame Bastions are located along the landward side of the fort. Each bastion is protected by a lowcavalier.[23][24][25] The curtain wall between the two bastions is further protected by a pentagonalravelin, which is largely rock hewn.[26]
Apiazza is located inside the fort, and it contains the rebuiltChapel of St Anthony of Padua, severalbarrack blocks, anarmoury and other buildings. Abronze statue of Grand Master Vilhena, possibly designed byPietro Paolo Troisi, once stood in the square but it was removed in the 19th century and relocated to Valletta. It was later relocated again and is now inFloriana.[4]
The fort is supposedly haunted by the Black Knight, who wears the armour and regalia of the Order of St. John, and resembles Grand Master de Vilhena. In the 1940s, the knight began to appear out of thin air near the ruins of the Chapel of St Anthony of Padua, which had just been bombed inWorld War II. The apparition was reportedly seen by Maltese and English men within the fort. When the rubble from the ruined chapel began to be cleared, the workmen reported that the knight was supervising their work. When the crypt beneath the chapel was opened, it was found that it had been vandalized, and the remains of knights which had been buried there were scattered around. After the crypt was restored and the bones were reburied, the Black Knight stopped appearing. In 1980, the crypt was vandalized for a second time, and the Black Knight reportedly began to appear again.[27]
Notes
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