Qawra Tower
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| Qawra Tower & Battery | |
|---|---|
| Torri u Batterija tal-Qawra | |
| Part of the Lascaris towers | |
| Qawra, St. Paul's Bay, Malta | |
| 300px
Qawra Tower
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| Coordinates | Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. |
| Type | Coastal watchtower Artillery battery |
| Height | 11 m |
| Site information | |
| Owner | Government of Malta |
| Controlled by | Ta' Fra Ben Restaurant & Lounge Bar |
| Open to the public |
Yes (as a restaurant) |
| Condition | Intact |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1638 (tower) 1715 (battery) |
| Built by | Order of Saint John |
| Materials | Limestone |
Qawra Tower (Maltese: Torri tal-Qawra), also known as Qawra Point Tower (Maltese: Torri ta' Ras il-Qawra) or Fra Ben Tower (Maltese: Torri ta' Fra Ben), is a small watchtower in Qawra, limits of St. Paul's Bay, Malta. It was completed in 1638 as the fourth of the Lascaris towers. An artillery battery was built around the tower in 1715. Today, the tower and battery are a restaurant.
History
Qawra Tower was built in 1638 near the tip of Qawra Point, commanding the entrance to St. Paul's Bay to the west and Salina Bay to the east. It was built on or near the site of a medieval watch post.[1] Since 1659, it has Għallis Tower in its line of sight. This linked Qawra Tower with the De Redin towers that allowed communication from Gozo to Valletta.
The tower's design is similar to the other Lascaris towers, with two floors each having a single room. Access to the upper floor was originally by a wooden ladder or scala di corda.
In 1715, a semi-circular gun battery was built around the seaward side of the tower. The battery had a low parapet, with guns being mounted en barbette. There were two blockhouses, which were linked by a V-shaped redan containing the main gate. Both the blockhouses and the redan were pierced with musketry loopholes.
An entrenchment wall was built close to the tower and battery in the 1760s, and parts of it can still be seen.
Before World War II, the battery was fitted with two concrete gun emplacements. A pillbox was also built nearby.[2]
Present day
Today, the tower is a restaurant, while the battery serves as a swimming pool. The tower is slightly dilapidated, having been plastered with cement at some time, which is now flaking away, and has had water tanks and rough additional brickwork added to its roof.
Gallery
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Malta - St. Paul's Bay - Triq it-Trunciera - Ras il-Qawra + Qawra Tower (Ras il-Ghallis) 01 ies.jpg
View from Għallis
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Malta - St. Paul's Bay - Triq it-Trunciera - Ras il-Qawra - Qawra Tower 02 ies.jpg
View from the east
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Malta Qawra one.jpg
View from the seaward side
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Malta - St. Paul's Bay - Triq it-Trunciera - Ras il-Qawra - Qawra Tower 03 ies.jpg
View from the landward side
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Malta - St. Paul's Bay - Triq it-Trunciera - Ras il-Qawra - Qawra Tower 05 ies.jpg
One of the blockhouses and the redan, which now serve as the entrance to the restaurant
References
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to [[commons:Lua error in Module:WikidataIB at line 506: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).|Lua error in Module:WikidataIB at line 506: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).]]. |
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Historic Towers of Malta
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| Wignacourt towers |
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| Lascaris towers | ||
| De Redin towers | ||
| Tour–Reduits | ||
| Other | ||
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^ Demolished/destroyed
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- Pages with broken file links
- Articles containing Maltese-language text
- Commons category link from Wikidata
- Lascaris towers
- Batteries in Malta
- Towers completed in 1638
- Buildings and structures completed in 1715
- St. Paul's Bay
- Restaurants in Malta
- National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands
