Coastal Towers and Defences of the Maltese Islands


Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO, via Wikimedia Commons
Copyright Paul Berman 2025 All Rights Reserved
The De Redin Towers
A network of thirteen standardized watchtowers erected rapidly between 1658 and 1659 to create continuous visual communication along Malta’s vulnerable coastlines.
The Lascaris Towers
A small group of coastal watchtowers built under Grand Master Jean de Lascaris to strengthen Malta’s shoreline surveillance and complement earlier Knights of St John defences.
The Wignacourt Towers
The earliest coastal towers in Malta, constructed in the early 17th century to provide strong defensive positions and act as refuges against Ottoman and corsair attacks.
Punic Towers
Punic towers in Malta represent rare ancient defensive and signalling structures, offering insight into early Mediterranean military strategy and the island’s strategic importance.
Redoubts
Small, low-profile coastal fortifications built mainly in the early 18th century to protect landing points, support nearby batteries, and strengthen Malta’s layered defence system.
Tour–Reduits
Rare hybrid fortifications combining a tower and redoubt, designed to provide observation, local defence, and a final defensive refuge within Malta’s coastal fortification network.
Other Hospitaller towers
Additional coastal towers built by the Order of Saint John outside major tower systems, often tailored to specific bays, harbours, or strategically exposed shoreline locations.
Privately built towers
Coastal towers constructed by individuals or local authorities, primarily for observation and early warning, later integrated informally into Malta’s wider defensive landscape.
Semaphore Towers
19th-century signalling towers used for visual communication across the Maltese Islands, forming a rapid information network linking coastal areas with military and administrative centres.