Captain's Tower
| Captain's Tower | |
|---|---|
Torri tal-Kaptan | |
| Naxxar, Malta | |
 View of the Captain's Tower | |
| Coordinates | 35°55′14.5″N 14°26′32.8″E / 35.920694°N 14.442444°E |
| Type | Tower |
| Site information | |
| Owner | Private |
| Open to the public | No |
| Condition | Intact |
| Site history | |
| Built | c. 1550s |
| Built by | Order of Saint John |
| Materials | Limestone |
Captain's Tower (Maltese: Torri tal-Kaptan) is a tower in Naxxar, Malta. It was built sometime after 1548 by the Order of Saint John. Today, the tower is in good condition.
History
The Captain's Tower was built by the Order of Saint John to house the Captain of the Naxxar militia. It was built during the magistracy of Jean Parisot de Valette, after the Order unsuccessfully tried to requisition the nearby Gauci Tower in 1548. The Captain's Tower is one of the earliest Hospitaller fortifications in Malta.[1]
The tower's design is similar to the Gauci Tower as well as earlier Hospitaller towers in Rhodes.[2] The tower consists of a square plan with three floors. It contains a number of box machicolations, and a columbaria which housed carrier pigeons to relay messages to Mdina or Valletta.
The Captain's Tower lost most of its defensive value by the late 17th century, due to the construction of new fortifications such as the Wignacourt, Lascaris and De Redin towers.[2]
Present day
Today, the Captain's Tower is in good condition. It is privately owned and is not open to the public.[3]
References
- ^ "Naxxar's Torre Gauci". Times of Malta. 28 February 2012. Retrieved 25 July 2015.
- ^ a b Spiteri, Stephen C. "Naxxar and its fortifications". MilitaryArchitecture.com. Retrieved 25 July 2015.
- ^ "Captain's Tower" (PDF). National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands. 28 June 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 April 2016. Retrieved 25 July 2015.
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External links
Historic watch towers of Malta | ||
|---|---|---|
Associated with the Order of Saint John | ||
| Wignacourt towers |  | |
| Lascaris towers | ||
| De Redin towers | ||
| Tour–Reduits | ||
| Other Hospitaller towers | ||
| Privately built | ||
^ Demolished/destroyed 1 Builder unknown or uncertain | ||
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