Cottonera Lines

The Cottonera Lines are a 4.5-kilometre ring of baroque fortifications enclosing the three old harbour cities of Birgu, Senglea and Cospicua southeast of Valletta. They were begun in 1670 under Grandmaster Nicolas Cotoner of the Order of St John, from whom the works take their name. Italian military engineer Antonio Maurizio Valperga and his successor Carlos de Grunenbergh designed them as a second defensive line against a feared major Ottoman attack following the siege of Candia. Eight massive bastions with names such as St Helen, St Louis and St James structure the ring. Today the northern half above Cospicua can be walked in about an hour; the monumental Saint Helen Gate is freely accessible, and several bastions now serve as event and exhibition spaces.