During the French blockade of 1798–1800, the lines were held by the French. The Maltese insurgents who had rebelled against them built an entrenchment around the Cottonera Lines and the other fortifications in the harbour area. A number of batteries and lookout posts, such as Tal-Borg Battery and Windmill Redoubt, were also built in the vicinity. Meanwhile, the French bombarded the Maltese in Żabbar.