page_title: Fort Manoel
section_title: Background and failed proposals
hierarchical_section_title: Fort Manoel / History / Background and failed proposals
caption_attribution_description: Malta: view of the quarantine area. Etching by M-A. Benoist, c. 1770, after J. Goupy, c. 1725. Iconographic Collections Keywords: Joseph Goupy; Joseph Goupy; M-A. Benoist
context_page_description: Fort Manoel is a star fort on Manoel Island in Gżira, Malta. It was built in the 18th century by the Order of Saint John, during the reign of Grand Master António Manoel de Vilhena, after whom it is named. Fort Manoel is located to the north west of Valletta, and commands Marsamxett Harbour and the anchorage of Sliema Creek. The fort is an example of Baroque architecture, and it was designed with both functionality and aesthetics in mind.
  After a brief French occupation which began in 1798, the British military took over the fort in 1800, when it became known as HMS Phoenicia, and it remained in use by them until 1964. The fort was severely damaged in World War II, but it was restored in the early 21st century and it is now in good condition.
  Fort Manoel has been on Malta's tentative list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites since 1998, as part of the Knights' Fortifications around the Harbours of Malta.
context_section_description: In the 16th century, the Marsamxett Harbour was one of the two major harbours in the Maltese city of Valletta. In the centre of the harbour was an island, originally known as l'Isolotto and now known as Manoel Island after the fort, which overlooked the city. 
  Shortly after Valletta's construction, the Order of Saint John realised this was a potential vulnerability in the city's defences. As early as 1569, it was proposed that a small fort with a cavalier be built on the Isolotto to prevent the enemy from taking the island and building batteries on it. This proposal was presented by Francesco Collignon.
  The threat was again highlighted by the Spanish military engineer Scipione Campi in 1577, and by Giovanni Battista in 1582.
  The next proposal to build a fortification on the island was made by the Italian military engineer Antonio Maurizio Valperga in 1670. He proposed a roughly hexagonal fort with a hornwork, in the Dutch style of fortification. The proposal was criticized by the Order's engineers, and a third proposal was drawn up by the Flemish military engineer Carlos de Grunenbergh in 1687. Grunenburgh's proposal consisted of a fort with four bastions and a ravelin, surrounded by a ditch, covertway and faussebraye.
  Other proposals were made in 1715, this time by the knight René Jacob de Tigné and a team of French engineers. There were several different plans, including building a coastal battery and a redoubt. Other plans included building a four-bastioned fort, or combining all three (fort, battery and redoubt) for the defence of the island.
caption: Etching showing Marsamxett Harbour in the 1720s, just before the construction of Fort Manoel. The Isolotto (Manoel Island) is the island in the foreground, in the middle of the harbour.
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