First phase of emergency restoration work at Fort St Angelo begins
by Noel Grima
Preliminary works on urgent restoration work on Fort St Angelo have turned up a number of surprises and shown the need for careful investigation and research before any restoration work is undertaken.
They have also shown the terrible devastation that time, war and neglect have wrought on what may well be called Malta’s prime icon.
The media was taken around, in the rain, parts of the fort and shown what restoration work by Heritage Malta intends to carry out.
A couple of months ago, Mepa approved urgent restoration work on the fort’s entrance since this is an area where there is danger of collapse. It was for this reason and also to stop the depredations on the fort when the fort stood open to all, that Heritage Malta, as soon as it was given responsibility for the fort in August 2007, set up the required security measures so that the fort could be accessed only if authorised, thus stopping vandalism and dumping. Since then, Heritage Malta has cleared the fort from tonnes of rubbish and started drafting the necessary preliminary scientific studies and reports required for the rehabilitation of the fort.
Heritage Malta employees have carefully dug the infill rubble underneath the main entrance. Sifting through the stones has produced results. Parts of the escutcheon that faces the main entrance were found buried in the rubble along with a plaque commemorating Grand Master L’Isle Adam.
The fort suffered terrible damage during World War II especially when the Illustrious was berthed alongside. One plane actually crashed against the bastions. Bombs hit and destroyed the vaulted entrance. Since the fort at the time was being used as an emergency hospital (ironically in the knights’ polverista – bomb store) the British needed quick repairs. So they patched the entrance up with iron beams and got on with the war.
The forthcoming restoration of the entrance will see the removal of these rusting beams and the careful restoration of the two vaults at an angle which formed the entrance.
The roof of the 17th century polverista has been cleaned from the debris and vegetation accumulated on it and the deffun layer was redone with the collaboration of the Restoration Unit within the Ministry for Resources and Rural Affairs. The parapet wall of the ramp leading from the lower to the middle level of the fort, which was in a very dangerous state and partly collapsed, was restored by Heritage Malta’s Conservation Division.
The ‘Great Siege’ bell (actually, it was not there during the Great Siege and another bell may have been in its stead) was conserved by Heritage Malta’s conservators and the bell cot restored by the Restoration Unit. Other emergency works on the Cavalier are currently being carried out by Heritage Malta’s Conservation Division.
Last year Heritage Malta submitted a full development application to Mepa for the carrying out of a number of emergency works. These include the repair of the main access ramp, the restoration of the main gate and the reconstruction of the vaulted entrance and of the De Guiral Sally Port. This application has been approved by Mepa some weeks ago.
The current emergency works will also include the demolition of the swimming pool and the water tower built when a hotel was foolishly opened in the fort in the 1980s.
Heritage Malta has been allocated the sum of €1.5 million in the last Budget specifically to carry out such works.
But the government, Parliamentary Secretary Mario de Marco announced yesterday, intends to apply for some €10 million in ERDF funds to carry out further restoration works on the fort.
The archaeological investigations currently being undertaken at the fort were a necessity in order to understand the construction chronology of the particular areas prior to the commencement of the above-mentioned works.