Għallis Tower is a small coastal fortification

Fortification

Fortifications are military constructions and buildings designed for defence in warfare and military bases. Humans have constructed defensive works for many thousands of years, in a variety of increasingly complex designs...

 that the Knights of Malta

Knights Hospitaller

The Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta , also known as the Sovereign Military Order of Malta , Order of Malta or Knights of Malta, is a Roman Catholic lay religious order, traditionally of military, chivalrous, noble nature. It is the world's...

 built on the island of Malta

Malta

Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...

. It was originally primarily a watchtower

Watchtower

A watchtower is a type of fortification used in many parts of the world. It differs from a regular tower in that its primary use is military, and from a turret in that it is usually a freestanding structure. Its main purpose is to provide a high, safe place from which a sentinel or guard may...

 with a garrison consisting of a bombardier

Bombardier (rank)

Bombardier is a rank used in artillery units in the armies of Commonwealth countries instead of corporal. Lance-bombardier is used instead of lance-corporal....

 and three gunners, who manned a three-pounder iron cannon

Cannon

A cannon is any piece of artillery that uses gunpowder or other usually explosive-based propellents to launch a projectile. Cannon vary in caliber, range, mobility, rate of fire, angle of fire, and firepower; different forms of cannon combine and balance these attributes in varying degrees,...

.

Construction took place during 1658 and 1659. The tower formed part of the chain of thirteen de Redin towers

De Redin towers

The De Redin Towers are a series of thirteen small fortified watch towers that Grand Master Martin de Redin of the Knights of Malta built on the island of Malta between the year 1658 and 1659...

 constructed during the reign of Grand Master

Grand Master (order)

Grand Master is the typical title of the supreme head of various orders of knighthood, including various military orders, religious orders and civil orders such as the Ancient Order of Hibernians and the Orange Order...

 Martin de Redin

Martin de Redin

Fra' Martin de Redin was a Spanish military and politician, and the 58th Prince and Grand Master of the Order of Malta.He became Grand Prior of the Order of Malta of Navarra in 1641, and Viceroy of Sicily in 1656....

 to allow communication from Gozo

Gozo

Gozo is a small island of the Maltese archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea. The island is part of the Southern European country of Malta; after the island of Malta itself, it is the second-largest island in the archipelago...

 to the Knights' base at Grand Harbour

Grand Harbour

Grand Harbour is a natural harbour on the island of Malta. It has been used as a harbour since at least Phoenician times...

. It stands above the shore just east of Ras il-Ghallis (Ghallis Point). Together with Qawra Tower

Qawra Tower

Qawra Tower is a fortification on the island of Malta built by the Knights of Malta in 1637. It is a small fortification, primarily a watchtower. It is also known locally as Fra Ben Tower. To the west it commands the entrance to St. Paul's Bay, to the east Salina Bay along with Għallis Tower...

, one of the Lascaris towers

Lascaris towers

Grand Master Juan de Lascaris-Castellar of the Knights of Malta commissioned five towers during the period 1637 - 1640. The locals refer to both the five Lascaris towers and the thirteen later de Redin towers as "de Redin towers"...

, it commands Salina Bay.

The tower has been recently renovated and is now under the control of Din L-Art Helwa

Din l-Art Helwa

Din l-Art Helwa, National Trust of Malta, is a non-governmental, non-profit, voluntary organisation founded in 1965 to safeguard Malta's cultural heritage and natural environment. Since its foundation, Din l-Art Helwa has restored numerous cultural sites of immense historic and environmental...

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