The Victoria Lines are a series of fortifications built by the British military during the last quarter of the 19th century. Their defining feature is a continuous infantry wall, more than 12 kilometres long, which connects together three forts at Binġemma, Mosta and Madliena, a substantial entrenchment at Dwejra, and a number of other gun batteries and ancillary military facilities to form a single line of defence.

The infantry wall was constructed between 1895 and 1899, and, in 1897, it was named after Queen Victoria, on the occasion of her diamond jubilee. However, the process that ultimately led to its construction had its inception many years before.

Conception

A ‘Royal Commission on the Defence of the United Kingdom’ was set up in 1859 by the then British Prime Minister Lord Palmerston to assess the defence of Britain against the threat of invasion. This commission recommended the building of new, extensive, permanent fortifications around the royal dockyards and other strategic harbours in Great Britain, particularly at Portsmouth, Plymouth, Portland and Milford Haven.

In due course, these conclusions were extended to cover also the more important British naval bases throughout the world, including Malta. And in 1866, William F. D. Jervois (later Sir), who had served as secretary of the commission, visited Malta and produced a report entitled Memorandum with reference to the improvements to the defences of Malta and Gibraltar, rendered necessary by the introduction of iron plated ships and powerful rifled guns. In this report, Malta, along with Gibraltar, Halifax and Bermuda, was given the designation of an “imperial fortress” and the recommendation was made to build new fortifications in Malta on par with those being built in the UK.

The first measure taken was to make a number of alterations to the existing fortifications inherited from the Knights, to allow the deployment of the new, larger rifled guns then coming into service. However, it was accepted that this was only a partial solution and, after 1870, new forts were built on both sides of the entrance to the two Valletta harbours. In the same time period, additional new forts were built on the southeast coast of Malta to protect the entrance to Marsaxlokk Bay and to defend the nearby bays of Marsascala and St Thomas.

These new coastal forts were deemed necessary to counter the threat of enemy ships bombarding Valletta but they did not offer protection in the case of an attack coming from the landward side of the harbours in the eventuality of a successful enemy landing. The need was hence acknowledged for a new defensive perimeter around Valletta that would keep an eventual enemy further away from the harbour area, at a safe distance from where the enemy’s guns could not threaten the all-important naval facilities. It was therefore concluded that the defence of the naval base in Malta ultimately required the construction of a number of new fortifications at some distance from Valletta. The first suggestion was to build a ring of new forts as a semicircle around Valletta and the harbour environs. However, it soon became evident that this option was not feasible given the rapid development of new suburbs in this same area. Hence, an alternative strategy emerged.

Development

One of the most prominent geological features in Malta is the so called ‘Great Fault’ which cuts across the island from coast to coast. This natural feature inherently provided a physical barrier against a potential enemy who might try to land in one of the many beaches in the north of Malta and seek to advance towards the Valletta harbour area. In 1872, it was decided to strengthen this natural defensive position further by building a number of detached forts along the contour of this fault, which thereafter was to be referred to as the ‘North-West Front’.

Photo (circa 1900) showing a stretch of the infantry wall near Tarġa Battery. Photo from the Victoria Lines Record Plan. Courtesy of the UK National Archives

First to be built between 1875 and 1881 were three forts along the Great Fault at Binġemma, Mosta and Madliena, followed by Fort Pembroke, a little distance behind. In 1881, an almost two-kilometre-long entrenchment was built at Dwejra, and eventually, a continuous infantry wall was built between 1895 and 1899 all the way from Fomm ir-Riħ in the west to Madliena in the east.

Map showing Fort Mosta, with the infantry wall extending on both its sides. Photo from the Victoria Lines Record Plan. Courtesy of the UK National Archives

Looking at a map of Malta showing the locations of all the new fortifications built between 1870 and 1900, and considering that the whole southwest coast of Malta is characterised by high, steep cliffs, it is clear how the construction of the Victoria Lines was meant to envelope  Valletta  and its rapidly expanding suburbs within a large, fortified, defensive perimeter. Within this boundary, the Victoria Lines were intended to serve as the first and main line of defence, against any threat coming from the north.

Demise

And yet, in 1903, just four years after the completion of the Victoria Lines, work started on the excavation of infantry trenches on the commanding heights overlooking Mellieħa Bay. This was the first practical manifestation of a change in the defensive strategy which, thereafter, would seek to put up defensive positions at the most vulnerable parts of the coastline. Gone was the previous policy of relying exclusively on the Victoria Lines to counter the threat of an enemy force landing in the north of Malta. The Mellieħa Ridge trenches marked the beginning of the end for the Victoria Lines as originally conceived; which had been that of a linear fortification system sealing off the north of Malta from the rest of the island.

The Mellieħa Ridge trenches marked the beginning of the end for the Victoria Lines

Progressively, the emphasis continued to shift towards the specific defence of all those parts of the shoreline that were considered vulnerable; to the extent that, by 1907, the decision had been taken to abandon the Victoria Lines as a front line of defence and to focus instead on conducting the island’s defence directly from along its shoreline; thereby relegating the Victoria Lines to a subsidiary role.

Map of Malta showing new fortifications built in the period 1860 to 1914. Reproduced from the present author’s book The Victoria Lines.

There were a number of factors that influenced this transition, and one of them was the outcome of military manoeuvres that were held regularly during that period. A large contingent of British Army soldiers, supported by a naval brigade, would simulate an enemy landing in one of the bays in the north of Malta and from there advance and seek to penetrate the Victoria Lines. In 1900, during such a military exercise, it was assessed that the ‘attacking’ force had been successful in its intent, thereby putting into doubt the effectiveness of the Victoria Lines and the validity of the concept of a linear defence. This led to the conclusion that the compliment of soldiers required to man effectively the full stretch of the defensive line would be excessively large to be considered a viable preposition during peace time.

British Army soldiers at Tarġa Gap, on manoeuvres along the Victoria Lines, circa 1900. Photo by Richard Ellis, courtesy of Ian Ellis

Although the Victoria Lines were only completed in 1899, they were the manifestation of an outlook to defensive strategy conceived many years earlier. This had been an approach that favoured a static conception of defence, but progressively the emphasis shifted towards a more mobile conception of defence that sought to counter the enemy as early as possible, before it could consolidate its position.

This transition relegated the ‘Great Fault’ and the Victoria Lines to a secondary role, as a fallback line of defence in the event of a successful enemy landing in the north of Malta. This was the role of the Victoria Lines in World War II. However, with the end of hostilities, even this secondary role disappeared, and the Victoria Lines fell into oblivion, and it has now been many years that the Victoria Lines have lain abandoned.

The Victoria Lines as part of defensive measures implemented in Malta up to 1942 against the threat of an Axis invasion. Reproduced from a display board at the ‘Malta at War Museum’ in Vittoriosa. Courtesy of Fondazzjoni Wirt Artna

Future

The author with, as a backdrop, the Victoria Lines at Wied Anġlu, between Għargħur and Birguma. Photo: Richard Cachia Zammit

When the Victoria Lines infantry wall was built, a patrol path was laid alongside its full length. Today, it is this path that holds the key to the future of the Victoria Lines; no longer in terms of its original military function but potentially, as Malta’s first managed national trail. A walk along the Victoria Lines is a unique experience that reveals the beauty of Malta’s natural landscapes, offering breathtaking views. It is already possible to walk the length of the Victoria Lines, as many practised trekkers do, but a managed national trail would extend this experience to the wider public, both locals and tourists.

A patrol path alongside its full length… holds the key to the future of the Victoria Lines

As a result of the endeavour by the Friends of the Victoria Lines Trail and through the decisive support from the Ramblers’ Association of Malta, the establishment of a national trail along the Victoria Lines is now a formal commitment on the part of the government, as proclaimed in its electoral manifesto. In this regard, Ambjent Malta, in the Ministry for the Environment, has been active in clearing various parts of the trail from overgrown vegetation, and discussions are in hand on the implementation of appropriate signage. At the same time, the Restoration Directorate in the Ministry for the National Heritage has restored and reconstructed a sizeable stretch of the Victoria Lines at Għargħur.

A walk along the Victoria Lines is a unique experience. The Victoria Lines at Wied il-Faħam, between Madliena and Għargħur. Photo courtesy of The Ramblers’ Association of Malta

In conclusion, the Victoria Lines National Trail would not only serve to give value to what has been, up to now, a neglected heritage asset but also create a pedestrian pathway that cuts across Malta from coast to coast, for the enjoyment of the public and as an additional tourist attraction.

Ray Cachia Zammit is author of the book The Victoria Lines (Midsea Books 2021) and co-founder of the Friends of the Victoria Lines Trail - https://www.facebook.com/FriendsofTheVictoriaLinesTrail/.