Victoria Lines

The complex network of linear fortifications known collectively as the Victoria Lines, cutting across the width of the island north of the old capital of Mdina, is a unique monument of military architecture. When built by the British military in the late 19th century, it was designed to present a physical barrier to invading forces landed in the north of Malta and intent on attacking the harbour installations so vital for the maintenance of the British fleet, the source of British power in the Mediterranean.  Although never tested in battle, this system of defences, spanning across some 12 km of land and combining different types of fortifications - forts, batteries, entrenchments, stop walls, infantry lines, searchlight emplacements and howitzer positions - consitituted a unique ensemble of  varied military elements all brought together to enforce the strategy adopted by the British for the defence of Malta in the latter half of the 19th century. A singular solution  which exploited the defensive advantages of geography and technology as no other work of fortifications does in the Maltese islands.