Fort Rinella And Its Armstrong 100-Ton Gun

Fort Rinella is one of a series of four coastal batteries built by the British in Malta and in Gibraltar between the years 1878 and 1886. The purpose for building these forts was for each of them to house an Armstrong 100-ton gun.

The building of these forts was necessitated by Britain’s fear of losing her naval superiority in the Mediterranean to Italy, who was at the time rebuilding her navy to an unprecedented strength.

The British were always sensitive to naval developments in the Mediterranean, more so since the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869. By maintaining her supremacy in the Mediterranean, Britain could make sure of the vital route to India via the Suez Canal.

In the light of all this the emerging of a powerful Italian Navy was regarded as a potential threat to British interests in the Mediterranean.

The 100-ton gun presently at Fort Rinella arrived in Malta from Woolwich on 10th September 1882. After some months the gun was ferried from the Dockyard to Rinella Bay from where it was transported to Fort Rinella.