Editing Blockhouse (section)

== Coastal fortifications in Malta ==
[[File:Tunnara museum.jpeg|thumb|Blockhouse of [[Westreme Battery]], built in 1715–16 in [[Mellieħa]], [[Malta]]]]

Blockhouses were an ubiquitous feature in [[Malta]]'s coastal fortifications built in the 18th century by the [[Knights Hospitaller|Order of St. John]]. Between 1714 and 1716, dozens of [[artillery batteries|batteries]] and [[redoubt]]s were built around the coasts of the Maltese Islands, while a few others were built in the subsequent decades. Almost every battery and redoubt had a blockhouse, which served as gun crew accommodation and a place to store munitions.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Spiteri |first1=Stephen C. |author-link1=Stephen C. Spiteri |title=ARX – Hospitaller Coastal Batteries |url=http://www.militaryarchitecture.com/index.php/Fortifications/18th-century-hospitaller-coastal-batteries.html |website=MilitaryArchitecture.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180908234924/http://www.militaryarchitecture.com/index.php/News/arx-hospitaller-coastal-batteries.html |archive-date=8 September 2018 |date=12 September 2014 |url-status=dead |df=dmy }}</ref>

Many of the batteries consisted of a semi-circular or polygonal gun platform, with one or two blockhouses at the rear. The blockhouses usually had musketry loopholes, and in some cases were linked together by [[redan]]s. Surviving batteries include [[Mistra Battery]] and [[Ferretti Battery]], which both have two blockhouses, and [[Saint Mary's Battery]] and [[Saint Anthony's Battery]], which have a single blockhouse.

Many of the redoubts consisted of a pentagonal platform with a rectangular blockhouse at the rear, although a few had semi-circular or rectangular platforms. Surviving redoubts with blockhouses include [[Baħar iċ-Ċagħaq Redoubt]] and [[Briconet Redoubt]], both of which have a pentagonal plan. A few of the redoubts consisted of a single tower-like blockhouse without a platform, and were known as ''tour-reduits''. Of the four ''tour-reduits'' that were built, only the [[Vendôme Tower]] survives today.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Spiteri |first1=Stephen C. |author-link1=Stephen C. Spiteri |title=18th Century Hospitaller Coastal Batteries |url=http://www.militaryarchitecture.com/index.php/Fortifications/18th-century-hospitaller-coastal-batteries.html |website=MilitaryArchitecture.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160620084250/http://www.militaryarchitecture.com/index.php/Fortifications/18th-century-hospitaller-coastal-batteries.html |archive-date=20 June 2016 |date=10 April 2010 |url-status=dead |df=dmy }}</ref>