Fort Cambell, overlooking St Paul's Islands, is falling into a very serious state disrepair as time, vandals and the elements continue to erode it.

Aside from the tonnes of junk that has accumulated over the years as people organise barbecues, illegal parties and more, the elements have really begun to take their toll as concrete roves start to cave in.

The sprawling complex was built in the late 1930's to guard against possible invasion as the storm clouds of World War II began to loom heavily over Europe.

The purpose of the fort

Fort Campbell was the last major British fort to be built in Malta whose main function was to protect the island from the sea. It was armed with two six-inch BL (breech-loading) coastal guns. The platforms they sat on can still be clearly seen, and inside the pillbox, one can even see the original paint to show where shells and cartridges were stored.

The defensive perimeter and the interior elements of the fort were laid out to blend in with the natural surroundings. Many of the outside walls are built similarly to the rubble walls in surrounding fields, in order to be less identifiable by the enemy from both the coast and the air.

Defensive features

To defend against assault, Fort Campbell was designed with a number of fixed perimeter defence posts, similar to the concrete pillboxes which also began to appear around the bays and beaches at the time.

The main garrison quarters still stand, but many of them have been vandalised and torched. Anything of value has long gone. The underground magazine was connected to a number of underground passages that led to the surface via vertical channels fitted with metal rungs. These are now filled with rubble and all manner of trash, which, however, at least prevents anyone from getting inside and getting lost.

Decommissioning

After WWII, the fort became obsolete and by 1949, presence there had been relegated to a bare minimum. By the 1979's, it was only a watchman who kept guard, though vandalism had already begun to take place. There have been efforts to regenerate the area, but unless urgent action is taken now, it will all just collapse and rot away.