The Triq Gnien Ingraw defence post in Mellieha was devolved to the Local Council yesterday evening, during the soft opening of the activities during Mellieha Nights 2009.
Its tale is by no means a short one, as it was towards the end of the 19th century when the British first abandoned the idea of defending Malta from the Victoria Lines southwards, consequently abandoning the North to the enemy.
The formulation of a new defence plan resulted in the decision to defend the entire island, ensuring that enemy forces would have no hope of setting foot upon Maltese territory in the process.
The idea was to set up defences in various vulnerable bays in the North, including that of Mellieha. These would in turn be defended by infantry soldiers. However, before officially abandoning the Victoria Lines, the British Military Authorities began to look into acquiring the necessary land.
An interesting piece of trivia is that during the time of construction of the Mellieha Parish Church, the British considered building a fort on the promontory of Mellieha Ridge, so as to get better coverage of Mellieha Bay.
They took their time deciding on how best to defend Mellieha, but construction of the rock-hewn trench began in 1903, after acquisition of the land. Although in this case the Mellieha Ridge defences are the issue, it is worth noting that three similar defences were constructed parallel to it.
The defence post was probably manned permanently during the First World War, in case a German or Austro-Hungarian warship attempted to land their troops in Mellieha Bay. During the Inter-War period the British defensive strategy remained practically the same as that of the First World War.
During and after the Abyssinian Crisis of 1935-36, however, the situation changed, when Fascist Italy invaded and conquered Abyssinia (Ethiopia). Aware of the fact the Italian Fascists were interested in Malta, the British became anxious and as a result, started to beef up their defences.
In the run up to the Second World War the trench was equipped with modifications such as the inclusion of both covered and open machine gun tables, an observation post, an ammunition store recess and a semi-underground concrete accommodation bunker.
The Mellieha Ridge Defence was incorporated with the defensive lines as formulated by the British Military Authorities. It consisted of three lines of defence: beach-posts, depth-posts and reserve posts.
It was a stronghold for the Maltese soldiers from “A” Company of the 1st Battalion King’s Own Malta Regiment, armed with Vickers 0.303-inch machine-guns, Lee Enfield rifles, Mills hand-grenades and other small arms, during WWII.