Tigne Point
Encyclopedia
History
Siege of Malta (1565)
The Siege of Malta took place in 1565 when the Ottoman Empire invaded the island, then held by the Knights Hospitaller .The Knights, together with between 4-5,000 Maltese men,...
, the Turkish privateer and Ottoman admiral Dragut ar-Rais
Turgut Reis
Turgut Reis was an Ottoman Admiral and privateer who also served as Bey of Algiers; Beylerbey of the Mediterranean; and first Bey, later Pasha, of Tripoli. Under his naval command the Ottoman Empire maritime was extended across North Africa...
stationed a number of cannons at Tigné Point in a siege to capture Fort St Elmo from the Knights of Malta
Knights Hospitaller
The Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta , also known as the Sovereign Military Order of Malta , Order of Malta or Knights of Malta, is a Roman Catholic lay religious order, traditionally of military, chivalrous, noble nature. It is the world's...
. The extremity of the peninsula still bears his name, Dragut Point.
At the fringe end of the point is Fort Tigné, built in 1792 by the Knights, which is currently being restored as part of the redevelopment project. It became a centre of resistance and rebellion when Napoleon Bonaparte invaded the island in 1798.
During British rule a military barracks
Barracks
Barracks are specialised buildings for permanent military accommodation; the word may apply to separate housing blocks or to complete complexes. Their main object is to separate soldiers from the civilian population and reinforce discipline, training and esprit de corps. They were sometimes called...
was constructed at Tigné. When the British forces left in 1979 after Malta became an independent republic, the barracks fell into decay and neglect.
Redevelopment project
Construction began in 2002 and is expected to be completed circa 2012.The real estate development includes a mix of modern luxurious apartments, hi-tech offices, an aparthotel
Apartment hotel
An Apartment Hotel is a serviced apartment complex that uses a hotel-style booking system. It is similar to renting an apartment, but with no fixed contracts and occupants can 'check-out' whenever they wish....
, a shopping complex, a cinema, an underground multi-story car park, a football pitch
Association football pitch
An association football pitch is the playing surface for the game of association football made of turf. Its dimensions and markings are defined by Law 1 of the Laws of the Game, "The Field of Play".All line markings on the pitch form part of the area which they define...
, and other state of the art health and leisure amenities. The whole area will be completely pedestrian
Pedestrian
A pedestrian is a person traveling on foot, whether walking or running. In some communities, those traveling using roller skates or skateboards are also considered to be pedestrians. In modern times, the term mostly refers to someone walking on a road or footpath, but this was not the case...
ized.