Fort Rinella
| Rinella Battery | |
|---|---|
| Batterija ta' Rinella | |
| Kalkara, Malta | |
Entrance to Rinella Battery
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Logo of the Fort Rinella museum
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| Coordinates | 35°53′40″N 14°31′57″E / 35.89444°N 14.53250°E |
| Type | Artillery battery |
| Area | 6,300 m2 (68,000 sq ft) |
| Site information | |
| Operator | Fondazzjoni Wirt Artna |
| Open to the public |
Yes |
| Condition | Intact |
| Website | www.fortrinella.com |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1878–1886 |
| Built by | British Empire |
| In use | 1886–1965 |
| Materials | Limestone and concrete |
Rinella Battery (Maltese: Batterija ta' Rinella) is a Victorian battery in Kalkara, Malta. It is commonly referred to as Fort Rinella (Maltese: Forti Rinella), although it was never classified as a fort while in use. It contains one of two surviving Armstrong 100-ton guns.
The British built the battery between 1878 and 1886 above the shore east of the mouth of Grand Harbour, between Fort Ricasoli and Fort St. Rocco.
The battery was built to contain a single Armstrong 100-ton gun: a 450 mm rifled muzzle-loading (RML) gun made by Elswick Ordnance Company, the armaments division of the British manufacturing company Armstrong Whitworth. The battery is one of a pair; however, the gun on the paired Cambridge Battery near Tigné Point, west of Grand Harbour, no longer exists. The British installed a second pair of 100-ton guns to defend Gibraltar, mounting one each in Victoria Battery (1879) and Napier of Magdala Battery (1883), which did not have Rinella's self-defence capabilities. Only two 100-ton guns survive; one at Rinella Battery, and one at Napier of Magdala Battery.
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