The Dwejra Watch Tower in Gozo: Visitor information

The Dwejra Tower is a small coastal watchtower built in 1652 on the western coast of Gozo, at a place called Dwejra, on the outskirts of the village of San Lawrenz.

You will see the watchtower on the high ground just off the road leading to the small enclosed bay at Dwejra in Gozo, also known as the ‘inland sea’. It is one of six coastal watchtowers built in Gozo during the era of the Knights of St. John. The Dwejra watchtower was commissioned by Grandmaster Jean Paul Lascaris Castellar.

The purpose of the watchtower was to give warnings of enemy approaches, such as pirates and corsairs. When such approaches were sighted, the men inside could signal other watchtowers by using fire at night or smoke during the day.

The Dwejra watchtower was built on a square base with two floors and a turret on the roof from where you can admire the fantastic views of the surrounding area. Before the steep external steps were built, the only way to get into the tower was via a retractable ladder through the top floor–this offered security to the men inside in case the enemy managed to make a landing.

The top floor served as a guardroom and living quarters for a garrison of up to four men. The basement was used for storage while a small gunpowder store was kept on the roof. A water reservoir was dug into the rock underneath the tower. During the times of the Knights, the salt pans in front of the Tower served to raise money to cover maintenance costs for the tower.

After the period of the Knights, the strategic position of the tower ensured that it was not abandoned. It was used during the 18th century and later manned by the Royal Malta Fencible Artillery between 1839 and 1873. During the summer of 1914 Maltese troops from the King’s Own Malta Regiment and the Royal Malta Artillery were dispatched to the coastal watch towers and Dwejra Tower was manned by No. 3 Company.

During the Second World War the Tower was used by the British as an Observation Post.