1806 Birgu polverista explosion

Birgu polverista explosion

The fortifications of Birgu close to the site of the explosion
Date 18 July 1806
Time 06:15
Location Birgu, Malta Protectorate
Coordinates 35°53′8.8″N 14°31′18.5″E / 35.885778°N 14.521806°E / 35.885778; 14.521806Coordinates: 35°53′8.8″N 14°31′18.5″E / 35.885778°N 14.521806°E / 35.885778; 14.521806
Type Gunpowder magazine explosion
Cause Negligence
Deaths c. 150–240
Non-fatal injuries c. 100
Property damage Very high

The Birgu polverista explosion was the accidental detonation of ammunition in the gunpowder magazine (polverista) of Birgu in the British protectorate of Malta, on 18 July 1806. The explosion occurred due to negligence while transferring shells from the magazine, and it resulted in the detonation of 40,000 lb (18,000 kg) of gunpowder. The explosion killed around 200 people, including British and Maltese military personnel, and Maltese civilians from Birgu. Parts of the city's fortifications, some naval stores and many houses were destroyed, and the affected area became known as l-Imġarraf (Maltese for "the destroyed").

Background

In the 18th and early 19th centuries, the main gunpowder store in Birgu was located in a casemate within the city walls, close to the Porta Marina. This was an improvised measure since the casemate was not intended to be used as a gunpowder magazine, but such practice was common at the time and gunpowder was also stored in casemates at other locations such as Fort St. Angelo, Fort Ricasoli and Mdina.[1][2]

The Birgu magazine was located close to civilian housing, and the residents had complained about the dangers before the explosion. Although preparations had been made to find alternative sites, nothing had been done since the storerooms that were meant to store gunpowder were being used as barracks or military hospitals.[3]

The 1806 explosion was not the first time that a gunpowder disaster occurred in Malta. On 12 September 1634, a gunpowder factory in Valletta accidentally blew up, killing 22 people and causing severe damage to the Church of the Jesuits and the nearby college.[4] In 1662, gunpowder stored in an echaugette on one of Valletta's counterguards blew up after being hit by lightning, but there were no casualties.[5]

Explosion and casualties

In July 1806, British forces in Malta were preparing ammunition stocks to be sent to Sicily, after ammunition there had run low since it had been used to relieve the defending garrison of Gaeta which had been under siege by the French. On 18 July, the garrison gunner Bdr. Anderson along with a working party of 13 men were preparing a consignment of shells from the Birgu magazine,[3] which was filled at full capacity with 370 barrels containing 40,000 lb (18,000 kg) of gunpowder, as well as 1,600 shells and grenades.[6]

Anderson was using a metal chisel to remove the fuses from live shells, which was contrary to instructions, and this resulted in sparks which caused a massive explosion at 06:15. Anderson and the working party were killed immediately, as were 3 British soldiers of the 39th (Dorsetshire) Regiment of Foot and 23 soldiers of the Maltese Infantry. Around 150[7] to 200 civilians from Birgu were also killed. About 100 others were injured by falling debris.[3]

The explosion frightened the inhabitants of Birgu, and it was also heard in the nearby cities of Senglea and Cospicua, as well as in the surrounding villages.[8]

Damage

Since the magazine was located within the city's fortifications, a section of the walls "went up in the air" and left a large breach.[9] The Porta Marina, one of the city's four gates, along with a small bastion and part of a curtain wall were destroyed, and they were never rebuilt.[10][11] Parts of the Navy Store Houses were also damaged or destroyed during the explosion.[3]

Birgu's cityscape was also altered by the explosion, since a large number of houses were destroyed or damaged, both by the explosion itself and by the rocks which fell from the bastions.[9] 493 people reported property losses due to the explosion.[6] The area which suffered the most severe damage subsequently became known as l-Imġarraf (Maltese for "the destroyed").[7]

Aftermath

Many Maltese people were angered at the loss of lives caused by negligence on behalf of the military. Civil Commissioner Alexander Ball reported that:[3]

“ those Maltese who had already become disaffected with the Government, fanned the embers and fermented great agitation by magnifying the casualties and working upon the weakness and credibility of the lower ranks. ”

Victims and their families were paid partial compensation, and Ball set up a committee overseeing aid distribution. He also urged the government to pay full compensation. This was initially denied, but eventually the poorer classes received a compensation equivalent to two thirds of their property which had been destroyed, while those of the upper classes received half of the value of their property. In 1811, the sum of £18,066.5s.10d[lower-alpha 1] was evenly distributed among those who had claimed damages.[3]

A certain wine merchant, Mr. Woodhouse, lost a large amount of wine and the government provided him with extensive storehouses at the former Slaves' Prison in Valletta as a compensation.[3]

Nine months after the Birgu explosion, on 12 April 1807, rebels during the Froberg mutiny blew up the magazine of Fort Ricasoli. This explosion killed three British sentries and destroyed a considerable part of one of the fort's bastions.[13]

The street close to where the explosion occurred is now known as Triq il-Vittmi tal-Porvlista (Maltese for "Polverista Victims Street"). In 2006, on the 200th anniversary of the disaster, the Vittoriosa Historical & Cultural Society inaugurated a plaque at the St. Lawrence Cemetery, where most of the victims were buried.[7]

Notes

  1. ↑ Comparing 19th-century costs and prices with those of the modern period is challenging. £18,066.5s.10d in 1811 could be equivalent to between £1.2 million and £78.4 million in 2016, depending on the price comparison used.[12]

References

  1. ↑ Spiteri 2012, pp. 18–19
  2. ↑ Spiteri 2012, p. 39
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Explosion Polverista Vittoriosa". Medical Officers of the Malta Garrison. Archived from the original on 22 February 2017.
  4. ↑ Spiteri 2012, p. 6
  5. ↑ Spiteri 2012, p. 38
  6. 1 2 Spiteri 2012, p. 42
  7. 1 2 3 "200th anniversary of the explosion at l-Imgarraf". Vittoriosa Historical & Cultural Society. August 2006. Archived from the original on 19 June 2016.
  8. ↑ The Bulletin, Volume 57, Issue 225 – Volume 58, Issue 232. Military Historical Society (Great Britain). 2006. p. 147.
  9. 1 2 Bugeja, Lino; Buhagiar, Mario; Fiorini, Stanley, eds. (1993). Birgu: A Maltese Maritime City. 1. Malta University Services. pp. 159–160. ISBN 9789990944006.
  10. ↑ "Birgu" (PDF). National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands. 28 June 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 August 2016.
  11. ↑ "Short stretch of stepped curtain wall leading down to Birgu Creek – Birgu" (PDF). National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands. 28 June 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 August 2016.
  12. ↑ Officer, Lawrence H.; Williamson, Samuel H. (2014). "Five Ways to Compute the Relative Value of a UK Pound Amount, 1270 to Present". MeasuringWorth.com. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
  13. ↑ Dandria, David (1 February 2015). "The 1807 Froberg regiment mutiny at Fort Ricasoli". Times of Malta. Archived from the original on 14 March 2015.

Bibliography

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