In the initial years of British rule it was noted that although the state of houses and general cleanliness of both Vittoriosa and Senglea was impressive, yet very few visitors who came to Valletta bothered to include the other side of the harbour in their sightseeing tours. This indicates that although the naval activity in Cottonera had dictated its socioeconomic well being, it also deprived it from developing as a tourist attraction.

In 1806, soon after the British arrival, a powerful explosion completely destroyed Vittoriosa’s polverista which stood on the site still known as l–Imġarraf, causing over 150 casualties. The blast shattered buildings and window panes as far away as Senglea, Cospicua, and Valletta while the entire surrounding quarters collapsed. Nearby buildings and the bastion’s fortifications were heavily damaged, leaving a badly scarred townscape up until this day.

The British presence in Vittoriosa led to the establishment of the Naval Hospital in Vittoriosa’s old Armoury in 1818. This was then transferred to Bighi in 1832. Later, in 1843, several hundred paupers and boatmen were evicted from the old slave prison in St Lawrence Street to clear the area for the Navy’s plan. After these early initiatives to accommodate their own needs, the British then embarked on a number of social and infrastructural projects to the benefit of the community.

State Primary Schools were opened in Senglea and Vittoriosa in 1819 and 1855 respectively. A Lyceum was also opened in Vittoriosa in 1855 but since attendance was against payment, the school closed down in 1868 owing to a lack of applicants. By 1834, a regular sea transport system was operating as a great number of oar-driven boats plied between Cottonera and Valletta. In 1905 the system was supplemented by an organised steam harbour ferry service between Vittoriosa, Senglea and Valletta – a service which survived up until 1959 when road transport took over.

However the massive structural works undertaken in Cospicua had negatively affected its supply of natural spring water, while the rising civilian and military population residing in the area had increased the demand for such a vital resource. Fully aware of this ensuing water shortage, the Admiralty immediately embarked upon a number of measures to address this problem. In 1845 an aqueduct was created to bring running water to Cottonera while the high grounds of the Santa Margerita Heights were utilised to create water catchment areas. By 1852 Cospicua had two large reservoirs on St Helen’s Heights and a third one was constructed after 1869 between the St Helena and Polverista Gates. Another aqueduct was later added in 1887.

Following the construction of dock No. 1, in the 1850’s the British undertook another major construction project in Cottonera when by 1853 they had built St Clement’s Retrenchment to link the Santa Margerita and Cottonera Lines at the same time providing an Army Barracks for its regiments. In 1865, an ammunition store with a capacity for 12 000 barrels was built in Rinella.

The arrival of gas in the area gradually replaced the street lighting which previously consisted of the oil lamps that illuminated the various statues and niches that stood at practically every street corner. In 1861, a second gas plant was built in Kalkara to supply the needs of Cottonera, Bighi Hospital, and the two docks.

By 1893 Cottonera had 300 gas street lights although the supply of gas was not without its disadvantages. The pollutants emitted from the plant at Kalkara destroyed much of the sea life – particularly the giant prawns for which Kalkara Creek was once so popular. The gas plant was closed down by the beginning of the 1900’s, eventually giving way for electricity which was introduced in Cottonera on the 1st December 1896.

Drainage works were commenced in 1878 but Cottonera still suffered in terms of refuse collection as it relied on private scavengers who collected discarded foodstuffs to sell as fodder or manure. In fact, an advert in the Daily Malta Chronicle of the 2nd March, 1927 called for tenders for the purchase of food leftovers that had been cooked but not consumed – known as gash or gaxxen. This collection service of such food remains had led to an undignified and unhealthy process of having it sorted to be resold to the hungry working classes of the inner harbour area. The issue of the 1937 regulations to control the situation nevertheless reveals the hardships and low living standards that the local population (mainly that outside the Cottonera region) had to suffer at the time.

The British presence in the region had its worst impact on the population of Cottonera in the years during and following the Second World War.

During the 1565 Siege, the population from the open country found refuge and shelter in fortified Birgu and Senglea. In contrast, during the Second World War (1940-45), the population evacuated the walled cities of Cottonera and found refuge in the open country. From the very first day of the war – 11th June 1940 – Cottonera was badly hit and those who remained had to live in rock-dug shelters under incessant air bombardments while regularly witnessing a heavy toll in casualties, as well as the massive and widespread destruction of buildings and infrastructure. After the War, the material damages took years to repair or rebuild whereas the old generation failed to return. As Cottonera was rebuilt, it witnessed the gradual influx of people from nearby villages. However the population exodus was far from replaced by the post-war inflow.

Furthermore, since the 1st November 1858, the Dockyard School was providing the best academic and practical technical training to hundreds of apprentices. These would have turned out to be very skilled workmen with good job opportunities in either the Dockyard itself or in the private sector. By 1957 the Naval Yard employed some 13000 such workers (as many as those engaged in the agricultural, construction, and manufacturing sectors put together) and over half of these resided within Cottonera. The end of the 1956 Suez War and the British Government’s decision to curtail overseas spending saw the immediate downsizing of the yards and their gradual transfer to private hands. Thus, Cottonera’s history now faced another significant twist as the livelihoods of those workers and the prospects of their younger generation were suddenly jeopardised.Also, by handing over a substantial part of the yard to Messrs Ch Bailey in the late 1950s, the Dockyard was practically converted from a naval establishment to a commercial enterprise.

Freedom Monument

In spite of the enhanced capacity brought on by the completion of the Chinese Dock (No. 6) in 1979, it was to shed most of its labour force and, worse still, it eventually witnessed the dismantling of the Dockyard School. In this manner, Cottonera was suddenly stripped of the main source of its socioeconomic wellbeing.

It is therefore no coincidence that the ceremony commemorating the closure of the British base in 1979 took place in Cottonera and precisely in Vittoriosa; on the former site of Xatt iż-Żgħir now Xatt ir-Risq – where history had turned full circle and put an end to four and a half centuries of naval concentration in the Region.