Bastione di Malta, Military tower in Sant'Eufemia Lamezia, Italy.

Bastione di Malta is a coastal fortress in Sant'Eufemia Lamezia with a truncated pyramidal base and a square tower rising above it. The interior contains four large rooms featuring barrel vaults and a rooftop terrace used for surveillance and artillery positioning.

The bastion was built around 1550 by order of Viceroy Don Pedro de Toledo to reinforce coastal defenses against Barbary pirate attacks. It formed part of a broader defensive strategy protecting southern Italian shores from maritime raids.

The name comes from the Knights of Malta, who held the fief of Sant'Eufemia since the 12th century and received the tower in the 16th. Above the east door, the 1634 inscription and the shield of Fra Signorino Gattinara, Bali of Sant'Eufemia, credit him with supplying the bastion with war machines. His arms show a crowned eagle with spread wings, a Saint Andrew's cross and four lilies.

The fortress sits about 800 meters (2,625 feet) inland from the shore and is accessible when visiting the coastal area of Lamezia Terme. The structure remains in good condition, allowing you to walk through the rooms and climb to the terrace for views of the surrounding landscape.

Unlike typical coastal towers of its era, this fortress features exceptionally thick walls specifically designed to withstand cannon fire and musket attacks. This made it one of the sturdiest defensive structures built during that period in the Mediterranean.