Because of fear of attacks by the Muslims, the Northern Coastal area remained undeveloped until the diminished attacks after 1565. The building of Spinola Palace, coming as it does in 1688, is to be regarded as the stepping stone for the coastal reclamation of San Ġiljan. The palace, together with the surrounding gardens, was built by Fra Paolo Raffaele Spinola "for the public entertainment" as stated in the inscription which one finds above the portico. The palace was enlarged in 1733 through the efforts of Fra Giovanni Battista Spinola, successor to his uncle as rector and Curator of the Abbazia. During the French occupation of these islands in 1798, St Julians was the first town in Malta to be conquered by French troops. In fact it was General Claude Henri Vaubois who led the French forces into Spinola bay.