It was named after Martin Garzez, the Grand Master who financed its construction, even though it was eventually built after his death during the Magistry of Alof de Wignacourt.

The tower was demolished in the 19th century; some remains were reused for the building of a bridge, and the site was developed with a hotel.

[3] In the fifteenth to seventeenth centuries, Gozo was prone to attacks by Barbary corsairs, along with most of Malta and other coastal areas in the Mediterranean and Europe.

The worst attack occurred in July 1551, when Ottoman forces aided by corsairs tried to take over Malta but failed so they landed in Gozo, besieged the Cittadela and took almost the entire population of about 5,000 to 6,000 people as slaves (with the exception of a monk, some 40 elderly Gozitans and about 300 who managed to escape and hide).

The Grand Master at that time, Martin Garzez, realized this so he decided to finance the building of a tower himself.

Other Grand Masters built smaller watchtowers such as the Lascaris and De Redin towers.