The Balearic island of Menorca is positively tranquil in contrast to its disco-pounding neighbours Ibiza and Majorca, but don’t think that ‘tranquil’ equates with ‘boring’.

Menorca is just 30 miles long and 12 miles wide, which means that even on a short holiday you can see most of what this often-overlooked jewel has to offer, especially if you are a history buff.

The island was a British colony in the 18th century, visited by Admiral Lord Nelson and his mistress, Lady Hamilton.

With a natural harbour – second only to Pearl Harbor in size – it is not surprising that Mahon was chosen by the admiral as the base for the British in the Mediterranean.

Britain seized Menorca during the War of the Spanish Succession in 1708 and held it until the French invaded in 1756 in a battle at the start of the Seven Years War. Eventually, it was handed back to Spain in 1802.

You just have to look at the buildings to see what influence centuries of foreign invaders have had on the island’s architecture, and it’s not only the buildings that show their British heritage.

Many of the street names in the village of Es Castell are in English, a hangover from when it was known as Georgetown.

Old British naval and military installations are everywhere around Mahon harbour, and among the plethora crying out to be visited is the old army hospital on Kings Island. After being abandoned in the 1970s it was left to the elements for decades, but today, thanks to the efforts of the Friends of the Isla del Rey Hospital, it is being restored.

Now, as you wander through the atmospheric rooms, you can almost hear long-dead sailors calling for the surgeon, or perhaps their mother. This is a place that earned its nickname of ‘bloody’ island.

On the south side of the entrance of Mahon harbour lie the ruins of the castle of San Felipe, occupied by the British for more than half a century.

Sovereignty of Menorca was given to the British with the signing of the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713, but even before the ink was dry, the castle was being expanded and its defence systems strengthened. We managed to hang on to it until 1782, when the island was taken by the Spanish and the castle surrendered.

Also in the mouth of Mahon harbour on the cove of Sant Esteve is Fort Marlborough, built by the British between 1710 and 1726, and named after Sir John Churchill, first Duke of Marlborough, the most outstanding British general of the time.

Of course, Menorca has far more to commend it to visitors than simply a place to see monuments to bloody battles. It also has some oddities.

What is impressive is Lithica – a monumental sculpted landscape of incredible beauty, but not a place to visit if you suffer from vertigo, because it’s a jaw-droppingly long way down.

Now home to a beautiful botanical garden and occasional concert venue, you can wander through the wondrous canyons and marvel at the myriad of colours caused by erosion.

One other curiosity is the Naveta des Tudons, just one of 1,000 listed megalithic monuments, a burial chamber built by Bronze Age farmers around 3,000 years ago. It may be enigmatic, but to me it looked like an old-fashioned beehive. It certainly seemed to impress the Japanese tourists crowding around.

Nearby is Ciutadella, Menorca’s second city, where to wander the streets is to lose yourself in the history of conquerors like the Carthaginians, Moors, Turks and, of course, the British.

Fornells, on a long inlet on the north coast, is a whitewashed fishing village often visited by King Juan Carlos I of Spain, who sails over on his yacht to enjoy lunch at a harbour-side restaurant called Es Plas.

Even more picturesque is Binibeca Vell, another whitewashed village, on the south coast, which looks even older than Fornells. But it’s a complete fake which caused an outcry when it was built in the early 1970s – now 40 years on it sits comfortably in its surroundings.

Along the coast is Cova d’en Xoroi, reached by a series of steps on the outside of the cliff face where caves have been turned into bars and a nightclub, with lookout platforms from which you can enjoy the stunning views and reflect on the island’s ancient history that has made it what it is today.

Fact File

  • Menorca from Leeds-Bradford Airport with Jet2holidays.com.
  • Jet2.com provides a direct service from Leeds-Bradford Airport to Mahon, three times a week.

    Flights start from £29.99 one way, including all taxes.

  • For more information and flight bookings, visit jet2. com.
  • For package bookings to Menorca, visit jet2holidays. com or call 0800 4085599.
  • Sue Ward stayed at the Hotel Son Granot, Mahon. Visit songranot.com.
  • For details of museums, go to museomilitarmenorca.com