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Tripoli Lebanon

Tripoli (Trablous) , 85 Km North of Beirut, has a special character all its own due to its historical wealth, relaxed lifestyle and thriving business climate, this is the city where modern and medieval blend easily into a lively and hospitable metropolis. Known as the capital of the North, Tripoli is Lebanon's second largest city.


Of the Mamluk city 195 monuments remain. The monuments include the whole range of religious, civil, and military architecture such as mosques, madrassahs, khans, and the Saint-Gilles Citadel.


Forty-five buildings in the city, many dating from the 14th century, have been registered as historical sites. Twelve Mosque from the Mamluk and Ottoman times have survived along with an equal number of Madrassas or theological schools. Secular buildings include the hammam or bathing-house, which followed the classical pattern of Roman- Byzantine baths, and the Khan or caravansary. The Souks, together with the Khan, form an agglomeration of various trades where tailors, jewelers, perfumeries, tanners and soap-makers work in surroundings that have changed very little over the last 500 years. Tripoli is classified 2nd in the world with its fascinating Mamlouk architecture.

History

Habitation of the site of Tripoli goes back to at least the 14th century BC, but it wasn't until about the 9th century BC that the Phoenicians established a small trading station there. Later, under the Persians, it was home to a confederation of the Phoenician city states of Sidon, Tyre and Arados Island. Built on the trade and invasion route near the Abu Ali river (Qadisha river), Tripoli's strategic position was enhanced by offshore islands, natural ports and access to the interior. Tripolitan Craftsmen were renowned throughout the Mediterranean for their skills at glass making and fabric weaving; and a thriving intellectual class dwelt on poetry, art and philosophy.


Under Roman rule, starting with the take-over of the area by Pompey in 64-63 BC, the city flourished. During this period the Romans built several monuments in the city. The Byzantine city of Tripolis, which by then extended to the south, was destroyed, along with other Mediterranean coastal cities, by an earthquake and tidal wave in 551.

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