Fortress of Niha

Last updated
Fortress of Niha
Fortress of Niha.jpg
Fortress of Niha
General information
Type Fort
Location Niha Chouf, Lebanon
Completed~975 AD

The Fortress of Niha (also called Cave of Tyron in Frankish sources and Chquif Tayroun in Arabic sources) is an ancient fortress in Lebanon, first mentioned in historical records in 975 AD. It is located in the municipality of Niha Chouf in Lebanon, and is today visited as cultural heritage in the Shouf Cedar Nature Reserve.

Carved into the rock of a cliff overlooking the Bisri and 'Aray valley, the Fortress of Niha overlooks the road between Sidon and the Beqaa valley. It was first mentioned in 975 AD and then again in 1133. Control over the fortress alternated between the Crusaders and local Muslims until its destruction in 1261. In 1270, the Mamluk leader Baibars ordered it rebuilt. In 1585, the Emir Qorqomaz Maan probably took refuge in it briefly before his death. It is alleged that the Emir Fakhr-al-Din II also found refuge there before he was executed by the Pasha of Damascus in 1635, but it might more probably have been his father Emir Korkomaz, in 1584. [1]

Shaped like a cave over a hundred meters deep, the fortress features chambers and rooms which were excavated in order to shelter soldiers and as depots for domestic work. Water resources were provided both by a rain collection system and through a pipe from the 'Ain el-Halquoum spring. It also had a considerable number of silos for storing provisions. The fortress was well fortified and enclosed in a wall pierced with openings. Several levels of habitations were leaning against the cliff and built using beams which were based on the rock and rested on the cliff wall.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chouf District</span> District in Mount Lebanon Governorate, Lebanon

Chouf is a historic region of Lebanon, as well as an administrative district in the governorate (muhafazat) of Mount Lebanon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kadisha Valley</span> Valley in North Governate, Lebanon

Kadisha Valley, also romanized as the Qadisha Valley and also known as the Kadisha Gorge or Wadi Kadisha, is a gorge that lies within the Bsharri and Zgharta Districts of the North Governorate of Lebanon. The valley was carved by the Kadisha River, also known as the Nahr Abu Ali when it reaches Tripoli. Kadisha means "Holy" in Aramaic, and the valley is sometimes called the Holy Valley. It has sheltered Christian monastic communities for many centuries. The valley is located at the foot of Mount al-Makmal in northern Lebanon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carl Wark</span> Promontory in Sheffield, England

Carl Wark is a rocky promontory on Hathersage Moor in the Peak District National Park, just inside the boundary of Sheffield, England. The promontory is faced by vertical cliffs on all but one side, which is protected by a prehistoric embankment. The cliffs and embankment form an enclosure that has been interpreted as an Iron Age hill fort, though the date of construction and purpose of the fortifications remains unknown. The site is a scheduled monument.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deir al-Qamar</span> Place in Mount Lebanon Governorate

Deir al-Qamar is a city south-east of Beirut in south-central Lebanon. It is located five kilometres outside of Beiteddine in the Chouf District of the Mount Lebanon Governorate at 800 m of average altitude.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jabal Amil</span> Region of southern Lebanon

Jabal Amil, also spelled Jabal Amel and historically known as Jabal Amila, is a cultural and geographic region in Southern Lebanon largely associated with its long-established, predominantly Twelver Shia Muslim inhabitants. Its precise boundaries vary, but it is generally defined as the mostly highland region on either side of the Litani River, between the Mediterranean Sea in the west and the Wadi al-Taym, Beqaa and Hula valleys in the east.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Arbel</span> Mountain in Israel

Mount Arbel is a mountain in The Lower Galilee near Tiberias in Israel, with high cliffs, views of Mount Hermon and the Golan Heights, a cave-fortress, and ruins of an ancient synagogue. Mount Arbel sits across from Mount Nitai; their cliffs were created as a result of the geological processes leading to the creation of the Jordan Rift Valley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Al Shouf Cedar Nature Reserve</span> Nature reserve in Lebanon

Al Shouf Cedar Nature Reserve is a nature reserve in the Chouf and Aley districts of Lebanon. It is located on the slopes of Jebel Baruk mountain and has an area of 550 km2 (210 sq mi), nearly 5.3% of the Lebanese territory, making it the largest natural reserve in Lebanon.

The Battle of Ain Dara occurred in the village of Ain Dara, in Mount Lebanon in 1711, between the Qaysi and Yamani, two rival tribo-political factions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tourism in Lebanon</span> Tourism in Lebanon

The tourism industry in Lebanon has been important to the local economy historically and comprises a major source of revenue for the country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ma'n dynasty</span> Druze chieftains of southern Mount Lebanon

The Ma'n dynasty, also known as the Ma'nids;, were a family of Druze chiefs of Arab stock based in the rugged Chouf area of southern Mount Lebanon who were politically prominent in the 15th–17th centuries. Traditional Lebanese histories date the family's arrival in the Chouf to the 12th century, when they were held to have struggled against the Crusader lords of Beirut and of Sidon alongside their Druze allies, the Tanukh Buhturids. They may have been part of a wider movement by the Muslim rulers of Damascus to settle militarized Arab tribesmen in Mount Lebanon as a buffer against the Crusader strongholds along the Levantine coast. Fakhr al-Din I, the first member of the family whose historicity is certain, was the "emir of the Chouf", according to contemporary sources and, despite the non-use of mosques by the Druze, founded the Fakhreddine Mosque in the family's stronghold of Deir al-Qamar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Lebanon under Ottoman rule</span>

The Ottoman Empire nominally ruled Mount Lebanon from its conquest in 1516 until the end of World War I in 1918.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Niha, Chouf</span> Place in Mount Lebanon Governorate, Lebanon

Niha is a town in the Chouf which belongs to Mount Lebanon of Lebanon. The town is 44 miles from Beirut and it has about 3,750 hectares; there are 6,500 inhabitants of Druze and Christian. However, there are only two public schools in the city. It is famous because of its olive groves and its grapes, apples, plums and almonds production. Its tourist attractions are The church of Saint Joseph, El Qa'ah Spring, The prophet Job tomb and Niha's Castle. Like all Lebanon's corners, Niha owns a cultural or historical richness that dwells in the heritage of the country. Lebanese singer Wadih El Safi was born in Niha. The population speaks Lebanese Arabic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tannourine</span> Town in Batroun, Lebanon

Tannourine is a Lebanese town located in the Batroun District, part of the Governorate of North Lebanon, 80 km from the capital Beirut. Tannourine is formed by a cluster of mountain settlements located in the highs of the Batroun District, the largest of which is Tannourine El-Fawqa, followed by Chatine,Tannourine El-Tahta, and Wata Houb. Tannourine has a population of approximately 25,000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Niha, Zahlé</span> Place in Beqaa Governorate, Lebanon

Niha is a village in the Bekaa Valley about 18 km (5.0 mi) north of Zahlé. It is famous for its Roman archeological ruins in the outskirts, and in particular two lower Roman temples that date back to the 1st century AD.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ain W Zain</span> Place in Mount Lebanon Governorate, Lebanon

Ain W Zain also known as Ain Wazein is a Lebanese village in the Chouf District in the Mount Lebanon Governorate

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cave castle</span>

A cave castle or grotto castle is a residential or refuge castle that has been built into a natural cave. It falls within the category of hill castles. Unlike other types, such castles can only be assaulted from the front, or by drilling through the rock above; the gateway is usually located in the middle of a rock face, which makes it much more difficult to penetrate. Archaeological discoveries have revealed that caves were used as places of refuge as early as the Stone Age. The first medieval cave castles emerged in the 11th and 12th centuries. In the 14th and 15th centuries this type became more widespread, especially in certain parts of France and Switzerland.

Wadi al-Taym, also transliterated as Wadi el-Taym, is a wadi that forms a large fertile valley in Lebanon, in the districts of Rachaya and Hasbaya on the western slopes of Mount Hermon. It adjoins the Beqaa Valley running north to south towards the Jordan Valley where it meets the northwest corner of Lake Huleh. Watered by the Hasbani river, the low hills of Wadi al-Taym are covered with rows of silver-green olive trees with the population in the area being predominantly Druze and Sunni, with a high number of Christians, mostly Greek Orthodox. Wadi al-Taym is generally considered the "birthplace of the Druze faith".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hosn Niha</span>

Hosn Niha is an archaeological site in Lebanon composed of some temples and buildings in the outskirts of the village of Niha, that hold significant archaeological value.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Augusti Pagus (Roman Phoenicia)</span> Roman settlement in Roman Phoenicia

Augusti Pagus was a Roman settlement in Roman Phoenicia. It was created in the 110s AD and lasted nearly seven centuries until the Arab invasion of the Levant. The settlement was named in honor of Roman Emperor Augustus, who ordered the development of this pagus in the central-northern hills of the Beqaa Valley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of the Chouf region</span>

The Chouf region, also spelled Shouf, is a historical and geographical area located in the central part of Lebanon. Like much of Lebanon, the Chouf was inhabited by the Phoenicians, an ancient Semitic civilization known for their seafaring skills and trade. However, Evidence of inhabitance in the mountains dates back to the 5th century B.C.E. and archaeological evidence, consisting of Roman burial sites and pottery has proved a continuous inhabitation since 450 B.C.E.

References

  1. "Niha (Chouf) - Localiban". Archived from the original on 2023-10-14. Retrieved 2013-03-08.

33°34′47″N35°36′32″E / 33.57978318°N 35.60890259°E / 33.57978318; 35.60890259