Fortress of Jubeil
The ancient Phoenician city of Gebal, better known by the Greek name of Byblos, was occupied by Arabs in 636 without a fight, and they reinterpreted its name to the consonant Arabic word "Jubeil", which means "hill". 28 April 1104 the city was in the hands of the crusaders under the leadership of Count Raymond de Saint-Gilles, who took Jubeil thanks to the help of the Genoese squadron from the 40 galleys. Raymond thanked his allies, giving them a third of the conquered city. The French call the city Gibible.
26 June 1109 Count Bertrand de Saint-Gilles, son of Count Raymond, handed over the entire city to the Genoese for their help in capturing Tripoli, where this time they donated around 60 a galley. One of the squadron commanders, Ugone Embriaco, was put in charge of two new thirds, and after a while got control of the entire city and, finally, became its owner with the right to pass on to the heirs. Italians call the city Biblo (Biblo), which, as can be seen, is closer to the Greek name.
The fortress of the present Jubeil was built by the crusaders out of limestone and the remains of ancient Roman buildings. The defense system included, except for access to the sea, the ring ditch.
In August, Xibus g. Biblo under the contract was transferred to the Egyptian Sultan Salah ad-Din, on the orders of which the walls of the fortress in 1187 were partially dismantled. Later, the crusaders returned the city and in 1190 they restored the city fortifications.
The fortress forms a square and consists of walls with five prominent rectangular towers of different sizes and a donjon. A graceful two-arch bridge leads to the main entrance, located in the north wall. A staircase leads to the bridge.
The area of the fortress on the outer perimeter is about 3,2 thousand square meters. m, the area of the courtyard, along with donzhon - about 1,3 thousand square meters. m, the area of the square donjon - 400 square. m. Distance to the sea from the western wall - 175 m (up to 5 m).
The system of stairways allows you to quickly move around the observation platforms and rooms, which are quite a lot, despite the seemingly small size of the fortress, and which are very roomy. In one of them, to the left of the entrance, there is a museum exposition telling about the ancient stories city.
26 June 1109 Count Bertrand de Saint-Gilles, son of Count Raymond, handed over the entire city to the Genoese for their help in capturing Tripoli, where this time they donated around 60 a galley. One of the squadron commanders, Ugone Embriaco, was put in charge of two new thirds, and after a while got control of the entire city and, finally, became its owner with the right to pass on to the heirs. Italians call the city Biblo (Biblo), which, as can be seen, is closer to the Greek name.
The fortress of the present Jubeil was built by the crusaders out of limestone and the remains of ancient Roman buildings. The defense system included, except for access to the sea, the ring ditch.
In August, Xibus g. Biblo under the contract was transferred to the Egyptian Sultan Salah ad-Din, on the orders of which the walls of the fortress in 1187 were partially dismantled. Later, the crusaders returned the city and in 1190 they restored the city fortifications.
The fortress forms a square and consists of walls with five prominent rectangular towers of different sizes and a donjon. A graceful two-arch bridge leads to the main entrance, located in the north wall. A staircase leads to the bridge.
The area of the fortress on the outer perimeter is about 3,2 thousand square meters. m, the area of the courtyard, along with donzhon - about 1,3 thousand square meters. m, the area of the square donjon - 400 square. m. Distance to the sea from the western wall - 175 m (up to 5 m).
The system of stairways allows you to quickly move around the observation platforms and rooms, which are quite a lot, despite the seemingly small size of the fortress, and which are very roomy. In one of them, to the left of the entrance, there is a museum exposition telling about the ancient stories city.
Stairs to the bridge at the main entrance
The bridge between the stairs and the main entrance
North wall (view from the bridge)
Father of the author of the article
Western wall facing the sea
Information