List of castles in Syria

This is a list of castles in Syria.

Key

Key
Name	Name of the surviving building, either how it is popularly known in English, its medieval name or its Arabic name
Type	Usually the type of castle represented by the predominant surviving fortified remains
Date	Usually the dates of the principal building works relating to the surviving remains
Condition	An indication as to what remains of the original castle structure
Image	Building or site as it currently exists
Coordinates	Location of the castle
Governorate	Governorate in which the castle is located
Notes	Brief description or information of note

List of castles

Located under Israeli occupation.

Name	Type	Date	Condition	Image	Coordinates	Governorate	Notes
Citadel of Aleppo	Castle	12th–13th centuries	Partially restored		36°11′57″N37°09′45″E / 36.19917°N 37.16250°E / 36.19917; 37.16250 (Citadel of Aleppo)	Aleppo	Covers an ancient tell with remains dating back to the 3rd millennium BCE.
Qal'at Najm	Hilltop castle	12th–13th centuries	Partially restored		36°33′18″N38°15′42″E / 36.55500°N 38.26167°E / 36.55500; 38.26167 (Qal'at Najm)	Aleppo	Besieged in 1820 by Ottoman forces after a local warlord had sought refuge in the castle.[1]
Citadel of Damascus	Castle	11th–13th centuries	Partially restored		33°30′42″N36°18′7″E / 33.51167°N 36.30194°E / 33.51167; 36.30194 (Citadel of Damascus)	Damascus	Part of the Ancient City of DamascusWorld Heritage Site.[2]
Citadel of Bosra	Castle		Partially restored		32°31′04″N36°28′54″E / 32.51778°N 36.48167°E / 32.51778; 36.48167 (Citadel of Bosra)	Daraa	Built around a Roman theatre. Part of the Ancient City of BosraWorld Heritage Site.[3]
Halabiye	Hilltop castle	6th century	Ruins		35°41′22″N39°49′08″E / 35.68944°N 39.81889°E / 35.68944; 39.81889 (Halabiye)	Deir ez-Zor	Originally fortified by Queen Zenobia of Palmyra, refortified under the Byzantine Emperor Justinian I and partially re-used after the Muslim conquest of Syria.[4]
Qal'at Rahbeh	Hilltop castle		Ruins		35°00′18″N40°25′24″E / 35.00500°N 40.42333°E / 35.00500; 40.42333 (Qal'at Rahbeh)	Deir ez-Zor	Much of the current structure dates back to its construction by the Ayyubid lord, Shirkuh II, in 1207.
Qal'at Sukkara	Hilltop castle		Ruins		36°25′38″N40°23′56″E / 36.42722°N 40.39889°E / 36.42722; 40.39889 (Qal'at Sukkara)	Al Hasakah	Located in the Jebel Abd al-Aziz.
Qalʿat Abū Qubais	Hilltop castle		Partially restored		35°14′05.9″N36°19′50.8″E / 35.234972°N 36.330778°E / 35.234972; 36.330778 (Qalʿat Abū Qubais)	Hama
Citadel of Hama	Castle		Ruins		35°08′10″N36°44′58″E / 35.13611°N 36.74944°E / 35.13611; 36.74944 (Citadel of Hama)	Hama	Excavated by a Danish expedition between 1931 and 1938.[5]
Qalaat al-Madiq	Hilltop castle		Residential area		35°25′12″N36°23′33″E / 35.42000°N 36.39250°E / 35.42000; 36.39250 (Qal'at al-Madiq)	Hama
Qal'at al-Rahiyya	Castle		Ruins		35°16′45″N37°6′30″E / 35.27917°N 37.10833°E / 35.27917; 37.10833 (Qal'at al-Rahiyya)	Hama	The castle dates back to the second millennium BC.[6]
Masyaf Castle	Spur castle		Partially restored		35°03′58″N36°20′36″E / 35.06611°N 36.34333°E / 35.06611; 36.34333 (Masyaf Castle)	Hama
Shaizar	Spur castle		Partially restored		35°15′55″N36°33′59″E / 35.26528°N 36.56639°E / 35.26528; 36.56639 (Shaizar)	Hama
Shmemis	Hilltop castle		Ruins		35°02′13″N37°00′49″E / 35.03694°N 37.01361°E / 35.03694; 37.01361 (Shmemis)	Hama
Citadel of Homs	Castle		Ruins		34°43′25″N36°42′52″E / 34.72361°N 36.71444°E / 34.72361; 36.71444 (Citadel of Homs)	Homs	Built on top of an ancient tell with remains dating back to the 3rd millennium BCE.[7]
Fakhr-al-Din al-Maani Castle	Hilltop castle		Partially restored		34°33′46″N38°15′25″E / 34.56278°N 38.25694°E / 34.56278; 38.25694 (Fakhr-al-Din al-Maani Castle)	Homs
Qasr al-Hayr al-Gharbi	Desert castle		Ruins		34°22′28″N37°36′21″E / 34.37444°N 37.60583°E / 34.37444; 37.60583 (Qasr al-Hayr al-Gharbi)	Homs
Qasr al-Hayr al-Sharqi	Desert castle		Ruins		35°4′26″N39°4′16″E / 35.07389°N 39.07111°E / 35.07389; 39.07111 (Qasr al-Hayr al-Sharqi)	Homs
Krak des Chevaliers	Hilltop castle		Partially restored		34°45′25″N36°17′4″E / 34.75694°N 36.28444°E / 34.75694; 36.28444 (Krak des Chevaliers)	Homs	Part of the Crac des Chevaliers and Qal'at Salah El-DinWorld Heritage Site.[8]
Harem Castle	Hilltop castle		Ruins		36°12′27″N36°31′09″E / 36.20750°N 36.51917°E / 36.20750; 36.51917 (Harem Castle)	Idlib
Sarmada	Hilltop castle		Ruins		36°11′N36°43′E / 36.183°N 36.717°E / 36.183; 36.717	Idlib
Bani Qahtan Castle	Hilltop castle		Ruins		35°23′44″N36°09′15″E / 35.39556°N 36.15417°E / 35.39556; 36.15417 (Bani Qahtan Castle)	Latakia
Bourzey castle	Hilltop castle		Ruins		35°39′29″N36°15′39″E / 35.65806°N 36.26083°E / 35.65806; 36.26083 (Bourzey Castle)	Latakia
Mahalibeh Castle	Hilltop castle		Partially restored		35°30′28″N36°05′14″E / 35.50778°N 36.08722°E / 35.50778; 36.08722 (Mahalibeh Castle)	Latakia
Qal'at Salah ed-Din	Spur castle		Partially restored		35°35′45″N36°03′26″E / 35.59583°N 36.05722°E / 35.59583; 36.05722 (Qal'at Salah ed-Din)	Latakia	Part of the Crac des Chevaliers and Qal'at Salah El-Din World Heritage Site.[8]
Nimrod Fortress	Hilltop castle	13th century			33°15′10″N35°42′53″E / 33.25278°N 35.71472°E / 33.25278; 35.71472 (Nimrod Fortress)	Quneitra	Located in the Golan Heights
Castle of al-Al	Castle					Quneitra	Located in the Golan Heights
Qasr Bardawil	Hilltop castle				32°49′11.23″N35°44′32.57″E / 32.8197861°N 35.7423806°E / 32.8197861; 35.7423806 (Nimrod Fortress)	Quneitra	Located in the Golan Heights
Citadel of Raqqa	Castle	13th century	Destroyed		35°56′4″N39°00′5″E / 35.93444°N 39.00139°E / 35.93444; 39.00139 (Citadel of Raqqa)	Raqqa	The citadel was completely removed and built over in the 1950s.[9]
Qal'at Ja'bar	Hilltop castle	12th century	Partially restored		35°53′51″N38°28′51″E / 35.89750°N 38.48083°E / 35.89750; 38.48083 (Qal'at Ja'bar)	Raqqa	Originally situated on a hilltop overlooking the Euphrates Valley but now turned into an island by the flooding of Euphrates Lake.[10]
Jabal Sais	Desert castle/fortification	7th century	Ruins		33°16′00″N37°22′00″E / 33.266667°N 37.366667°E / 33.266667; 37.366667 (Jabal Sais)	Rif Dimashq	The fortification sits near an extinct volcano.[11]
Salkhad Castle	Hilltop castle		Ruins		32°29′38″N36°42′36″E / 32.49389°N 36.71000°E / 32.49389; 36.71000 (Salkhad Castle)	Suwayda
Chastel Blanc	Hilltop castle		Partially restored		34°49′14″N36°07′01″E / 34.82056°N 36.11694°E / 34.82056; 36.11694 (Chastel Blanc)	Tartus
Chastel Rouge	Spur castle		Partially restored		34°48′44″N35°58′14″E / 34.81222°N 35.97056°E / 34.81222; 35.97056 (Chastel Rouge)	Tartus
Al-Kahf Castle	Spur castle	12th century	Ruins		35°02′27″N36°04′58″E / 35.04083°N 36.08278°E / 35.04083; 36.08278 (Al-Kahf Castle)	Tartus	In 1192, Rashid ad-Din Sinan, also known as the Old Man of the Mountain, died in Al-Kahf Castle, which was an Ismaili stronghold during the 12th century.[12]
Qala'at Khawabi	Spur castle		Residential area		34°58′22″N36°00′06″E / 34.97278°N 36.00167°E / 34.97278; 36.00167 (Qala'at Khawabi)	Tartus
Burj al-Sabi	Spur castle	12th century	Ruins		35°9′14″N35°55′38″E / 35.15389°N 35.92722°E / 35.15389; 35.92722 (Burj al-Sabi)	Tartus	Castle of Knights Hospitallers
Areimeh Castle	Spur castle	12th century	Ruins		34°44′40″N36°02′33″E / 34.74444°N 36.04250°E / 34.74444; 36.04250 (Areimeh)	Tartus	Castle of Knights Templar
Margat	Spur castle	11th–12th centuries	Partially restored		35°09′08″N35°57′0″E / 35.15222°N 35.95000°E / 35.15222; 35.95000 (Margat)	Tartus	Headquarters of the Knights Hospitaller in Syria.
Maraclea	Hilltop castle	11th century	Ruins		35°4′4″N35°53′26″E / 35.06778°N 35.89056°E / 35.06778; 35.89056 (Maraclea)	Tartus	Castle of Knights Hospitaller
Al-Qadmus Castle	Hilltop castle	11th–12th centuries	Ruins		35°6′5″N36°9′40″E / 35.10139°N 36.16111°E / 35.10139; 36.16111 (Al-Qadmus Castle)	Tartus	Crusader Castle
al-Sheikh Deeb Castle (Qulay'a)	Hilltop castle		Ruins		34°56′52″N36°15′30″E / 34.94778°N 36.25833°E / 34.94778; 36.25833 (al-Sheikh Deeb Castle)	Tartus
Citadel of Tartus	Castle		Residential area		34°53′36″N35°52′35″E / 34.89333°N 35.87639°E / 34.89333; 35.87639 (Citadel of Tartus)	Tartus

See also

• List of castles
• List of Crusader castles

References

1. Sourdel 2010
2. Ancient City of Damascus, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, retrieved 16 March 2011
3. Ancient City of Bosra, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, retrieved 23 August 2011
4. Burns 2009
5. Shaw & Jameson 1999, p. 167
6. "Discovery of a 4,000-year-old military network in northern Syria". cnrs.fr. 19 December 2017.
7. King 2002, p. 42
8. Crac des Chevaliers and Qal'at Salah El-Din, UNESCO World Heritage Centre, retrieved 24 August 2011
9. Heidemann 2006, p. 122
10. Bounni 1977
11. Barker, Graeme (1999). Companion Encyclopedia of Archeology Volume 1-2. London: Routledge. p. 1086. Retrieved 13 December 2021.
12. Willey 2005, p. 234

Sources

• Bounni, Adnan (1977), "Campaign and exhibition from the Euphrates in Syria", The Annual of the American Schools of Oriental Research, 44: 1–7, JSTOR 3768538
• Burns, R. (2009), The monuments of Syria. A guide, London: I.B. Tauris, pp. 160–161, ISBN 9781845119478
• Heidemann, Stefan (2006), "The Citadel of al-Raqqa and Fortifications in the Middle Euphrates Area", in Kennedy, Hugh (ed.), Muslim Military Architecture in Greater Syria: From the Coming of Islam to the Ottoman Period, History of Warfare, vol. 35, Leiden: Brill, pp. 122–150, ISBN 9004147136
• King, G.R.D. (2002), "Archaeological Fieldwork at the Citadel of Homs, Syria: 1995–1999", Levant, 34: 39–58, doi:10.1179/007589102790217336
• Shaw, Ian; Jameson, Robert (1999), A Dictionary of Archaeology, Oxford: Blackwell, ISBN 978-0631174233
• Sourdel, D. (2010), "Ķalat Nadjm", in Bearman, P.; Bianquis, Th.; Bosworth, C.E.; van Donzel, E.; Heinrichs, W.P. (eds.), Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition, Leiden: Brill Online, OCLC 624382576
• Willey, Peter (2005), Eagle's Nest: Ismaili Castles in Iran and Syria, Institute of Ismaili Studies, I.B.Tauris, ISBN 9781850434641