The Riyadh city wall () was an 18th century earth-structured fortified wall that encircled one of the

old city Old City often refers to old town, the historic or original core of a city or town. Old City may refer to several places: Historical cities or regions of cities ''(by country)'' *Old City (Baku), Azerbaijan * Old City (Dhaka), Bangladesh, also ca ...

regions of

Riyadh Riyadh (, ar, الرياض, 'ar-Riyāḍ, lit.: 'The Gardens' Najdi pronunciation: ), formerly known as Hajr al-Yamamah, is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of the Riyadh Province and the centre of the R ...

in present-day

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...

intermittently between 1704 and 1950.

Overview

The early origins of the wall dated back to 18th century during the reign of Riyadh's ruler Daham bin Dawas al-Shaalan and was razed and rebuilt on numerous occasions over the course of time. The wall was renovated for the last time by

Ibn Saud Abdulaziz bin Abdul Rahman Al Saud ( ar, عبد العزيز بن عبد الرحمن آل سعود, ʿAbd al ʿAzīz bin ʿAbd ar Raḥman Āl Suʿūd; 15 January 1875Ibn Saud's birth year has been a source of debate. It is generally accepted ...

soon after the Battle of Riyadh in 1902 before it was finally demolished in 1950 in order to pave the way for the city's expansion. The wall had 9 gates, which were known as ''darawiz'' (), the plural Arabized form of the Persian word ''darwazah'' (), meaning gateway.

History

Historical accounts largely credit Riyadh's 18th century ruler Daham bin Dawas al-Shalaan for being the first one to erect a wall around Riyadh in around 1704. After expelling the Ottoman-backed Egyptian forces from

Najd Najd ( ar, نَجْدٌ, ), or the Nejd, forms the geographic center of Saudi Arabia, accounting for about a third of the country's modern population and, since the Emirate of Diriyah, acting as the base for all unification campaigns by the H ...

and reinstating the

Second Saudi State The Emirate of Nejd or Imamate of Nejd was the Second Saudi State, existing between 1824 and 1891 in Nejd, the regions of Riyadh and Ha'il of what is now Saudi Arabia. Saudi rule was restored to central and eastern Arabia after the Emirate of D ...

in 1824, Imam Turki al-Saud ordered the reconstruction of Daham's walls. However, after the victory of the

Rashidi dynasty The Rasheed dynasty, also called Al Rasheed or the House of Rasheed ( ar, آل رشيد ; ), was a historic Arabian House or dynasty that existed in the Arabian Peninsula between 1836 and 1921. Its members were rulers of the Emirate of Ha'il an ...

in the

Battle of Mulayda The Battle of Mulayda was the last major battle during the period of the Second Saudi State which occurred on 21 January 1891. Following problems over Zakat and the arrest of the Rashidi leader, Ibn Sabhan, the Rashidis planned to end the Saudi St ...

against the

House of Saud The House of Saud ( ar, آل سُعُود, ʾĀl Suʿūd ) is the ruling royal family of Saudi Arabia. It is composed of the descendants of Muhammad bin Saud, founder of the Emirate of Diriyah, known as the First Saudi state (1727–1818), and ...

in 1891, the new ruler of Najd

Ibn Rashid The Rasheed dynasty, also called Al Rasheed or the House of Rasheed ( ar, آل رشيد ; ), was a historic Arabian House or dynasty that existed in the Arabian Peninsula between 1836 and 1921. Its members were rulers of the Emirate of Ha'il a ...

went on to desecrate and destroy much of al-Saud's structures, including the Riyadh wall. After

deposed the Rashidis in 1902 after the Battle of Riyadh, he ordered the rehabilitation of the wall in order to safeguard the city from trespassers and invaders and was demolished nearly four decades later in 1950 when Riyadh underwent modernization and expansion.

Gates

The Riyadh city wall had around 5 to 9 gates and 20 watchtowers. * Al-Thumairi Gate, purportedly named after Hassan al-Thamiri, the guard who was killed during the Battle of Dalaqa * Al-Qiri Gate * Masdah Gate * Badiah Gate * Al-Suwailem Gate * Al-Dhahirah Gate * Dukhnah Gate * Arar Gate

Districts and landmarks that fell within the walls

The following were within the walls: * Al-Zahirah neighborhood * Al-Daho neighborhood * Al-Ajnab neighborhood * Al-Qadimah neighborhood * Al-Hukm Palace * Mueqilia neighborhood * Al-Muqbiriah neighborhood * Al-Quna neighborhood * Dukhnah neighborhood

References

{{coord missing, Saudi Arabia

City wall A defensive wall is a fortification usually used to protect a city, town or other settlement from potential aggressors. The walls can range from simple palisades or earthworks to extensive military fortifications with towers, bastions and gates ...

Fortifications in Saudi Arabia City walls