Topic summary

Citadel of Tripoli

Citadel of Tripoli

The Citadel of Tripoli (Arabic: قَلْعَة طَرَابُلُسALA-LC:Qalʻat Ṭarābulus) is a 12th-century fortress in Tripoli, Lebanon. It was built at the top of a hill "during the initial Frankishsiege of the city between 1102 and 1109" on the orders of Raymond de Saint-Gilles, who baptized it the Castle of Mount Pilgrim (French: château du Mont-Pèlerin; Latin: castellum Montis Peregrini) while local Muslims have been referring to it as the Castle of Saint-Gilles (Arabic: قَلْعَة سَان جِيلQalʻat Sān Jīl).

Very little of the original structure has survived, the castle having been rebuilt several times, and for the last time in the early 19th century, when the citadel was extensively restored and rebuilt by the Ottoman governor of Tripoli Mustafa Agha Barbar. The citadel nowadays houses the North Lebanon & Akkar Museum.