Fakhr-al-Din al-Maani Castle
Homs Governorate, Syria
Open to visitors
The interior is normally open, possibly ticketed.
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Fakhr-al-Din al-Ma'ani Castle, also known as Palmyra Castle or Tadmur Castle, overlooks the ancient city of Palmyra in Syria's Homs Governorate. Built by the Mamluks in the 13th century atop a high hill of raised bedrock, the fortress was named for the Druze emir Fakhr-al-Din II, who extended Druze territorial control to the Palmyra region during the 16th century. The castle's strategic position afforded strong natural defenses, enhanced by thick, high walls and a surrounding moat accessible only by drawbridge. In 1980, the castle and Palmyra's monumental ruins—remnants of one of the ancient world's most significant cultural centers—were designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site, later placed on the endangered list in 2013 due to the Syrian Civil War. The structure suffered extensive damage during repeated seizures by ISIS between 2015 and 2017, though Syrian authorities deemed the basic structure intact and repairable.
- Built
- Type
- castle
- Place
- Homs Governorate, Syria
This building on
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Location