Aleppo remains one of the oldest cities in humanity. People settled here a few thousand years BC. All this time, the city was considered an important point among various nations and rulers.
Ancient city
Archaeological excavations confirm that Aleppo arose long before writing appeared. This means that the exact date of its foundation is quite difficult to calculate. There are many archaeological cultural layers in the city that have not yet been studied. The battles in Aleppo, which have been going on for several years due to the civil war in Syria, also interfere with this .
Mention of the fortress appears in the Hittite sources, which date back to the third millennium BC. At various times, Aleppo was the capital of several ancient principalities. It becomes a rich city in the Babylonian era, when neighboring Mesopotamia turned into the center of human culture and science. Also in antiquity the Egyptians and the Hittites claimed the city.
Antiquity
In 333 BC, the great commander Alexander of Macedon captured the citadel of Aleppo. Syria was an important region for him. From here ran the way east. It was through these lands that Alexander went to war on Persia, and then reached the borders of India.
From this time on, Aleppo was gradually Hellenized, that is, it was influenced by ancient Greek culture. Foreign scientists came here, and philosophical schools opened. After the Greeks came the Romans, who ruled here for several centuries.
Byzantium and Muslims
At the beginning of our era, Syria became an important center for the spread of Christianity, which could not but affect the confessional composition of the population of Aleppo. After the collapse of the Empire, Byzantium's power was not long recognized here, which stimulated the construction of churches and monasteries.
The population of the city has noticeably grown. New walls were erected that surrounded the citadel of Aleppo. Syria was one of the richest Byzantine provinces, and all thanks to the fact that it was located on the Great Silk Road. Aleppo was an important transit point for merchants from the East. They brought not only silk, but also porcelain, as well as other goods rare for Europeans.
In the 7th century, the Arab threat took its place. Muslims captured the city of Aleppo, Syria completely came under their rule. For several centuries, the fortress flourished thanks to the proximity of Damascus, which for some time was the capital of the Caliphs. In the X century, it was occupied by the Byzantines for 14 years, which caused significant damage to the city.
Crusades
In 1096, Pope Urban II appealed to Western European rulers to help Eastern Christians in their struggle against Muslims. At this time, the Byzantine emperor continued to surrender his provinces to the aggressive Seljuk Turks.
The call was heard. Thousands of knights, soldiers and ordinary peasants stretched from Europe in search of adventure and glory. The main goal of the crusaders was Jerusalem, which was a holy city for all Christians. Aleppo Citadel (Syria was nearby) was also on their way. Despite the siege, the city was never taken. Nevertheless, a year later the crusaders captured Jerusalem. Several Christian states appeared in the Middle East that constantly threatened Muslim Syria. The second attempt of the crusaders to seize the fortress took place in 1124. She also proved a failure.
Earthquake
In 1138, the old city of Aleppo was almost destroyed during a terrible earthquake. Accurate data on the number of victims, of course, was left. However, even according to the most rough estimates (more than 220 thousand dead), this earthquake was the fifth largest number of victims in human history.
The blows were felt not only in Syria, but also in the territory of modern Azerbaijan, Iran and Turkey. Aleppo is located on a geological fault, of which the Dead Sea is also a part. It is because of this that the fortress suffered the most. The city was depopulated in one day. Soon the inhabitants returned, but the village could not grow to its former size for several centuries. Only in the 19th century did the population of Aleppo become the same as on the eve of the medieval earthquake. However, even in relatively modern times, cholera and plague epidemics flashed here.
Arabs and Mongols
In 1183, the citadel of Aleppo (Syria) passed to the famous Saladin, who managed to expel the crusaders from Jerusalem and restore Arab rule in the region.
However, it did not last long. In the XIII century, the Mongol hordes came here. An army under the command of Hulagu took the city in 1260. The walls of the fortress collapsed after six days of intensive shelling from catapults. The citadel lasted about another month.
Later, for several decades, the Arabs fought with the Mongols, trying to challenge the supremacy in Syria. The first to be led by the Mamluk dynasty. The tragedy for the city was its surrender to Tamerlane in 1400. Almost the entire civilian population was slaughtered. As a sign of intimidation, a tower of skulls was built near the city.
Turkish rule
In the 15th century, the situation in Aleppo changed: the Turks were able to capture this city. They remained the rulers of Syria for several centuries. The Ottoman Empire spreads over three continents. Arabs fell under the rule of a more powerful people.
After World War I, the Ottoman Empire collapsed, and a British mandate was established in Syria for a short while. After it, an Arab state was formed, which exists to this day.
Syrian Civil War
In 2011, a civil war broke out in Syria. The Arab majority was dissatisfied with the government, which had a few Alawites led by Bashar al-Assad. Aleppo was one of the largest cities in the country, and because of this, fierce battles broke out around him, which continue today. In the summer of 2012, battles broke out between government forces on the one hand and rebels on the other.
The fighting in Aleppo was in the center of attention of the whole world when poisonous sarin gas was used in the vicinity of the city. Its use is prohibited by international conventions. These weapons of mass destruction caused the death of civilians. At the same time, from the regular shelling from different directions in Aleppo almost no whole buildings remained. Occasionally, residential areas are completely left without electricity due to rocket attacks. The population of the city decreased from 2.5 million to 1 million people. Numerous refugees left the country, which provoked a crisis in Europe, where disputes arose over whether or not to close the borders.
Syria (Aleppo today remains a hot spot) continues to fall into the tapes of world news agencies as a place of many years of bloody civil war. It began as part of the Arab Spring, when in 2011 dissatisfied citizens demanded the resignation of their governments in numerous countries in the Middle East and the Maghreb.