Citadel of Erbil
The Erbil Citadel (Arabic: قلعة اربيل, romanized: Qal'at Erbīl) (Kurdish: قەڵای ھەولێر , قەراتی هەولێرێ, Qelay Hewlêr) locally called Qelat, is a tell or occupied mound, and the historical city centre of Erbil in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.[1] The citadel has been included in the World Heritage List since 21 June 2014.
The earliest evidence for occupation of the citadel mound dates to the 5th millennium BC, and possibly earlier. It appears for the first time in historical sources in the Ebla tablets around 4000 BC, and gained particular importance during the Neo-Assyrian period. During the Sassanian period and the Abbasid Caliphate, Erbil was an important centre for Christianity. After the Mongols captured the citadel in 1258, the importance of Erbil declined. During the 20th century, the urban structure was significantly modified, as a result of which a number of houses and public buildings were destroyed. In 2007, the High Commission for Erbil Citadel Revitalization (HCECR) was established to oversee the restoration of the citadel. In the same year, all inhabitants, except one family, were evicted from the citadel as part of a large restoration project. Since then, archaeological research and restoration works have been carried out at and around the tell by various international teams and in cooperation with local specialists. The government plans to have 50 families live in the citadel once it is renovated.
The buildings on top of the tell stretch over a roughly oval area of 430 by 340 metres (1,410 ft × 1,120 ft) occupying 102,000 square metres (1,100,000 sq ft). The only religious structure that currently survives is the Mulla Afandi Mosque. The mound rises between 25 and 32 metres (82 and 105 ft) from the surrounding plain. When it was fully occupied, the citadel was divided in three districts or mahallas: from east to west the Serai, the Takya and the Topkhana. The Serai was occupied by notable families; the Takya district was named after the homes of dervishes, which are called takyas; and the Topkhana district housed craftsmen and farmers.
History[edit]
Prehistory[edit]
The site of the citadel may have been occupied as early as the Neolithic period, as pottery fragments possibly dating to that period have been found on the slopes of the mound. Clear evidence for occupation comes from the Chalcolithic period, with sherds resembling pottery of the Ubaid and Uruk periods in the Jazira and southeastern Turkey, respectively.[2] Given this evidence for early occupation, the citadel has been called the oldest continuously occupied town in the world.[1][3]
Earliest historical records[edit]
Erbil appears for the first time in literary sources around 2300 BC in the archives of Ebla. According to Giovanni Pettinato, it is mentioned in two tablets as Irbilum.[4]
The city was first largely under Sumerian domination from c. 3000 BC, until the rise of the Akkadian Empire (2335–2154 BC) which united all of the Akkadian Semites and Sumerians of Mesopotamia under one rule.
Later, Erridupizir, king of Gutium, captured the city in 2200 BC.[5]
At the end of the 3rd millennium BC, Erbil is mentioned in historical records of the Ur III period as Urbilum. King Shulgi destroyed Urbilum in his 43rd regnal year, and during the reign of his successor Amar-Sin, Urbilum was incorporated into the Ur III state. In the 18th century BC, Erbil appears in a list of cities that were conquered by Shamshi-Adad of Upper Mesopotamia and Dadusha of Eshnunna during their campaign against the land of Qabra. Shamshi-Adad installed garrisons in all the cities of the land of Urbil. During the 2nd millennium BC, Erbil was incorporated into Assyria. Erbil served as a point of departure for military campaigns toward the east.[6][7]
From the Neo-Assyrian period to the Sassanids[edit]
Erbil was an important city during the Neo-Assyrian period. The city took part in the great revolt against Shamshi-Adad V that broke out over the succession of Shalmaneser III. During the Neo-Assyrian period, the name of the city was written as Arbi-Ilu, meaning 'Four Gods'. Erbil was an important religious centre that was compared with cities such as Babylon and Assur. Its goddess Ishtar of Erbil was one of the principal deities of Assyria, often named together with Ishtar of Nineveh. Her sanctuary was repaired by the kings Shalmaneser I, Esarhaddon and Assurbanipal. Inscriptions from Assurbanipal record oracular dreams inspired by Ishtar of Erbil. Assurbanipal probably held court in Erbil during part of his reign and received there envoys from Rusa II of Urartu after the defeat of the Elamite ruler Teumman.[6]
After the end of the Assyrian Empire, Erbil was first controlled by the Medes and then incorporated into the Achaemenid Empire before it became part of the empire of Alexander the Great after the Battle of Gaugamela, which was fought near Erbil in 331 BC.[8] Subsequently, after the partition of Alexander the Great's Empire by his generals (known as Diadochoi), the city was called Arabella or Arbela and it was part of the Hellenistic Seleucid Kingdom. After the 1st century BCE, the Roman and Parthian Empire fought over control of Erbil, or Arbira as it was known in that period. After the 1st century AD, Arbela became an important Christian center. During the Sassanid period, Erbil was the seat of a satrap (governor). In 340 AD, Christians in Erbil were persecuted and in 358, the governor became a martyr after he converted to Christianity.[9] A Nestorian school was founded in Erbil by the School of Nisibis in c. 521.[10] During this period, Erbil was also the site of a Zoroastrian fire temple.[11]
An alley, Citadel of Erbil, during the restoration work in 2014
Citadel during the restoration work in 2014. Hawler, Erbil, Kurdistan Region.
Citadel of Erbil during the restoration work in 2014. Hawler, Erbil, Kurdistan Region.
Citadel of Erbil during the restoration work in 2014. Hawler, Erbil, Kurdistan Region.
Citadel of Erbil during the restoration work in 2014. Hawler, Erbil, Kurdistan Region.
Citadel of Erbil during the restoration work in 2014. Hawler, Erbil, Kurdistan Region.
Citadel of Erbil during the restoration work in 2014. Hawler, Erbil, Kurdistan Region.
Wall of the Citadel during the restoration work in 2014. Hawler, Erbil, Kurdistan Region.
Courtyard in a traditional house in Erbil Citadel.
Courtyard in a traditional house in Erbil Citadel.
Ornaments and details in a traditional house in Erbil Citadel.
Ornaments and details in a traditional house in Erbil Citadel.
A balcony in a traditional house in Erbil Citadel with ornamented hand-railing.
Erbil Citadel wall
Dilapidated old houses around the Citadel
Old houses around the Citadel
Dilapidated old houses around the Citadel
Old houses around the Citadel
Old houses around the Citadel
One of the houses around Erbil Citadel
Some photos of the Citadel of Erbil during the restoration work, 2014.