Evidence of settlement in Tripoli dates back as early as 1400 BC. Tripoli was originally established as a Phoenician colony in the 8th century BC. There, the
Phoenicians established a trading station and later, under
Persian rule, the city became the center of a confederation of the Phoenician city-states of
Sidon,
Tyre, and
Arados Island. Under
Hellenistic rule, Tripoli was used as a naval shipyard and the city enjoyed a period of autonomy. It came under
Roman rule around 64 BC. The
551 Beirut earthquake and tsunami destroyed the
Byzantine city of Tripoli along with other Mediterranean coastal cities. Tripoli was
conquered by an Arab Muslim army in 635. During
Umayyad rule, Tripoli became a commercial and shipbuilding center. It achieved semi-independence under
Fatimid rule, when it developed into a center of learning. The
Crusaders laid siege to the city at the beginning of the 12th century and were able finally to enter it in 1109. This caused extensive destruction, including the burning of Tripoli's famous library,
Dar al-'Ilm (House of Knowledge), with its thousands of volumes. During the Crusaders' rule the city became the capital of the
County of Tripoli. In 1289, it fell to the
Mamluks and the old port part of the city was destroyed. A new inland city was then built near the old castle. During
Ottoman rule from 1516 to 1918, it retained its prosperity and commercial importance. Tripoli and all of Lebanon was under
French mandate from 1920 until 1943 when Lebanon achieved independence.
Ancient period Many historians reject the presence of any
Phoenician civilization in Tripoli before the 8th (or sometimes 4th) century BC. Others argue that the north–south gradient of Phoenician port establishments on the Lebanese coast indicates an earlier age for the Phoenician Tripoli. Tripoli has not been extensively excavated because the ancient site lies buried beneath the modern city of
El Mina. However, a few accidental finds are now in museums. Excavations in El Mina revealed skeletal remains of ancient
wolves,
eels, and
gazelles, part of the ancient southern port quay,
grinding mills, different types of columns, wheels, bows, and a
necropolis from the end of the
Hellenistic period. A sounding made in the Crusader castle uncovered
Late Bronze Age,
Iron Age, in addition to
Roman,
Byzantine, and
Fatimid remains. At the Abou Halka area (at the southern entrance of Tripoli) refuges dating to the early (30,000 years old) and middle
Stone Age were uncovered. Tripoli became a financial center and main port of northern Phoenicia with sea trade (East Mediterranean and the West), and caravan trade (North Syria and hinterland). Under the
Seleucids, Tripoli gained the right to mint its own coins (112 BC); it was granted autonomy between 104 and 105, which it retained until 64 BC. At the time, Tripoli was a center of shipbuilding and
cedar timber trade (like other Phoenician cities). During the
Roman and
Byzantine period, Tripoli witnessed the construction of important public buildings including a municipal stadium or gymnasium due to the strategic position of the city midway on the imperial coastal highway leading from
Antioch to
Ptolemais. In addition, Tripoli retained the same configuration of three distinct and administratively independent quarters (
Aradians,
Sidonians, and
Tyrians). The territory outside the city was divided between the three quarters.
Umayyad, Abbasid and Fatimid periods Tripoli gained in importance as a trading centre for the whole Mediterranean after it was inhabited by the
Arabs. Tripoli was the port city of
Damascus; the second military port of the Arab Navy, following
Alexandria; a prosperous commercial and shipbuilding center; a wealthy principality under the
Kutama Ismaili Shia
Banu Ammar emirs. Legally, Tripoli was part of the jurisdiction of the military province of
Damascus (
Jund Dimashq). The Jewish community of Tripoli traces its roots back to the seventh century, as recounted by the
Abbasid-era historian
al-Baladhuri. During the caliphate of
Rashidun caliph
Uthman (644–655), the governor of Syria, Mu'awiya, settled Jews in Tripoli, fostering amicable relations with the majority
Sunni Muslims. However, during the persecution of
dhimmis by the Shi'ite
Fatimid caliph
al-Hakim (996–1021), the synagogue faced conversion into a mosque. Notably, during the
Seljuk invasion in the 1070s, Tripoli served as a refuge for Jews from Palestine, as documented in
Cairo Geniza records.
Crusader period During the
Crusade period, the city became the chief town of the
County of Tripoli (a
Crusader state founded by
Raymond of Saint-Gilles) extending from
Byblos to
Latakia and including the plain of
Akkar with the famous
Krak des Chevaliers. Tripoli was also the seat of a
bishopric. Tripoli was home to a busy port and was a major center of silk weaving, with as many as 4,000 looms. Important products of the time included lemons, oranges, and sugar cane. For 180 years, during the
Frankish rule,
Occitan was among the languages spoken in Tripoli and neighboring villages. At that time, Tripoli had a heterogeneous population including
Western Europeans,
Greeks,
Armenians,
Maronites,
Nestorians,
Jews, and
Muslims. During that time, Tripoli witnessed the growth of the inland settlement surrounding the "Pilgrim's Mountain" (the
Citadel of Tripoli) into a built-up suburb including the main religious monuments of the city such as: The "Church of the Holy Sepulchre of Pilgrim's Mountain" (incorporating the Shiite shrine), the Church of Saint Mary of the Tower, and the
Carmelite Church. The state was a major base of operations for the military order of the
Knights Hospitaller, who occupied the famous castle
Krak Des Chevaliers (today a
UNESCO world heritage site). The state ceased to exist in 1289, when it was captured by the
Egyptian
Mamluk sultan
Qalawun. The mid-twelfth century earthquake led to the death of many Jews in Tripoli, as noted by Jewish explorer
Benjamin of Tudela.
Mamluk period (late 13th century). The arches and courtyard date from the Mamluk period but the
minaret is believed to be an earlier Christian structure. entrance Tripoli was captured by
Sultan al-Mansur Qalawun from the Crusaders in 1289. The Mamluks destroyed the old city and built a new city 4 km inland from it. About 35 monuments from the Mamluk city have survived to the present day, including mosques, madrasas,
khanqahs,
hammams (bathhouses), and
caravanserais, many of them built by local Mamluk amirs (princes). The Mamluks did not fortify the city with walls but restored and reused Saint-Gille's citadel. The kingdom was subdivided into six
wilayahs or provinces and extended from
Byblos and
Aqra mountains south, to
Latakia and
al Alawiyyin mountains north. It also included
Hermel, the plain of
Akkar, and
Hosn al-Akrad (
Krak des Chevaliers). Tripoli became a major trading port of Syria supplying Europe with candy, loaf and powdered sugar (especially during the latter part of the 14th century). The main products from agriculture and small industry included citrus fruits, olive oil, soap, and textiles (cotton and silk, especially
velvet). The
Mamluks formed the ruling class holding main political, military and administrative functions. Arabs formed the population base (religious, industrial, and commercial functions) and the general population included the original inhabitants of the city, immigrants from different parts of the Levant,
North Africans who accompanied
Qalawun's army during the liberation of Tripoli,
Eastern Orthodox Christians, some
Western families, and a minority of
Jews. The population size of Mamluk Tripoli is estimated at 20,000–40,000; against 100,000 in each of Damascus and Aleppo. Six madrasas were later built around the mosque. The Mamluks did not fortify the city with walls but restored and reused a
Crusader citadel on the site. During this period, protests demanding reunification with Syria were backed by the
Syrian National Bloc until the French cut off their support, resulting in a massive 33 day general strike in 1936. The truce broke down on 27 September and Tahweed al-Islami positions were bombarded from
SSNP and Syrian artillery positions in the surrounding hills. On 1 October, following an
Iranian diplomatic intervention, Tahweed agreed to surrender their heavy weapons and Syrian troops, on 6 October, were deployed throughout the city. A further 350 people had been killed and hundreds more wounded. The Syrian army remained in the city for almost three decades until 2005:As a majority Sunni city with a growing strain of indigenous
Islamist militancy, Tripoli suffered some of the Syrians’ cruelest predations at a time when then-President
Hafez al-Assad was engaged in the brutal suppression of Syria’s own
Muslim Brotherhood. Wartime violence and instability triggered waves of emigration and capital flight. It also left Tripoli increasingly isolated, not least due to the dismantling of
Lebanon's rail network and the abandonment of the
Tripoli railway station. The city, moreover, saw little of the post-war reconstruction funding that Prime Minister
Rafic Hariri ushered into Lebanon, with an overwhelming focus on the capital. That already high figure preceded Lebanon's 2019
financial crisis, which has ratcheted up poverty and food insecurity. Tripoli's stagnation is attributable, in part, to the city's dysfunctional politics, in which a fragmented array of Sunni political figures (such as
Saad Hariri,
Najib Mikati,
Faisal Karami, and
Ashraf Rifi) vie for influence through competing networks of patronage: "No single leader has been able to assert dominance, leaving city politics to devolve into chaos." ==Demographics==