Timeline of Homs

The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Homs, Syria.

Prior to 7th century

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• 3rd millennium BCE – Citadel of Homs was founded. Biblical scholars have identified the city with Hamath-zobah.^[1][2]
• 732 BCE – Syro-Ephraimite War, Assyrians in power.
• 540 BCE – Persian Achaemenid Empire in power (approximate date).
• 64 BCE – The Arab Emesani dynasty were confirmed in their rule as client kings of the Romans.
• 50 AD – Saint Mary Church of the Holy Belt was consecrated.
• 432 AD – Church of Saint Elian was consecrated.

7th–19th centuries

• 636 – Siege of Emesa, city was captured by Rashidun Caliphate.
• 750 – Abbasids wrested control of Homs.
• 855 – Christian population revolted in response to additional taxation under the reign of Caliph al-Mutawakkil.^[3]
• 891 – al-Yaqubi noted that Homs was situated along a broad river (Orontes River) which served as a source of drinking water for the inhabitants.^[4]
• 944 – Hamdanids took control of the city.
• 975 - Byzantine empire under John Tzimiskes took control of the city.
• 1090 – Seljuk Turks occupied Homs under the leadership of Aq Sunqur al-Hajib.^[5]
• 1149 – The Mosul-based Zengids under Nur al-Din captured the city.^[6]
• 1154 – Al-Idrisi mentioned that Homs was populous, contained open markets, and was frequented by travelers. The residents were pleasant; living with them is easy. The women are beautiful and are celebrated for their fine skin."^[7]
• 1164 – Asad ad-Din Shirkuh became Homs' fief, later known as “Emir of Homs”.
• 1175 – Saladin gained control of the city.
• 1225 – Yaqut al-Hamawi mentioned that Homs was large, celebrated and walled, having a strongly fortified castle on its southern hill.^[8]
• 1355 – Ibn Batuta visited Homs, writing that it had fine trees and good markets.
• 1400 – Timur seized the city. Nevertheless, he did not sack it as he did in Aleppo, Hama and later Damascus, due to a man called “‘Amr bin al-Rawas” who conciled with him offering precious gifts to save the city.^[9]
• 1510 – al-Fadl bin Nu'ayr was sent on an expedition by the governor of Damascus to loot the city markets.^[6]
• 1516 – Ottoman Turks in power.
• 1549 – Homs Sanjak was created as part of Ottoman Aleppo Eyalet.
• 1579 – Homs is under Ottoman Tripoli Eyalet.
• 1785 – French traveler, Volney wrote of the city's once great importance and its current "miserable" condition.
• 1832–1840 – city was occupied by Muhammad Ali's Egypt led by Ibrahim Pasha.^[10][11]
• 1855 – National Evangelical School was founded by American missionaries.^[12]
• 1860s – The city rebelled against Egyptian rule and consequently, the citadel was destroyed when the Egyptians suppressed the revolt. Ottoman rule was soon restored.^[6]
• 1864 – Homs became part of Ottoman Syria Vilayet.
• 1870s – Homs' economic importance was boosted again during the depression of the 1870s, as its cotton industry boomed due to a decline European textile production. One British consul referred to Homs as the "Manchester of Syria."^[6]
• 1887 – Al Ghassania Orthodox School was established.^[13]

20th century

• 1907 – Population: 65,000 (estimate).^[2]
• 1908–1913 – Khalid ibn al-Walid Mosque was consecrated.
• 1918 – Homs was captured by the 5th Cavalry Division of the Allied forces in October 1918. Later on, it became part of the French Mandate of Syria.
• 1922 – Homs Museum's ground floor was established, 1st floor finished in 1949, and 2nd floor in 1963.^[14]
• 1925 – The city joined Damascus and the southern Druze chieftains in a full-blown revolt against French rule.^[15]
• 1928 – Al-Karamah SC was formed.
• 1930s
  • An oil pipeline between Tripoli and Kirkuk was built in Homs, and it followed an ancient caravan route between Palmyra and the Mediterranean.
  • The famous old Clock Tower, facing al-Hamidiya Street, was built by the French.
• 1932 – The French moved their military academy from Damascus to Homs to be established in 1933, later known as Homs Military Academy,^[16] and it remained the only military academy in Syria until 1967.^[17]
• 1937 – Al-Wathba SC was formed.
• 1959 – An oil refinery was built to process oil for domestic consumption.^[6] The city's oil refinery was bombed by the Israeli Air Force (IAF) during the 1973 Yom Kippur War.^[18]
• 1960
  • Khalid ibn al-Walid Stadium was opened.
  • Population: 136,000 (estimate).^[19]
• 1973 – Culture House Theater was established.^[20]
• 1979 – Al-Baath University was established.
• 1981 – Population: 346,871 (estimate).^[21]
• 1994 – Population: 540,133 (estimate).^[22]
• 2000 – Bassel al-Assad Stadium with a capacity of 25,000 was inaugurated.^[23]

21st century

• 2004 – Population: 652,609 (estimate).^[24]
• 2008 – Population: 1,667,000 (estimate).^[25]
• 6 May 2011 – 9 May 2014 – Siege of Homs, Syrian Arab Army recaptures Homs.^[26]

See also

• Timelines of other cities in Syria: Aleppo, Damascus, Hama, Latakia

References

Bibliography

• Dumper, Michael; Stanley, Bruce E.; Abu-Lughod, Janet L. (2007). Cities of the Middle East and North Africa: A Historical Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-1-57607-919-5..
• Cook, Thomas (1907). Cook's Handbook for Palestine and Syria. Thos. Cook & Son. p. 362. Homs population..
• Gil, Moshe (1997) [1983]. A History of Palestine, 634–1099. Translated by Ethel Broido. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-59984-9..
• le Strange, Guy (1890). Palestine Under the Moslems: A Description of Syria and the Holy Land from A.D. 650 to 1500. Committee of the Palestine Exploration Fund. p. 493. ISBN 978-0-404-56288-5. Lajjun Guy le Strange..
• Shaw, Ezel Kural (1977). History of the Ottoman Empire and Modern Turkey. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-29166-6.
• Cleveland, William L. (2000). A History of the Modern Middle East: 2nd Edition. Westview Press. p. 215. ISBN 978-0-8133-3489-9. Homs French.
• Commins, David Dean (2004). Historical Dictionary of Syria: 2nd Edition. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 0-8108-4934-8.
• Winckler, Onn (1998). Demographic developments and population policies in Baʻathist Syria. Sussex Academic Press. ISBN 978-1-902210-16-2.

External links

• Khoury Issa Ahmed (1983), "Chapter One, 2300 BCE - 622 AD" (PDF), History of Homs, Al-Sayih Library.
• C. Edmund Bosworth, ed. (2007). "Homs". Historic Cities of the Islamic World. Leiden: Koninklijke Brill. ISBN 9789047423836..

Wikimedia Commons has media related to History of Homs.

34°43′51″N 36°42′34″E / 34.73083°N 36.70944°E / 34.73083; 36.70944