TRIPOLI CASTLE

It is called in Arabic Assaray el-Hamra, the red seraglio, because of its ochre colour. Its current morphology corresponds to the Italian restorations between 1922 and 1935 on the Ottoman seraglio, but there was already a building in Roman times and the layout of its facade is, as it were, unchanged since the th century, the Spanish and the Knights of Order of Malta reconstructed it instead of a Muslim fortress. From the Byzantine era, it was the largest defensive building in the city, with its size (13 000 m ²), its imposing stature and strategic position on the edge of the ancient Tripoli, facing the sea which still its its northern façade before Italian colonization. The Byzantine, which had strengthened the defences of the city and its fortress, underwent a one-month siege against the Arab conqueror Amr ibn el-Ssa before it managed to take the place (642-643). Amr ibn el-Ssa had not met such a defence on the part of the Byzantine during his victorious progress towards the west along the Libyan coast. As soon as they took possession of the places, the Arabs réaménagèrent the fortress. The new masters of the places will later make them the centre of their power in Tripoli.

Le Castello Spanish. In 1510, the Spanish destroyed the fortress during the attack on the city. They built at the place their Castello. In the 1530 s, the knights of law and order of Malta, to whom the Spanish left the city, underwent a renovation of the building to which they, in the 1540 s, adjoignent two forts to the south and to the west, pierced openings for their firearms: Fort Saint-Georges and Fort Saint-Jacques, connected by a platform. A third strong complements the whole. Thus strengthened, the Spanish Castello is the centrepiece of defending knights against Ottoman attacks. The latter are nonetheless victorious and, from 1551 onwards, the new masters of Tripoli are gradually working to enlarge the building. St. Leonard's Chapel of the Knights of Malta it contained then became a mosque with nine domes. From the th century to the th century, a ditch built around the castle separated it more than ever from the city.

The seraglio of the. As in the past, the castle becomes the residence of successive governors of the Ottoman Sultan. The Qaramanli family remains in the castle throughout its reign (1711-1835) and expands to accommodate the many princely apartments of family members. A large hall where Pacha Qaramanli receives representatives of foreign countries is also added to the building which presents itself as a tangle of official spaces and private spaces, connected by small arched passages and inner courtyards, including a harem and gang for Christian slaves, warehouses, etc.

The residence of Italian governors. Since the Italians have been masters of Tripoli with the approval of the French and British, the threat of aggression from the sea disappears, and with it the historic defensive utility of the castle. In 1934 Italian Governor Italian Balbo (1934-1940) decided to move the residence of the governors of the present Qasr ech-Shab to the castle, a meeting point between the Arab city (the old town of today) and the Italian city, in order to symbolically witness the union of Libyans and Italians in fascism, a situation in fact. Italo Installe installs his offices in former Fort George.

Tripoli Castle is now the seat of the Libyan Antiquities Department, and its visit by tourists should soon be authorized again.