Azraq is a small town with a population of approximately 5,000 people (1990) in central-eastern Jordan 100 km east of Amman. It is in Zarqa Governorate. It is famous for its nearby Desert Castle "Qasr Azraq".

History

Azraq was an important settlement and fortress in a remote and arid desert area of modern-day Jordan. The strategic value of the town and its castle (Qasr Azraq - see below) is that it lies in the middle of the Azraq oasis, the only permanent source of fresh water in approximately 12000 square kilometres of desert.

The town is located on a major desert route that would have facilitated trade within the region. The Azraq Oasis has a long history beginning in the Lower Palaeolithic period. During the Epipalaeolithic period the Oasis was also an important focus of settlement. Many Palaeolithic sites have been documented in the Azraq Wetlands Reserve. During the Nabatean period settlement activity has also been documented. It was the Romans who built a castle in Azraq Qasr Azraq in the 3rd century A.D., which was heavily modified in the Middle Ages by the Mameluks. In the Umayyad period a water reservoir was constructed in southern Azraq. During the early 20th century was an important headquarters for T.E. Lawrence during the Arab Revolt.

Qasr Azraq Desert Castle

Qasr Azraq is a large fortress located in present-day eastern Jordan. It is located on the highway to Iraq, 13km north of the Azraq (Jordan) junction and about 100km east of Amman.

Architecture

The castle is constructed of the local black basalt and is a square structure with 80 metre long walls encircling a large central courtyard. In the middle of the courtyard is a small mosque that may date from Ummayyad times. At each corner of the outer wall, there is an oblong tower. The main entrance is comprised of a single massive hinged slab of granite, which leads to a vestibule where one can see carved into the pavement the remains of a Roman board game.

History

The strategic significance of the castle is that it lies in the middle of the Azraq oasis, the only permanent source of fresh water in approximately 12000 square kilometres of desert. Several civilizations are known to have occupied the site for its strategic value in this remote and arid desert area.

The area was originally inhabited by the Nabataean people and around 300 CE fell under the control of the Romans during the reign of Diocletian. The Romans built a stone structure using the local basalt stone that formed a basis for later constructions on the site, a structure that is also believed to been used by the Byzantine and Ummayyad empires.

Qasr al-Azraq underwent its final major stage of building in 1237 CE, when the Mamelukes redesigned and fortified it. The fortress in its present form dates back to this period.

In the 16th century the Ottoman Turks stationed a garrison there, and T.E. Lawrence (Lawrence of Arabia) made the fortress his desert headquarters during the winter of 1917, during the Great Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire. His office was in the chamber above the entrance gatehouse.

Source: Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qasr_Azraq

Wildlife Reserve

Azraq is also notable as being the site of one of Jordan's seven protected nature reserve areas (setup by the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature), the Azraq Wetlands Reserve which is in Azraq al-Janoubi (South Azraq).

The separate and larger Shaumari reserve is also close to Azraq, being only 10km south of the town.

Source: Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Azraq