History of Palmyra

by Anthony Horrobin - 29 July 2010

When the Seleucids gained control of Syria in 323BC the city was left to it’s own devices and it flourished as a stop on the Caravan route in the 1st century. In 41BC Mark Antony led the Romans to Palmyra to attempt to conquer the city but unfortunately he failed due to the Palmyrans receiving information on their approach. During this time Palmyran merchants owned ships in Italian waters and were in control of the Indian Silk Trade, because of this, Palmyra became one of the richest cities in the near east.

During the reign of Tiberius (14-37AD) Palmyra was made part of the Roman province of Syria and the city continued to grow due to it’s placement on the trade routes between China, India, Persia and the Roman Empire.
Hadrian visited Palmyra in 129 AD and was so captivated by the city that he proclaimed it a ‘’free city’’ and renamed it Palmyra Hadriana.

From 212 AD the Sassanids occupied the mouths of the Tigris and the Euphrates and because of this, trade in Palmyra declined. Prince Septimius Odaenathus was then appointed Governor of Syria by Valerian. Following Valerians capture and death at the hands of the Sassanids , Odaenathus campaigned long and hard for revenge, even travelling as far as modern day Baghdad and invading the city twice. Odaenathus was then murdered by his Nephew Maconius and his wife, the illustrious Septimia Zenobia took power.

Queen Zenobia rebelled against the Roman occupation and with the help of Cassius Longinus she established the Palmyrene Empire. Zenobia conquered Bosra and lands as far west as Egypt. She then attempted to take control of the Antioch but failed. In 272, Zenobia was captured by the Roman Emperor Aurelian and was brought back to Rome. Despite being an enemy of Rome, Zenobia was allowed to retire to a Villa where she took an active part in society for a number of years.

By the year 634 the Muslim Arabs had gained control of Palmyra under the rule of Khalid ibn Walid and the city was still mostly intact. After the fall of the Umayyad Caliphs around the year 800, people began abandoning Palmyra. In the following years, Palmyra passed from one ruler to another. At the time of the Crusades the city was under the control of Burid Emirs of Damascus, then under Tughtekin and finally the Emirs of Homs. The year 1132 saw the Temple of Ba’al being turned into a fortress by the Burids. During the 13th century the Mamluk Sultan Baybars took control of the city. Palmyra was then invaded by Tamerlan in 1401 but it recovered very quickly and during the 15th century Ibn Fadlallah al-Omari described the city as having vast gardens and bizarre monuments.

During the 16th Century Fakhr ad-Din al-Maan a Lebanese Prince built Qala’at ibn Maan Castle which was surrounded by a moat and only assessable via a draw bridge on top of a mountain overlooking the Palmyra Oasis.

Under Ottoman rule Palmyra declined dramatically and it became nothing more than a Oasis Village however, in the 17th century the wonders of Palmyra were to be re-discovered by travellers from the west and from the 19th century onwards archaeologists from around the world have been working to discover what hidden secrets the Bride of the Desert has to reveal.