Fort Al Jalali

Al Jalali Fort, or Ash Sharqiya Fort, is a fort in the harbor of Old Muscat, Oman. The fort was built by the Portuguese under Philip I of Portugal in the 1580s on an earlier Omani fortress to protect the harbor after Muscat had twice been sacked by Ottoman forces. The fort fell to Omani forces in 1650. During the civil wars between 1718 and 1747, the fort was twice captured by Persians who had been invited to assist one of the rival Imams. The fort was extensively rebuilt later.

At times, Al Jalali served as a refuge or a jail for a member of the royal family. For much of the 20th century it was used as Oman's main prison, but this function ended in the 1970s. Fort al-Jalali was restored in 1983 and converted into a private museum of Omani cultural history that is accessible only to dignitaries visiting the country. Exhibits include cannons, old muskets and matchlocks, maps, rugs and other artifacts.

Tekst overgenomen uit “Al Jalali Fort” op de Engelstalige Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Fort Al Jalali staat op plaats 1.454 van 5.793 in de bekendheidsranglijst van deze atlas en op plaats 5 van de 7 die de atlas in Oman in kaart brengt. Gebouwd in 1586, en daarmee ouder dan 39% van de gedateerde bouwwerken in de atlas — een van de 495 bouwwerken in de atlas die uit de 16e eeuw stammen. Zie hoe dat zich verhoudt in de kastelenstatistiek.

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