FORMED PROJECT
JORDAN , GREECE , ITALY AND TURKEY
SPONCERED BY EC
Shobak Castle Restoration and Rehabilitation
Project
Shobak castle (MontReal) is one of the most
important historical sites in southern Jordan. It has
been located on the Kings Highway at app.210 km to
the south of the capital city Amman. The castle was
set upon a narrow, rocky ridge which provided an
ideal place for fortified structure to protect the
north-south road which passes just a few hundreds
meters to the west of it.
Towards the end of the 11th century A.D. The
Crusaders occupied Jerusalem and established the
Kingdom of Jerusalem. A few years latter this
Kingdom extended its dominion into Jordan where a
string of castles had been built on the high lands
between Kerak and the gulf of Aqaba on the Red sea
with the aim of controlling the pilgrimage road
between Damascus and Makka in Southern Arabia
and putting some pressure on the Muslim forces in
Syria and Egypt .
The construction of the Shobak castle was started in
1115 and was completed in 1117. In 1190 the castle
was overtaken by the troops of Saladin after his
decisive victory on the crusaders in 1189 in Hittin.
The castle suffered severe damages by an
earthquake of 1292. Repairing works were
completed in 1297 by instructions of the Mamluk
Sultan Husam al Din Lajeen.
After the fall of the Mamlukes the castle was
abandoned until it had been reoccupied by the
Ottomans who had controlled the castle till 1916.
In 1995 the Department of Antiquities of Jordan
jointly with the Natural Resources Authority of
Jordan initiated a restoration project with the aim of
consolidating the towers and perimeter walls of the
castle.
This castle had been chosen by the Department of
Antiquities of Jordan to be as a component of the
proposal which will be submitted to European
Commission Research Directorate because of its
importance not only for the history of Jordan alone
but also because it symbolizes the cross cultural
exchange of
local and European architectural
traditions in the 12th century A.D. No restoration
work had been done inside the castles and that will
give us the opportunity to investigate the problems.
The ownership of the castle is now in the hands of
the Department of Antiquities of Jordan (who is in
charge for the excavation, restoration and
management of the archaeological sites and
historical monuments in Jordan) and there is no
need
to
seek
permissions
from
different
governmental authorities to initiate the study and to
implement the final recommendations. Moreover
Shobak castle is only 30km. from Petra: a World
heritage site and the main archaeological and tourist
attraction in Jordan .The restoration and the
rehabilitation of Shobak will save very important
monument and will benefit both local communities
in the area and tourists by enriching their visiting
experience.
The castle has suffered erosion and decay of its
cementing materials. The restoration problems can
be summarized as follows:
1- Deterioration of the cementing materials as will as
some types of the building stones, which
characterized by high absorption and low
strength.
2- The change in the drainage system which
dissolves the cementing materials and causes a
high pore-water pressure on walls. This pressure
causes tilting of the walls and failure of some of
them.
3- The mechanical damages by earthquakes. The last
earthquake was in November 1995 .
4- Wares which had been taken places since the
construction of the caste in the 12th century A.D
caused some of the damages.
The improper use of the castle during the first half of
the 20ht century had caused some damages to the
inner parts of the castle.