The origins of castle-building are deeply rooted in a much older tradition of fortification that emerged from the North African, the Aegean, Southwest Asian, and Middle Eastern civilizations. These regions developed sophisticated methods of defense that profoundly influenced Roman military architecture and, through them, the medieval castles of Western Europe.
Long before the first stone of a European castle was laid, civilizations in the Aegean and the broader Middle East were mastering the art of fortification. The castles that dominate the European landscape, often seen as symbols of Western architectural achievement, owe much of their design and construction principles to the fortifications of North Africa, the Aegean, Southwest Asia, and the Middle East. These structures were not born out of thin air but were instead the culmination of millennia of cross-cultural exchange, adaptation, and innovation.
For much of African history, the construction of fortresses and fortified structures was a mostly urban phenomenon associated with large states. Excavations in Sudan at the site of Kerma-Africa's oldest city outside Egypt, uncovered the ruins of a square fortress measuring 80 meters on each side with connected bastions 16 meters in length, that was constructed around 2500-2400BC.
These various forms of African fortifications had multiple functions, that weren't limited to defense. Its in this context that such ‘defensive’ architecture influenced the construction of monuments for the elites such as fortified houses or castles in parts of the continent.
Early Fortifications in North Africa
North Africa, particularly ancient Egypt, pioneered fortification construction as early as the Old and Middle Kingdoms. The Aniba fortress, built during Egypt’s Middle Kingdom (circa 2000-1700 BCE), exemplifies early military architecture. Situated in Nubia, it featured thick mudbrick walls, watchtowers, and defensive bastions, designed to protect Egypt’s southern borders and secure trade routes. These fortifications influenced neighboring civilizations, particularly through Egypt’s interactions with the Nubians, Libyans, and later the Hyksos, who would adopt and adapt these techniques.
Read also: The History of North African Fortresses
The Saladin Citadel of Cairo is a medieval Islamic fortification in Cairo, Egypt. Image Credit: Victoria Vasilieva - CC BY-SA 2.0
The Aegean and Middle Eastern Influence
The Mycenaeans of Greece, for example, constructed massive citadels with “cyclopean” walls, so named for their immense, seemingly superhuman size. Meanwhile, in the ancient Near East, the Assyrians and Babylonians were developing fortified cities that would serve as models for later military constructions. The Assyrian capital of Nineveh, with its extensive walls and gates, and the towering ziggurats of Babylon, though religious in purpose, also demonstrated an advanced understanding of the strategic importance of height and visibility in defense-concepts that would become crucial in castle design.
Roman Adaptation and Expansion
The Romans, during their expansive conquests across the Mediterranean and into the Middle East, encountered these advanced fortifications and adapted them to suit their own military needs. Roman fortresses, or “castra,” were heavily influenced by the designs they observed in the East. One of the most significant examples of this synthesis can be seen in the Roman limes, the fortified frontiers that marked the edges of the Empire. The limes, stretching across Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East, were a complex network of forts, watchtowers, and walls, inspired by the military architectures of the regions they bordered.
The Crusades and Transmission of Knowledge
As the Roman Empire crumbled and Europe descended into the chaos of the early medieval period, the need for local defense became paramount. The remnants of Roman military architecture provided a foundation upon which the nascent kingdoms of Europe began to build. However, the Crusades in the 11th and 12th centuries were perhaps the most significant vector for the transmission of Middle Eastern fortification techniques to Europe. European crusaders encountered the imposing castles of the Levant, such as Krak des Chevaliers in present-day Syria, which featured concentric walls, arrow slits, and fortified gates-innovations that would soon be replicated in Europe.
Examples of Fortified Cities and Structures in Africa
North Africa
- Citadel of Qaitbay (Alexandria, Egypt): A 15th-century defensive fortress located on the Mediterranean sea coast, erected on the exact site of the famous Lighthouse of Alexandria.
- Fort Santa Cruz (Oran, Algeria): Built by the Spaniards between 1577 and 1604 on the Pic d’Aidour above Gulf of Oran.
- Aït Benhaddou (Morocco): A fortified city along the former caravan route between the Sahara and Marrakech.
- Murzuk (Libya): A fortified oasis town that developed around a stop on the north-south trade route across the Sahara Desert.
- Theveste (Algeria): A city wall with a reduced extent like Theveste.
The Citadel of Qaitbay (or the Fort of Qaitbay) is a 15th-century defensive fortress located on the Mediterranean sea coast, in Alexandria, Egypt. Image Credit: Dennis Jarvis - CC BY-SA 2.0
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West Africa
- Elmina Castle (Ghana): Erected by the Portuguese in 1482, later becoming one of the most important stops on the route of the Atlantic slave trade.
- Kunta Kinteh Island (Gambia): An island in the Gambia River with ruins of British administrative buildings and a fort used in the slave trade.
- Walls of Kano (Nigeria): Walled cities can be found across the region from the Sahel to the Coast, including the Hausa cities of Kano and Zaria (Nigeria).
Elmina Castle was erected by the Portuguese in 1482 as São Jorge da Mina (St. George of the Mine) Castle, also known simply as Mina or Feitoria da Mina in present-day Elmina, Ghana. Image Credit: Adam Jones - CC BY 2.0
East Africa
- Old Fort of Zanzibar (Tanzania): Built in the late 17th century by the Omanis to defend the island from the Portuguese.
- Fasil Ghebbi (Ethiopia): The remains of a fortress-city within Gondar, founded in the 17th and 18th centuries by Emperor Fasilides.
Fasil Ghebbi is the remains of a fortress-city within Gondar, Ethiopia. Image Credit: Ian Swithinbank - CC BY-ND 2.0
The entire length of the Nubian Nile valley is dotted with the ruins of walled cities and fortresses, most notably; the walled capitals of Meroe and Old Dongola, as well as the fortresses at Qasr Ibrim, Hisn al-Bab, Gala Abu Ahmed, Umm Marrahi, Shofein and Umm Ruweim.
Beyond the Nile valley, Fortifications and fortresses were also constructed across most parts of the continent.
10 Most LEGENDARY FORTRESSES in the World
Central and Southern Africa
- Great Zimbabwe, Matendera, and Naletale (Zimbabwe): Hundreds of walled settlements of the Zimbabwe tradition.
- Mbanza Kongo (Angola): In central Africa, the best known of the walled capitals was the city of Mbanza Kongo (in Angola).
In the northern Horn of Africa, the walled cities of Gondar, Harar, and Zeila were typical of the region's urban settlements, especially Harar, whose massive walls, towers, and ramparts survive to the present day. Large fortresses were also constructed across the region, most notably at Taleh in Somaliland and the numerous forts of the Majerteen kingdom at Bender Gasim, Alula, and Hafun.
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Further south along the East African coast, the typical Swahili and Comorian settlement was a city or town enclosed by a perimeter wall with towers. These include; the city of Qanbalu (Pemba in Tanzania), which according to a 10th-century account, was surrounded by a city wall that gave it the appearance of a castle.
Central and southern Africa is also dotted with numerous walled cities and towns. The best known among these are the hundreds of walled settlements of the Zimbabwe tradition such as Great Zimbabwe, Matendera, and Naletale (in Zimbabwe); as well as similar stone ruins in South Africa and eastern Botswana.
Byzantine Fortifications in North Africa
The List of Byzantine forts and other structures in the Maghreb lists photos of the fortresses built between 533 and 698 on the territory of the Byzantine Empire in the Maghreb. Construction of the fortresses took place mainly during the second term of office of the praetorian prefect Solomon 539 to 544, whereby the substance of older Roman buildings was often used as building material. Most of the fortresses are significantly smaller than their Roman predecessors and mostly classify as forts. Many of these forts were subsequently used and rebuilt by the Arabs and Ottomans. In parts they even served as a stylistic template for the construction of their own fortresses.
Many fortresses were built within or on the outskirts of cities, suggesting a dynamic overlap between military and civilian spaces in the 6th and 7th centuries.
This article explored the multifunctional characteristics of churches within or near Byzantine military fortresses. Additionally, it considered the role of fortified church complexes in the provinces as refuge and protective structures for the local population.
The compilation of architecturally documented and presumed chapels and churches within Byzantine fortifications already displays great variation: the site of Ksar-Graouch, on the other hand, is less well documented due to a lack of documentation and research in recent years. While the architectural evidence for Mactaris is not complete, the two well-researched sites of Thamugadi and Ammaedara show monumental designs of military chapels and churches.
| Fortress | Description | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Aniba Fortress | Featured thick mudbrick walls, watchtowers, and defensive bastions. | Nubia, Egypt |
| Citadel of Qaitbay | A 15th-century defensive fortress located on the Mediterranean sea coast. | Alexandria, Egypt |
| Elmina Castle | Erected in 1482, later becoming a key site in the Atlantic slave trade. | Elmina, Ghana |
| Fasil Ghebbi | The remains of a fortress-city founded in the 17th and 18th centuries. | Gondar, Ethiopia |
