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Tyre (in Arabic, صور‎ Ṣūr) is a city located in the south from Lebanon. With 117,100 inhabitants, Tire is located on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea, about 37 km north of Acre, and 32 km south of Sidon. The name of the city means 'rock'. Its inhabitants are called "tirios" in Spanish. The city was declared a World Heritage Site by Unesco in 1984, for its archaeological remains of various civilizations.

Toponymy

• صور (gnashing) in Arabic
• (Đur) in Phoenician
• Русский (Tzor) in Hebrew
• Burnurru in acadio
• ΤESSρος (Tyros) in Greek

Geography

Ancient Tire is located in southern Phoenicia just over 70 km south of Beirut and 35 km south of Sidon, about halfway between Sidon to the north and Acre to the south, and a few kilometers to the south of the Litani river, the Leontes of classical sources.

Tyre had two zones, one insular and the other continental. The island was located on a mound, named Sr or Sur, which means "the rock" in Phoenician. The city was separated from the mainland by a strait 500 to 700 meters wide, later linked to the mainland by an artificial isthmus, the work of Alexander the Great, built when he besieged the city in 332 BC. C. The island was endowed with two ports, one to the north, the Sidonian port, and another to the south, the Egyptian port.

Leaving Tire north towards Sidon, you pass near the 'Ain Babouq spring, then near the 'Ain Habrian hot spring, and finally you reach Naher el Qasmiyé which is the southern part of the Nahr el Litani. This river formed the northern border between the kingdoms of Tire and Sidon when they separated, but the northern border predated this river many times, extending as far as Sarepta and sometimes even a little further.

Leading south from Tire was a major coastal road that passed through Tell el Rachidieh and Ras el 'Ain. Some specialist historians have identified the latter with Paleotyro or Ushu, but this identification has not excluded the other possibilities. The road crossed Ras el Abyad which, to the left, led to Oum El Amed, located on a hill ten meters above the coastal road which, to the south, passed through Akzib, Acre and its plain, to finally reach Haifa. and Mount Carmel, which formed the southern border of the kingdom of Tyre.

Climate

The climate is Mediterranean with warm summers and cool winters. Thanks to its climate, winters are very rainy, while summers are very dry, autumns are mild and springs are pleasant.

Average Tiro climate parameters
Month	Ene.	Feb.	Mar.	Open up.	May.	Jun.	Jul.	Ago.	Sep.	Oct.	Nov.	Dec.	Annual
Average temperature (°C)	14	12.1	16.1	18.2	22	25.6	28.8	29	27.3	23	18.1	15	20.8
Temp. medium (°C)	3.2	3.6	6.1	9.6	12	15.4	17.5	15	12.4	9.5	7	4.1	9.6
Total precipitation (mm)	144	122	89	46	16	0	1	0	3	27	76	133	657
Rainy days (≥ 0.1 mm)	12	10	9	6	3	0	1	0	1	3	7	12	64
Hours of sun	181	200	216	244	260	300	330	316	288	227	217	199	2978
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History

Tyre was the most important of the cities of Phoenicia, founded at the same time as Sidon (today Sayda), Byblos (today Iubail) and Beritos (today Beirut), in the 3rd millennium BC. C.

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Tyre originally consisted of two distinct urban centers, one on an island and the other on the adjacent coast ―approximately 30 stadia (5.6 km) away according to Strabo in his Geography xvi, 2―, before Alexander the Great connected the island with the coast during his siege of the city.

It was a heavily fortified island city in the middle of the sea (with 45 m high defensive walls) and the oldest, originally called Ushu (Palaethyro, to the Greeks) was actually more a line of suburbs than a city and it was used mainly as a source of water and wood for the city on the island. Flavio Josefo indicates that they even fought among themselves, although most of the time they were allied due to the wealth of the island city from its maritime trade and its cedar wood forests, and drinking water from the continental zone.

Foundation

Tyre arises around 1300 B.C. C., although according to Herodotus it was founded around 2700 BC. C. Philo de Byblos (in Eusebio de Cesarea) quotes Sanjuniatón who comments that it was first occupied by Hypsuranius. In the work of Sanjuniatón it is said that it was dedicated to "Abibalus, king of Beritos" (possibly Abibaal, who was king of Tire and later king of Sarra).

Early history

Rectangular theatre in Al Mina.

The trade of the ancient world was stored in Tyre.

The Tirian merchants were the first ones who ventured to sail in the Mediterranean waters; It was an important port of Fenicia, reaching great economic prosperity; from it came ships to found numerous colonies on the shores of the Mediterranean with the purpose of dominating the marine trade, founding colonies on the coasts and islands near the Aegean Sea, in Greece, the North Coast of Africa, Cartago, Sicily, Corssa.

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The Tyrians themselves called their city Sor or Sur (which means 'rock'), and the Hebrews called it Tsor. The Greeks called it Tor or Tir, and the Romans adopted this same name, although sometimes it is seen named as Sara or Sarra.

Herodotus mentions that the Persians believed that a group of Cretans kidnapped the daughter of the king of Tyre, called Europa, and took her to Crete; This, although it is a rationalization of the myth of the kidnapping of Europe, shows some friction between the Phoenicians and peoples of the Aegean. The city was populated from the 3rd millennium BC. C. and in the XVI century B.C. C. was conquered by Tutmosis I. In the XIV century B.C. C. allied with Egypt, becoming independent of Sidon. It was held by the Egyptians until the time of Ramesses II (13th century BC). Around 1190 B.C. C. was repopulated by people from Sidon. In the IX century B.C. C. submitted to its ancient metropolis, to later become a tributary of Assyria.

In the time of King David (c. 1000 BC), an alliance was established between the Hebrews and Tyrians, who were once ruled by their native kings.

The city of Tire was famous for the production of a unique type of purple dye, known as Tyrian purple. This color was, in many ancient cultures, reserved for the exclusive use of royalty or, at least, the nobility.

As of the X century a. C. exercised hegemony over the Phoenician cities, which lasted until the VI century BC. C. Its heyday was under King Hiram I (who embellished the city in the insular part), but it is also necessary to mention Itobaal I (887-856 BC) the daughter of whom married King Ahab of Israel, King Pygmalion (821 to 774 BC) at the time of whom some colonists led by Dido went to found Carthage (814 BC).

Assyrian influence was noted in the 8th century BCE. C. and especially in the VII century B.C. C. At this time Tire and Sidon were a single kingdom, but later they separated. In 672 B.C. C. was besieged by Esarhaddon, and in 668 a. c.-667 a. C. by Ashurbanipal, but they could not conquer it. It was attacked by Egypt often. For five years it was besieged by Salmanesar V, who was helped by the Phoenicians from the mainland.

During the reign of Itobaal III (591-572 BC), the city (the part of the coast) was besieged and occupied by Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon, for thirteen years without success, although a peace agreement was reached. fact in which Tire paid tribute to the Babylonians; a fact of which there is an account of the prophet Ezekiel (574 BC).

The city then stretched as far as the Leontes River to the north and the source of Ras al-Ain to the south, that is, a space of about 10 or 12 km, formed by a fertile plain. The city on the island was founded later, probably after Nebuchadnezzar. It seems that it had about 40,000 inhabitants. On the island, in particular, it is worth mentioning a large public square that the Greeks called Eurycoros, built by Hiram III. Two ports served the powerful navy of Tyre, the north and the south.

After the conquest of Babylon it adopted the republican form of government. In 538 B.C. C. became dependent on the Achaemenid Empire. In 345 B.C. C. rebelled, but was conquered by Artaxerxes III of Persia.

Besieged by Alexander the Great in late 333 B.C. C., he built an artificial isthmus with the stones of the old city of Tire and other easily accessible materials; he was industrious because the storms often destroyed part of the construction, and when he was already near the island, it was the soldiers of Tire who with arrows and projectiles prevented the work; the Macedonians built some wooden towers, but the Tyrians set them on fire and destroyed them in a departure from their ships and in the end a great storm destroyed all the work; Alexander decided to start again, to make a wider isthmus and diagonally to the southwest, and also recruited a fleet in Sidon, Soli, Mallos and other cities (all of Phoenicia was already in the hands of Alexander); while he was making the isthmus he made a raid on Coelesyria and captured Arabs whom he sent to fell wood in the mountains of Lebanon; when Alexander returned to the isthmus it was already well advanced and the attempts of the Tyrians to destroy it, despite some partial success, had failed. The Tyrians sent the women, old men and children to Carthage and closed the mouths of its two ports. Alexander brought war machines. After a fierce fight, Alexander occupied the city. The Tyrians resisted house by house, and Alexander had eight thousand defenders killed. Two thousand Tyrians were crucified as revenge for the death of some Macedonians, and another thirty thousand were sold into slavery. The king and magistrates were respected. The siege lasted seven months and the city fell in July 332 BC. C. The city was repopulated with settlers from Caria.

The city was again besieged by Antigonus I Monophthalmos in 315 BC. C., who took it a year later.

It was part of the Seleucid Empire (198 BC). In 126 B.C. In BC, Tire regained its independence from the Seleucids and was allowed to remain free when the surrounding area became the Roman province of Syria (64 BC).

Later Story

The arch of the triumph of Tyre, realized the centuryII.

A Christian congregation was founded after the death of Saint Stephen, and Saint Paul of Tarsus, upon returning from his third missionary journey, resided for a week to be able to talk with the local disciples. According to Saint Irenaeus of Lyons in Adversus Haereses, the companion of Simon Magus came from Tyre.

In 395 it was part of the Byzantine Empire until in 638 it was occupied by the Arabs. In 1098 it fell into the hands of the Seljuk Turks, and in 1124 of the Crusaders, in whose hands it remained until 1291. It was captured in 1124 after the First Crusade and was one of the most important cities of the Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was part of the royal domain, although there were also autonomous trading colonies of Italian merchants. The city was the seat of the Archbishop of Tire, dependent on the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem; its archbishops often acceded to the patriarchate. The most notable of the Latin archbishops was the historian William of Tire.

After the fall of Jerusalem at the hands of Saladin in 1187, the capital of the kingdom was moved to Acre, but the coronation ceremonies were held in Tyre. In the 13th century, Tire was separated from the royal domain as a Crusader lordship. In 1291, it was recaptured by the Mamluks who were followed by an Ottoman rule before the modern state of Lebanon was declared in 1920. It then declined until a slight revival under the Lebanese emir Fakhr al-Din in the 19th century. XVII. After the First World War it passed to France, within the Syrian mandate, then within Greater Lebanon, then simply Lebanon.

Israeli shelling

Israeli air attack on the city on 26 July 2006.

Tyre was badly damaged in the late 1970s (Operation Litani) and 1980s, during the 1982 Lebanon War between Israel and the PLO (Palestinian Liberation Organization). The city was used as a military base by the PLO, and shelled by Israeli artillery.

In November 1983, the city was again bombarded by the Israelis, destroying numerous buildings and causing dozens of deaths. In that same year, a car bomb exploded in Tyre; Israel and the United States blamed Iran and Hezbollah, but they denied causing the explosion.

During the 2006 Lebanon War, several Hezbollah missile launchers were located around the city to attack Israel. At least one town near the city was shelled by Israel, causing several civilian deaths and damaging supplies food to Tyre. Israeli naval commandos attacked Hezbollah targets inside the city by sea.

References in culture

Tyre is also referred to many times by the poet Tibullus (54-19 BC) in the three books of poetry entitled Elegies. The Spanish Renaissance poet Fernando de Herrera (1534-1597) alludes to Tire in his elegiac poem Canción en alabança de la diuina majesty, por la vitoria del señor don Juan: vv. 170-1: «But you, force of the sea, you, heavenly Tyre, / who were glorious in your ships». Tire also appears in Shakespeare's (1564-1616) play Pericles, Prince of Tyre.

In 19th century Britain, Tire was often taken as an example of the mortality of great power: for For example, John Ruskin (1819-1900) in the opening words of The Stones of Venice (1851-1853), and Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936) in his poem Recession. Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) refers to Tire in his poetry ...My Tyrian galley awaits you... In his poem Atlantis, Hart Crane (1899-1932) evokes images of Tyre, along with other great cities of antiquity, compared to the mythical city in his visionary epic The bridge. Bob Dylan (1941-) alludes to the kings of Tire in his ballad Sad eyed lady of the lowlands (1966). The Lebanese poet Abbas Beydoun (1945-) is the author of the book Poem of Tire. Wislawa Szymborska references Tire in her poem "The Water".

In the Bible

The Bible makes several references to Tyre:

• According to Joshua 19, Tyre, a "fortified city," was assigned to the tribe of Aser.
• King Hiram I of Tyre was a contemporary of David and Solomon in 2 Samuel, 1 Kings and 1 Chronicles.
• Tyre is among an alliance of ten nations that would conspire against the people of God. Many Biblical comments agree that this has not yet happened historically and can be prophetic.
• Tyre is mentioned in the Book of Isaiah as forgotten for 70 years, after which "she" would return to her lucrative prostitution and the gains "will be given to those who serve the Lord."
• The Book of Jeremiah mentions Tyre among many other nations who would drink from the "coup of the wine of wrath" of God. He also predicted a time when God would destroy the Philistines and every helper of Tyre and Sidon would be cut.
• The Book of Ezekiel affirms that Tyre will not have inhabitants again, there will no longer exist, and that he will never be found again and that his king will cease to be forever.
• The Book of Joel brings together Tyre, Sidon and Philistine and affirms that the people of Judea and Jerusalem were sold to the Greeks, so there would be punishment for it.
• Tyre is also mentioned in the Book of Amos, the Psalms and the Book of Zechariah who prophesied their destruction.
• Jesus visited the region of Tyre and Sidon and from where many went out to hear him preaching, which leads to the marked contrast in Matthew 11:21 with his reception in Corazin and Bethsaida.
• Herod was furious with the people of Tyre and Sidon and spoke a public speech fell ill by an angel of the Lord according to the Book of Acts. The same book describes Paul's journey to Tyre, where he remained seven days.

The Bible predicts that the lands of Babylon, Edom, Bosrah, Moab, Tyre, Hazor, and the children of Ammon will become like Sodom and Gomorrah, or forever uninhabited.