Qal'at Najm

Qal'at Najm
قلعة نجم
Aleppo Governorate, Syria
View of Qal'at Najm from the south; the waters of the Tishrin Dam reservoir can be seen in front
Qal'at Najm Location of Qal'at Najm
Coordinates	36°33′18″N 38°15′42″E / 36.555°N 38.261667°E / 36.555; 38.261667
Type	Castle
Site information
Open to the public	Yes
Condition	Partially restored ruin
Garrison information
Past commanders	Az-Zahir Ghazi

Qal'at Najm (Arabic: قلعة نجم‎‎) is a castle located on the right bank of the Euphrates, near the town of Manbij (Syria). The castle probably stood on the site of an earlier Roman site and is known from Arabic texts since the 7th century CE. Reconstruction works were carried out in the castle by Nur ad-Din Zangi and Az-Zahir Ghazi during the 12th and early 13th centuries. The castle sits on a mound that is protected by a glacis and houses a palace-bath complex and a mosque.

The castle probably stood on the location of an earlier Roman site, the name of which has not yet been identified, although Caeciliana has been suggested. The oldest reference to Qal'at Najm in Arabic texts is Jisr Manbij, while the current name came only into popular use in the 12th century CE. According to one text, Caliph Uthman had a bridge constructed over the Euphrates at Jisr Manbij. Following the conquest of the region by the Umayyads, the castle was controlled by the Hamdanids and the Mirdasid dynasty, before passing into the hands of the nomadic tribe of the Banu Numayr. The castle served as a stronghold for the Banu Numayr, who also controlled Qal'at Ja'bar, until at least 1120. Control then shifted to the Zengid dynasty under Nur ad-Din, ruler of Aleppo and the son of Zengi. Nur ad-Din had the castle restored. In 1202, Az-Zahir Ghazi, the Ayyubid governor of Aleppo from 1186 to 1216, attacked the Jezirah and conquered Manbij, Qal'at Najm and Qal'at Ja'bar, pushing on to Ra's al-'Ayn on the Khabur in northeast Syria. After this campaign, Az-Zahir refortified many of the places he had conquered, including Qal'at Najm. In 1820, an Arab warlord sought refuge in the castle, which was subsequently besieged and damaged by Ottoman forces.