Qal'at Murair
Qal'at Murair (also Qal'at Im Murair, Arabic: قلعة مرير) is a ruined and deserted fortified castle located 2.4 kilometres (1.5 mi) from the south eastern part of the town of Zubarah.[1]
History
Qal'at Murair was built by families of the Utub confederation after their arrival to Zubarah from Kuwait in the 18th century.[2] It was built in attempt to thwart off challenges by the Al Musallam branch of the Bani Khalid, who ruled over most of Qatar.[3] They initiated the 1783 Utub invasion of Bahrain from the fort.[4] After the completion of nearby Al Zubarah Fort in 1938, it was decommissioned.[5] Its remnants were used to construct the Zubarah Fort.[6]
Description of the fort
This castle was built 1,500 metres (4,900 ft) outside the town of Zubarah with a channel and four walls lying between the town and the fort as well as a cemetery some 2,100 metres (6,900 ft) outside the town.[2] It was a fortified and was built to oversee and protect the town from any invaders. Inside the fort was a masjid known as Murair Masjid as well a well two fathoms deep, and outside the fort there are five wells one fathom deep, and all of its water is fresh.[1]
See also
References
- ^ a b The Gazetteer of the Persian Gulf, Oman, and Central Arabia, John Gordon Lorimer, Volume II, Part 9 (Geographical & Statistical), 1905, p 1524
- ^ a b "Qatar's response to the question put by Judge Parra Aranguren to Qatar and Bahrain" (PDF). International Court of Justice. 13 July 2000. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 18, 2015.
- ^ Rahman, Habibur (2006). The Emergence Of Qatar. Routledge. p. 49. ISBN 978-0710312136.
- ^ Althani, Mohamed (2013). Jassim the Leader: Founder of Qatar. Profile Books. p. 26. ISBN 978-1781250709.
- ^ Polak-Springer, Peter (14 December 2020). "Bordering Zubara: Oil Politics, the 1937 Qatari–Bahraini Conflict, and the Making of a Modern Arabian (Persian) Gulf Borderland". Journal of Borderlands Studies. 37 (5): 1071–1095. doi:10.1080/08865655.2020.1855228. Retrieved 23 August 2025.
- ^ Pandey, Rishika (15 March 2022). "Bahrain vs Qatar: Examining the viability of Arbitration and Mediation in International Territorial Disputes" (PDF). The Centre for Middle East Studies, Haryana. p. 25. Retrieved 25 August 2025.