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Baaqline
in the Shouf District holds an
important place in Lebanon's
history. The town is said to date
back to Emir Maan, who came from
Aleppo with his people in the 12th
century to fight the Crusaders. He
was the one who laid the foundations
of Baaqline in 1120 AD. Later on
Emir Maan established the Maan
dynasty that lasted until the late
17th century. Fakhreddine II was
also born here. Considered one of
the founders of modern Lebanon,
Fakhreddine used Baaqline as his
capital before moving the
administration to Deir el-Qamar.
Baaqline was also the seat of the
Mount Lebanon government during
Ottoman times. Unfortunately, the
great feudal palaces of Fakhreddine
and other rulers that once stood
here have disappeared
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with
time. But one building remains to
give us a hint of old Baaqline, This
is the Grand
Serail--the beautiful government
building constructed in 1837. It was
from these grand halls that the
governor of Mount Lebanon ruled
before the capital was moved to
Baabda. The Serail sits a spacious
square in the west part of town and
has a graceful porch supported by
three classical columns. The
building was carefully restored in
1987 and transformed into a library
with reading rooms and a collection
of books in Arabic, French, English
and other languages. You
will enjoy this pleasant quiet town,
tucked away in the heart of the
Shouf at 860 meters elevation.
Baaqline is known for its olives
which can still be seen growing in
mountain terraces. It is also famous
for beautiful needlework.
If you feel adventuresome, ask about
the footpath that leads down into
the valley for some 12 km. The route
goes past a large sinkhole, a kind
of underground cave, and continues
on to two swimming pools on the Nahr
al-Hamman.
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Major
Cities - Baaqline
