8th century in Lebanon

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8th century in Lebanon (701–800) was a time of big changes. Lebanon moved from Umayyad rule to Abbasid rule, faced Byzantine sea and land pressure, and saw revolts, new settlements, and the building of churches and mosques. Here are the main points in simpler language.

Administration and rulers
- In 750 AD the Abbasids overthrew the Umayyads and Lebanon became part of the Abbasid realm. They taxed the region harshly, which led to uprisings.
- The Abbasids arranged Lebanon’s frontiers by bringing in Arab tribes, like the Tanukhids, to help defend the coast and mountains. Baalbek and nearby areas came under Abbasid control, and Lebanese leaders were sometimes given responsibility for relief forces on the frontiers.
- Important cities and sites in this era included the Umayyad mosque in Baalbek (714/715 AD) and the conversion of a local temple at Yanouh into a church around 750 AD.

Naval warfare and Byzantine pressure
- The Byzantines attacked the Levant by sea several times. In 726 AD they tried to invade Tyre by sea.
- A Lebanese commander, Al-Aswad bin Bilal Al-Muharibi, helped push them back and shut down the sea routes for a time. He also led expeditions to Cyprus and Crete.
- Under future rulers, the coast was fortified further, and Tyre’s port was repaired. The Byzantines continued to pressure coastal towns like Tripoli, which was briefly lost to them around 758–759 AD.

Mardaite revolts and local resistance
- After the Umayyad fall, the Mardaites (a local Christian group) began several revolts (starting around 752 AD). They fought Abbasid forces and even found some support from Byzantines.
- The revolt grew dangerous enough that the Abbasids mobilized large forces, dispersed Mardaite groups around the Levant, and moved in Arab tribes to keep the area under control.
- These revolts and the Abbasid response helped shape Lebanon’s defense and settlement patterns for years to come.

Key events and places
- Important towns and settlements were connected to these changes. Anjar (Gerrha) was founded in the Umayyad period around 705–715 AD. The Maronite community built the Mar-Mama church at Ehden around 749 AD, showing the growth of Christian communities even during Islamic rule.
- In Beirut and surrounding areas, mosques and religious sites were established, including the Imam Awza’i Mosque in Beirut, which houses the tomb of the famed Islamic scholar Abd al-Rahman al-Awza’i.
- Tripoli and other coastal towns changed hands at times due to Byzantine pressure. The city of Sin el Fil in Beirut was founded by local leaders in 759 AD, reflecting the consolidation of Arab-Christian leadership in the mountains and coast.

People of the century
- Among notable figures born in Lebanon during this century was Elias of Heliopolis (Elias of Damascus), born around 758–759 AD in Baalbek, who led a major revolt before being executed in 779 AD.
- Other local leaders included Mundhir and Arslan, Tanukhid princes who collaborated with the Abbasids to defend the coast and frontiers. Arslan died in Beirut in 787 AD.
- Important local religious figures included Imam al-Awza’i (Abd al-Rahman al-Awza’i), born in 707 AD in Baalbek and later becoming a leading Islamic jurist in Beirut and the wider Ash-Sham region.

Architecture and cultural markers
- The era left a mark on architecture and religious life. The Great Umayyad mosque in Baalbek (714/715 AD) and the Imam Awza’i Mosque in Beirut reflect the spread of Islamic culture.
- The conversion of Yanouh’s temple into Saint George’s church around 750 AD shows how Christian communities continued to thrive under new rulers.
- Monasteries and churches (like Mar-Mama in Ehden) continued to play a key role in religious life alongside mosques and forts.

In short
- The 8th century in Lebanon was a period of shifting rulers (Umayyad to Abbasid), coastal defense against Byzantines, and local revolts that shaped how people lived, built, and organized communities in mountains and along the coast. It saw important religious and architectural sites rise, and it laid groundwork for the mixed Arab-Christian culture that would continue to evolve in the centuries that followed.