Al-Thumairi Gate (), historically Darwaza al-Thumairi () and alternatively known as Bab al-Marwah () and al-Ahsa Gate (), is an 18th-century earth-structured

fortified gateway A fortified gateway is an element of a variety of fortified structures, such as a castle or city wall, walled town. Fortified gates or gateways appear in the Bronze Age and reach into the modern times. City gate Gatehouse ''Torburg'' In Ger ...

attached with a cylindrical mudbrick

watchtower A watchtower or guardtower (also spelt watch tower, guard tower) is a type of military/paramilitary or policiary tower used for guarding an area. Sometimes fortified, and armed with heavy weaponry, especially historically, the structures are ...

in the ad-Dirah neighborhood of

Riyadh Riyadh is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of the Riyadh Province and the centre of the Riyadh Governorate. Located on the eastern bank of Wadi Hanifa, the current form of the metropolis largely emerged in th ...

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

, located in the eastern part of Qasr al-Hukm District. Named after Hassan al-Thumairi, a guard who was

killed in action Killed in action (KIA) is a casualty classification generally used by militaries to describe the deaths of their personnel at the hands of enemy or hostile forces at the moment of action. The United States Department of Defense, for example, ...

during the Battle of Dalaqa in 1747, it is one of the last remaining gates of Riyadh's old city walls and served as the main entrance to the

walled town The following cities have, or historically had, defensive walls. Africa Algeria * Algiers * Ghardaïa * Timimoun Egypt See List of Egypt castles, forts, fortifications and city walls. * Al-Fustat * Cairo * Damietta Ethiopia * Harar Libya *Apo ...

from the east until 1954. when the city wall was dismantled in early 1950s. The structure was restored by 1992 during the development of

Qasr Al Hukm District Qasr al-Hukm District () or the Justice Palace District (), is a term used to define the area within the perimeters of the erstwhile walled town of Riyadh in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, encompassing present-day districts of ad-Dirah and ad-Doho, that ...

. The historic al-Thumairi Street, a thoroughfare which runs from east to west in the Qasr al-Hukm District, is named after the gateway. al-Thumairi Gate is one of the ten gates of the former city walls of Riyadh and one of the two remaining similar constructions, other being the Dakhna Gate, that now remain in the aftermath of the wall's demolition in the 1950s. During the reign of

King Faisal bin Abdulaziz King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a constitutional monarch if his power is restrained by fi ...

, Saudi authorities began focusing on the resuscitation and rejuvenation of the area surrounding the al-Hukm Palace and the preservation of historical and architectural significance of the former walled town. In March 1973,

issued directives to Sheikh Abdulaziz Thunayyan, then mayor of

to conduct an extensive study of the area surrounding the al-Hukm Palace and implementing the project of its renovation the following year. In 1976, the High Commission for the Development of Arriyadh commissioned the Qasr Al-Hukm District Development Project and agreed on developmental programs that were prepared to transform the Qasr al-Hukm District into a cultural center. The designs were completed by 1979 and the construction lasted between 1983 and 1992 in broadly two phases, costing around US$500 million. The project was overseen by Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud, the-then governor of Riyadh. It was renovated between 1988 and 1992 as part of the second phase of the Qasr Al-Hukm District Development Project.

References

{{Reflist Buildings and structures in Riyadh 18th-century fortifications Fortifications in Saudi Arabia Gates 18th-century establishments in the Arabian Peninsula