Nejmeh Square () or Place de l'Étoile is the central square in the Downtown area of

Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

. It is home to the

Lebanese Parliament The Lebanese Parliament (, ) is the unicameral national parliament of the Lebanon, Republic of Lebanon. There are 128 members elected to a four-year term in Electoral district, multi-member constituencies, apportioned among Lebanon's divers ...

and its complementary buildings, two cathedrals, a museum, and several cafes and restaurants. Most notable for its

Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French (), is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design that first Art Deco in Paris, appeared in Paris in the 1910s just before World War I and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920 ...

architecture, the square has become a recognizable icon of the city of Beirut worldwide.

History

The square was developed in the 1920s when the French decided to destroy the old

souk A bazaar or souk is a marketplace consisting of multiple small stalls or shops, especially in the Middle East, the Balkans, Central Asia, North Africa and South Asia. They are traditionally located in vaulted or covered streets that have doors ...

s and open streets and transformed it into a modern district. New Year's celebrations in 2019 were ranked in the top 10 in the world by

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. During the 17 October Revolution, the square was the site of many protests and riots. Protesters clashed with security forces on 15 December 2019 for the second night in a row near Nejmeh Square. According to the Lebanese Civil Defense, 46 people were treated for injuries and another 14 were hospitalized. A group of counter-protesters, themselves supporters of Amal and

Hezbollah Hezbollah ( ; , , ) is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and paramilitary group. Hezbollah's paramilitary wing is the Jihad Council, and its political wing is the Loyalty to the Resistance Bloc party in the Lebanese Parliament. I ...

, also briefly clashed with protesters until the army intervened.

Sites

Saint George Greek Orthodox Cathedral

The

Greek Orthodox Greek Orthodox Church (, , ) is a term that can refer to any one of three classes of Christian Churches, each associated in some way with Greek Christianity, Levantine Arabic-speaking Christians or more broadly the rite used in the Eastern Rom ...

Cathedral of Saint George, completed in 1772, is located directly on Nejmeh Square and is the oldest orthodox church in Beirut. Its location is believed to be directly adjacent to the site of the ancient Roman law school of Beirut. The church underwent several restorations in its history due to natural disasters, erosion, and intentional destruction. During the

Lebanese Civil War The Lebanese Civil War ( ) was a multifaceted armed conflict that took place from 1975 to 1990. It resulted in an estimated 150,000 fatalities and led to the exodus of almost one million people from Lebanon. The religious diversity of the ...

, the church was burned and destroyed with most of its belongings stolen. The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Beirut began its renovation on October 16, 1995. The excavation at the site led to the discovery of the remains of three other churches and part of the Roman

colonnade In classical architecture, a colonnade is a long sequence of columns joined by their entablature, often free-standing, or part of a building. Paired or multiple pairs of columns are normally employed in a colonnade which can be straight or curv ...

s. These artifacts were incorporated into an underground museum directly located below the cathedral.Sartre 2005, p. 291

Al-Abed Clock Tower

The jewel of the square is the 1930s Al-Abed Clock Tower with its four-faced

Rolex Rolex () is a Swiss watch brand and manufacturer based in Geneva, Switzerland. Founded in 1905 as ''Wilsdorf and Davis'' by German businessman Hans Wilsdorf and his eventual brother-in-law Alfred Davis in London, the company registered ''Rolex ...

clock. The clock tower was a gift from Lebanese-Mexican émigré Michel Abed. The square is also known for its noticeable population of

pigeons Columbidae is a bird family consisting of doves and pigeons. It is the only family in the order Columbiformes. These are stout-bodied birds with small heads, relatively short necks and slender bills that in some species feature fleshy ceres. ...

Lebanese Parliament

The Parliament building was designed by Mardiros Altounian, who was also the architect of the Al-Abed Clock Tower. The building was completed in 1934 during the

French Mandate The Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon (; , also referred to as the Levant States; 1923−1946) was a League of Nations mandate founded in the aftermath of the First World War and the partitioning of the Ottoman Empire, concerning the territori ...

period. Advised to build in the spirit of Lebanese tradition, the

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

visited the Emirs' palaces in the Chouf Mountains. He also drew inspiration from the

Oriental The Orient is a term referring to the East in relation to Europe, traditionally comprising anything belonging to the Eastern world. It is the antonym of the term ''Occident'', which refers to the Western world. In English, it is largely a meto ...

styles developed in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

and

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

at the turn of the 20th century. The building combines

Beaux-Arts architecture Beaux-Arts architecture ( , ) was the academic architectural style taught at the in Paris, particularly from the 1830s to the end of the 19th century. It drew upon the principles of French neoclassicism, but also incorporated Renaissance and ...

with elements taken from local architectural tradition, including twin and triple arch windows. The limestone façade, decorated with recessed panels, arched openings, and tiers of

stalactite A stalactite (, ; , ) is a mineral formation that hangs from the ceiling of caves, hot springs, or man-made structures such as bridges and mines. Any material that is soluble and that can be deposited as a colloid, or is in suspension (chemistry ...

s, clads a reinforced concrete frame that also supports the diameter

cupola In architecture, a cupola () is a relatively small, usually dome-like structure on top of a building often crowning a larger roof or dome. Cupolas often serve as a roof lantern to admit light and air or as a lookout. The word derives, via Ital ...

covering the Chamber of Deputies.

References

{{Neighbourhoods of Beirut Squares in Beirut Neighbourhoods of Beirut Streets in Beirut Beirut Central Business District