The Round City of Baghdad

The Round City
of Baghdad

By Kate Wilkinson-Brindle
Illustrated by Amy Robinson

Introduction

Around 2,800 years ago, in a part of the world that is now Iraq, Caliph
al-Mansur decided to build a new capital for the Abbasid people. He planned
to construct a beautiful circular city on the banks of the river Tigris.

Timeline to Show the Rise and Fall of Old Baghdad

762 CE 982 CE 1870 CE
Caliph al-Mansur Adud al-Dawla The last traces of old
founded the city founded Al-Adudi Baghdad were destroyed
of Baghdad. Hospital. by Midhat Pasha.

813 CE 1258 CE
Caliph al-Rashid began A nomadic tribe
collecting books for the of Mongols
House of Wisdom. invaded Baghdad.

The Layout of the Round City

Old Baghdad was protected by three concentric walls. The outer wall was
around 24 metres high with battlements along its length and bastions at
each of its four gates.
The city had a spectacular Great Mosque and a royal palace at the centre
of it. These grand buildings were surrounded by beautiful gardens with
fountains, tree-lined avenues and even a menagerie of animals!
An army was housed in buildings between the inner wall and double outer
walls. Ordinary citizens lived and traded outside of the city walls.

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The House of Wisdom

In 813 CE, Caliph Harun al-Rashid began a collection of books and
manuscripts. He invited famous scholars from around the world to translate
old Hebrew, Greek and Latin manuscripts into
Arabic for his Library of Wisdom.

His son, Caliph al-Mamun, expanded the library TThheehhoouusseeooffwwiissddoomm
into a House of Wisdom that contained works
covering astronomy, mathematics, medicine and
chemistry. Muslim, Jewish and Christian scholars
came to the House of Wisdom to study different
branches of knowledge. It is said that Caliph
al-Mamun paid the scholars the weight of each
completed book in gold!

Mathematicians and Astronomers

The time between 762 CE and 1258 CE is often
known as the Golden Age of Islam. The city of
Baghdad became world famous as a place of
learning and tolerance.

Around 820 CE, a scholar called al-Khwarizmi aammininaarreett
made an important contribution to the study of
mathematics by promoting the use of the Hindu
numerical system (1—9 and 0). He realised
that this system of numbers could improve
mathematics, and it was soon used
throughout the world.

Many scholars studied astronomy during the Golden Age. The tall minarets
of mosques were used as observatories to study the stars.

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The First Hospitals

Around 982 CE, Adud al-Dawla founded one of the first hospitals in Baghdad.
Hospitals were open to everyone who needed treatment, regardless of their
race, religion or wealth. The hospitals (known as bimaristans) had different
wards: one for patients having surgery,
one for patients with contagious
diseases, one for mental health
patients, one for patients with eye
conditions and one for elderly patients.

The bimaristans were not just for sick Image: The Arab Hospital by wellcomecollection
people; they also functioned as medical
schools for educating students. The
students had to pass exams before
they were allowed to treat patients.

The Fall of the City of Peace

Islam’s golden age came to an end in 1258 CE when Baghdad, the City of
Peace, was invaded.

The Mongols were a fierce and nomadic people
from northern and central Asia. Led by a
man called Hulagu Khan, the Mongol army
stormed into Baghdad and destroyed
every mosque, palace and marketplace.

The invaders emptied the famous House of
Wisdom of its books and manuscripts, and
they threw them into the river Tigris. It is
said that the Tigris turned black because of
all the ink that washed from the pages.

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