Forts and Cannon of Oman.

[fernando]

I wonder where the more comprehensive displays of artillery in Oman are already open to public. In fact a rather complex and expensive work took place quite a few years ago for the purpose; an episode that i happened to follow at the time.
Those are the Castles of Al Hazm, turned into an artillery museum and Bayt Ar Rudaydah, this one converted into a heritage small arms museum which displays the historical progression traditional weapons in Oman.

Attached a picture of a Portuguese crest in a cannon at the entrance of one of Muscat forts

.

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

Originally Posted by fernando

I wonder where the more comprehensive displays of artillery in Oman are already open to public. In fact a rather complex and expensive work took place quite a few years ago for the purpose; an episode that i happened to follow at the time.
Those are the Castles of Al Hazm, turned into an artillery museum and Bayt Ar Rudaydah, this one converted into a heritage small arms museum which displays the historical progression traditional weapons in Oman.

Attached a picture of a Portuguese crest in a cannon at the entrance of one of Muscat forts

.

Salaams fernando...True indeed ...I haven't got to those exhibitions yet but am working round to them...There are a number of Portuguese cannon and certainly one at the gates of Nizwa with a Swiss Cannon also. They often have the crest of the particular General etc over the barrel..I will pick up on those and the exhibition which I believe were the result of comprehensive work by Dr Roads. See Martini Henry...http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...3&page=2&pp=30 at #34

Your comments about Sohar...called Soar in the old maps (and correctly mentioned as such in your post)... is interesting and I think you are correct...although details I have read indicate the first Omani firing of cannon was in 1616 from that fort...but it is vague and unclear. Certainly I have Mirani and Jelali plus the towers at Muttrah as Portuguese, though, there must be at least influence if not involvement in other fortified projects. It is also true that they retreated inland when the Piri Reius Turkish expedition attacked Muscat pre the building of Mirani and Jelali... Did not the Portuguese pass on their techniques in areas like Nizwa and Mannah...the latter being a fortified town reminiscent of Portuguese work? The question as to when these cannon arrived at the forts they are now in...is as yet, not answered but I hope to do that as the thread develops.

Thank you for the excellent details...

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

[fernando]

Originally Posted by Ibrahiim al Balooshi

...the exhibition which I believe were the result of comprehensive work by Dr Roads..

Correct; he was the mentor ... and his nephew was on the ground.

Originally Posted by Ibrahiim al Balooshi

Certainly I have Mirani and Jelali plus the towers at Muttrah as Portuguese, though, there must be at least influence if not involvement in other fortified projects..

Countless; either built, rebuilt or modified.
Built from the ground were, for example,
Kalba (Quelba) under Portuguese rule in the XVI century.
Khor Fakkan (Curfacão) in the Sharjah side, with its triangular fort already in ruins by 1666.
The you have Diba Hisn (Doba) (the smallest of three Dibas) which, as you know, was once Omani Capital. Under Portuguese rule from 1624 to 1648, it is beleived they built a fort there.
You also have Qurayyat (Curiate), conquered in 1507. Its rectangular fort built by the Arabs was rebuilt by the Portuguese in the last quarter XVI century.

One must refrain from quoting other examples, as the doubt remains in whether a fortification was Portuguese because the place was under their rule, or indeed was built or rebuilt by them ... something often unclear in citations.
Also to be taken into account that present decharacterization occurs when archelogic autorities, carrying restorations interventions, promote the islamization of certain aspects ... battlements and other.

Originally Posted by Ibrahiim al Balooshi

The question as to when these cannon arrived at the forts they are now in....

One thing inevitable to mind when you take over a medieval castle is to modify it for artillery purposes.
Cannons are heavy, but are portable ... and a vital asset in the period. They moved them a lot ... everywhere ... for the most varied reasons. You take them from you adversary when you win the battle and start using them yourself, you take them as a war trophy and you certainly take them from remote distances to exhibit them in a museum or at the door of somebody important.
One of the most formidable Muslim cannons that ever existed in India resides nowadays in Lisbon Military Museum

.

[Kubur]

The best Muslim canon is in Leeds

http://www.royalarmouries.org/galler...gle-object/196

It's my own taste, it's up to you to follow...

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

Originally Posted by Kubur

The best Muslim canon is in Leeds

http://www.royalarmouries.org/galler...gle-object/196

It's my own taste, it's up to you to follow...

Thats another excellent reference Kubur... Thanks
Ibrahiim al Balooshi

[fernando]

Originally Posted by Kubur

The best Muslim canon is in Leeds

http://www.royalarmouries.org/galler...gle-object/196

It's my own taste, it's up to you to follow...

Well, when i said " One of the most formidable Muslim cannons that ever existed in India resides nowadays in Lisbon Military Museum" i was far from ensuring it is the best. Despite my personal appreciation for such specimen, i am far from being able to classify cannons but, the quotation on it stated by scholars is that it is one of admirable greatness since the XVI century and one of the largest basilisks in the world, with its 6,11 mts length, 19.499 Kilos weight and a caliber of 23,5 cms, throwing 43 kilos iron projectiles.
But what is important is its symbolic value, rather than its sophistication or dimension.

(I have already posted this cannon in a different approach. It is somwehere in the archives; can't spot it)

The iscription it contains saved it from being molten for the casting of a statue of King Dom José I around 1770 when, at the last moment, intelectual Friar José de S. Antonio Moura translated the said inscription which reads (Arabic writers may correct ):

From our Lord the Sultan of Sultans of time; verifier of the tradition of the Prophet of (God) Merciful; who combats for the exaltation of the precepts of the Koran; the demolisher of the arguments of the supporters of impiety; the one that removes the houses of worshipers of idols; the Victor in the day when the two armies encounter; heir to the kingdom of Solomon; trusted in the God the Benefactor; the possessor of the virtues – Bahadur-Shah Sultan; this piece was made in day 5 of the month Dhul Ka'da, year 939.

This cannon, built in 1533, was captured and brought to Portugal in 1538 and had practical use in Lisbon defences, before its ending in exhibition.
It is known as O Tiro de Diu (The shot of Diu), name given after its use in the siege of Diu in 1538.


.

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

Originally Posted by fernando

Correct; he was the mentor ... and his nephew was on the ground.



Countless; either built, rebuilt or modified.
Built from the ground were, for example,
Kalba (Quelba) under Portuguese rule in the XVI century.
Khor Fakkan (Curfacão) in the Sharjah side, with its triangular fort already in ruins by 1666.
The you have Diba Hisn (Doba) (the smallest of three Dibas) which, as you know, was once Omani Capital. Under Portuguese rule from 1624 to 1648, it is beleived they built a fort there.
You also have Qurayyat (Curiate), conquered in 1507. Its rectangular fort built by the Arabs was rebuilt by the Portuguese in the last quarter XVI century.

One must refrain from quoting other examples, as the doubt remains in whether a fortification was Portuguese because the place was under their rule, or indeed was built or rebuilt by them ... something often unclear in citations.
Also to be taken into account that present decharacterization occurs when archelogic autorities, carrying restorations interventions, promote the islamization of certain aspects ... battlements and other.



One thing inevitable to mind when you take over a medieval castle is to modify it for artillery purposes.
Cannons are heavy, but are portable ... and a vital asset in the period. They moved them a lot ... everywhere ... for the most varied reasons. You take them from you adversary when you win the battle and start using them yourself, you take them as a war trophy and you certainly take them from remote distances to exhibit them in a museum or at the door of somebody important.
One of the most formidable Muslim cannons that ever existed in India resides nowadays in Lisbon Military Museum

.

Salaams Fernando ~ The politics on Forts is thicker than the walls!! Interesting that Corfecan fort is pictured as for the Fort at Barka.. unless they were identical. Possibly a mistake? Once I have a few more details I think it will become clearer as to the cloudy issue on Forts here...and bearing in mind the various attempts to rebuild...sometimes with more artistic licence than it perhaps required...and with additions and adaptions that were never there originally..I agree entirely with your descriptions and it is clear to me that a lot more Portuguese influence is apparent than openly claimed. I am certain that this can be corrected.
Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

Bahla Fort Gate Cannon.

So what is this weapon?? The P and Crown appear to be proof marks ...The numbers not pictured over the thick end of the barrel would give the weight in hundredweight quarters and pounds...see site below for details and mathematics.

Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

Note;Pictures Courtesy of David Lockwood.

I viewed http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/sh...-markings.html for cannon marks and discovered some how to spot the cannon weight and other details...worth logging .

[fernando]

Originally Posted by Ibrahiim al Balooshi

... Interesting that Corfecan fort is pictured as for the Fort at Barka.. unless they were identical. Possibly a mistake?...

No, not a mistake. Corfecão, Borca (Barkah) and Sibo (As Sib) are equally triangular.
The one in Sibo aleady existed when the Potuguese arrived, quoted by them as having been built by the 'Arabios'.
Corfecão had 26 mts. in its longer side an pentagonal bastions in the vertexes. In the center, a circular tower, which protected a water well. The garrizon was formed by a Lascarin capitain and 23 soldiers.

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

Originally Posted by fernando

No, not a mistake. Corfecão, Borca (Barkah) and Sibo (As Sib) are equally triangular.
The one in Sibo aleady existed when the Potuguese arrived, quoted by them as having been built by the 'Arabios'.
Corfecão had 26 mts. in its longer side an pentagonal bastions in the vertexes. In the center, a circular tower, which protected a water well. The garrizon was formed by a Lascarin capitain and 23 soldiers.

Salaams fernando...Glad to hear that... I am on a project next to Barka Fort for a month and Seeb is near my appartment. Corfecan may be a bit more difficult but I shall endeavor to raise pictures of the current instalations. You refer to the Fort Jesus which is entirely described here as Portuguese though changed hands later...The Fort at Bahrain is also Portuguese. Forts were not reclassified Omani Forts because of some religious decision but perhaps since some were either largely or totally rebuilt... I mean for example the fort at Bahla is an Omani Fort but was built by the Persians ...originally.

What I want to know is who was involved in either the design or rebuilding in each case and when was each one modified so that a precise picture can be presented. Such was the deterioration that in some cases the entire surrounding triangular wall ...e.g. at Barka has vanished; incorporated into the surrounding old houses construction which can be seen ...and I shall photograph those exposed walls next week..I am fascinated that 3 forts were essentially identical; Seeb, Corfecan and Barka.

It can be said that Bahla is totally reconstructed and was in such bad condition that no cannon of any size would have been used from inside it...as it would have brought the fort crashing down with the vibrations...

There are differing types of reconstruction down the ages;
1. Preparing the forts for cannon.
2. Running repairs say after heavy rains or part collapse...
3. The third type of renovation is because of tourism requirements.

My view is that the outer surrounding walls need to be repaired...reclaimed..and that a complete and true picture be assembled as to what cannons were at which Forts ...moreover who built the installations and when...The record book can then be retuned..

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

For a comprehensive background to Forts and Cannon of Oman etc see http://www.klm-mra.be/icomam/downloads/issue07.pdf

[fernando]

Originally Posted by Ibrahiim al Balooshi

...e.g. at Barka has vanished; incorporated into the surrounding old houses construction which can be seen .

Typical ... also over here. The local fort in my home town was once almost swallowed by houses, till some good soul from the authorities demolished a few of them... to recuperate historic dignity and aesthetics.

Originally Posted by Ibrahiim al Balooshi

...There are differing types of reconstruction down the ages;
1. Preparing the forts for cannon. .

Yes, in the most varied ways, according to period specialists and their origin. For example, sometimes you open embrasures in the walls for the cannons, other you build access ramps in which cannons shoot over the walls, an easier process. I can see both systems in mine and next town fortresses.

Originally Posted by Ibrahiim al Balooshi

... 2. Running repairs say after heavy rains or part collapse....

A critical and chronic situation. Cements were not so good those days; walls used to fall apart in no time. Also artillery degradated a lot. I can read reports from local fort Captains claiming for repairs and gun replacements every now and then. One of the reasons is also because, depending on timely strategies forts were abandoned for long periods, nobody caring to maintain them in the meantime and, when you decide is vital to use them again, the whole thing is in bad shape and requiring lots of work.

Originally Posted by Ibrahiim al Balooshi

... 3. The third type of renovation is because of tourism requirements.....

The more risky part. That's when they decide to transform a genuine monument into showbusiness ... either to please the sponsor or enjoy the indifferent visitor.

But you miss a fourth part, which is 'deconstruction'; something ocurred in not so old days, at least over here. Palaces and castles were partly dismantled to use the stones in other constructions; either donated by the State to those interested in building their own facilities or even the castle owner himself to make another palace or a chapel around the corner. I know about both specific cases.