Smar Jbeil | village, place with historical importance

 village, place with historical importance

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The town’s name is derived from the Phoenician language, meaning “the guardian of Jbeil.” Smar Jbeil is home to the structure of Al-Madina Al-Kashfiyya (“the Scout City”), the only city of its kind in Lebanon, established in 1974, and part of which has been transformed into a military barrack.
Among the most important vestiges in the town is the Citadel of Smar Jbeil, dating back to the Phoenician era (Zoom in for more details). The citadel was later occupied by the Romans, who left various inscriptions on its northern wall, followed by the Crusaders, who have built cellars next to its towers and a church to the east of the citadel. The citadel is also characterized by its wells, carved into the rocks and its deep tunnels.
Smar Jbeil is also home to several historical churches. These include: Al-Zwar Church, located next to the citadel and dating from the early Christian era; Al-Saydeh (Our Lady) Church, built before the Crusader era; and Mar Nohra Church, established during the early Christian era and with Syriac inscriptions on its eastern wall. Above the entrance of this church lies a sculpture of eleven stone rings in a cross shape, out of which hangs a vessel. In the village of Smar Jbeil stand two ancient pillars, between which an old cemetery has been discovered.
Smar Jbeil was the refuge of the first Maronite Patriarch, Saint Youhanna Maroun, elected by the Chalcedonian party of the Antiochean Church as Patriarch of Antioch. Thus, Youhanna Maroun, Bishop of Batroun and Mount Lebanon in 676, became the first Maronite Patriarch and the sixty-third Patriarch of Antioch since St. Peter.