Tartus (Arabic:طَرْطُوس /ALA-LC:Ṭarṭūs; officially known asTartous[4] and also historically known in theCounty of Tripoli asTortosa) is a major port city on the Mediterranean coast ofSyria.[5] It is the second largest port city in Syria (afterLatakia), and the largest city inTartus Governorate.[6] Tartus was under the governance ofLatakia Governorate until the 1970s, when it became a separate governorate.[7] The population is 458,327 (2023 estimate).[8] In the summer it is a vacation spot for many Syrians.
The name derives from AncientGreek:Αντιάραδος,romanized: Anti-Arados (Antarados orAnti-Aradus, meaning "The town facingAradus). InLatin, its name becameTortosa. The original name survives in itsArabic form asṬarṭūs (Arabic:طَرْطُوس), from which theFrenchTartous andEnglishTartus derive.
Bronze bull, probably a representation of Egyptian god Apis. 1st-2nd century CE, found in Tartus
Tartus was founded as aPhoeniciancolony ofAradus.[2][9] The colony was known as Antaradus. Not much remains of thePhoenician Antaradus, the mainland settlement of the more important and larger settlements of Aradus, off the shore of Tartus, and the nearby site ofAmrit.[10]
The city was called Antaradus inLatin.Athanasius reports that, underRoman EmperorConstantine the Great,Cymatius, theChristian Orthodoxbishop of Antaradus and also ofAradus (whose names indicate that they were neighbouring towns facing each other) was driven out by theArians. At theFirst Council of Constantinople in 381, Mocimus appears as bishop of Aradus. At the time of theCouncil of Ephesus (431), some sources speak of a Musaeus as bishop of Aradus and Antaradus, while others mention only Aradus or only Antaradus. Alexander was at theCouncil of Chalcedon in 451 as bishop of Antaradus, Paulus as bishop of Aradus, while, at a synod held at Antioch shortly before, Paulus took part as bishop of both Aradus and Antaradus. In 458, Atticus signed, as bishop of Aradus, the letter of the bishops of the province of Phoenicia Prima to Byzantine EmperorLeo I the Thracian protesting about the murder ofProterius of Alexandria. Theodorus or Theodosius, who died in 518, is mentioned as bishop of Antaradus in a letter from the bishops of the province regardingSeverus of Antioch that was read at a synod held byPatriarch Mennas of Constantinople. The acts of theSecond Council of Constantinople in 553 were signed by Asyncretius as bishop of Aradus. At the time of the Crusades, Antaradus, by then called Tartus or Tortosa, was aLatin Church diocese, whose bishop also held the titles of Aradus andMaraclea (perhapsRachlea). It was united to the see of Famagosta in Cyprus in 1295.[11][12][13]
The city was favored by Constantine for its devotion to the cult of theVirgin Mary. The first chapel to be dedicated to the Virgin was built here in the 3rd century.[15]
Islamic rule was established in Syria in 634. In the years before, Arab merchants would spread the word of Islam and locals embraced the new religion while others continued to practice their respective faiths. During theArab conquest of the Levant, caliphate armies conquered Tartus under the leadership ofUbadah ibn al-Samit in 636.[16] While Ubadah occupied Tartus,Mu'awiya I came to the city, and built anAmsar complex within the city, while also tasking fiefs to the garrison commanders.[17] Tartus hostedKhadijah, the wife ofProphet Muhammad when she came with her fatherKhuwaylid ibn Asad.[18]
The Crusaders called the city Antartus, and also Tortosa. It was captured in 1099 during theFirst Crusade[19] byFrankish forces. Once the land was seized, the cathedral was built over the spot of a Byzantine church,[20] but it was later taken over by Muslims. It was recaptured byRaymond of Saint-Gilles in February 1102 after two weeks of siege, then it was left in 1105 to his sonAlfonso Jordan and was known as Tortosa.[21] In 1123 the Crusaders built the semi-fortifiedCathedral of Our Lady of Tortosa over a Byzantine church that was popular with pilgrims.
In 1152, Tortosa was handed to theKnights Templar, who used it as a military headquarters. They engaged in some major building projects, constructing acastle around 1165 with a large chapel and an elaborate keep, surrounded by thick double concentric walls.[22] The Templars' mission was to protect the city and surrounding lands, some of which had been occupied by Christian settlers, from Muslim attack.Nur ad-Din Zangi captured Tartus from the Crusaders for a brief time before he lost it again.[23]
The city of Tortosa was recaptured bySaladin in 1188, and the main Templar headquarters was relocated toCyprus. However, in Tortosa, some Templars were able to retreat into the keep, which they continued to use as a base for the next 100 years. They steadily added to its fortifications until it also fell, in 1291. Tortosa was the last outpost of the Templars on the Syrian mainland, after which they retreated to a garrison on the nearby island ofArwad, which they held for another decade.[24] After the occupation by theMamluks, the city lost its prestige, which it regained only under theOttoman rule.[25]
During theOttoman rule, the city gained importance mainly due to trade with Cyprus and Europe. At the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries, it became one of the coastal defense points due to its strategic port. In 1832, at the beginning of theFirst Egyptian-Ottoman War, the city and its surroundings were conquered byMuhammad Ali Pasha, then ruler of Egypt.[26]
In 1839, theOttoman Empire reconquered its Syrian coastal territories from Egypt with the support of Great Britain. In 1840, during theSyrian War, British frigatesHMSCarysfort,HMSBenbow andHMS Zebra, with the help of a landing force of marines, attacked the citadel in Tartus.[27] Despite heavy losses, the British failed to capture the fort.[28] Ottoman rule continued until 1918.
On May 23, 2016, theIslamic State of Iraq and the Levant claimed responsibility for threesuicide bombings at a bus station in Tartus, which had remained largely unaffected since theSyrian Civil War began in 2011 and continues to remain that way, as a stronghold of theGovernment of Syria. Purportedly targeting Alawite gatherings, the bombs killed 48 people. InJableh, similarly insulated, another four bombers killed over a hundred people.[29]
On December 15, 2024,Israeli Air Forces bombed the coastal city and its vicinity in an offensive which targeted military facilities following thefall of the Assad regime. At 11:49 pm, a 3.1 earthquake which might have been caused by the explosions was reported with its epicenter about 28 kilometres (17 mi) off the coast ofBanias, according toseismic sensors in the region.[30][31] TheSyrian Observatory for Human Rights has reported that the strikes were "some of the heaviest in the region since 2012".[32][33]
The city lies on the eastern coast of theMediterranean Sea bordered by theSyrian Coastal Mountain Range to the east.Arwad, the only inhabited island on the Syrian coast, is located a few kilometers off the shore of Tartus. Tartus occupies most of the coastal plain, surrounded to the east by mountains composed mainly oflimestone and, in certain places around the town ofSouda,basalt.
Tartus has aMediterranean climate (Köppen (Csa) with mild, wet winters, hot and humid summers, and short transition periods in April and October. The hills to the east of the city create a cooler climate with higher rainfall. Tartus is known for its relatively mild weather and high precipitation compared to inland Syria.[34]
There is a cement plant in the city with a production capacity of 6.5 thousand tons of cement per day.[36] Thepharmaceutical industry is also represented in the city, since the beginning of the conflict in the country, seven pharmaceutical factories have been opened and another 3 are under construction.[37] Food, chemical and wood processing industries are also represented in the urban industrial zone.[38]
Many residents are employed in the service sector.[39]
Tartus is an important trade center in Syria and has one of the two main ports of the country on theMediterranean. In 2005, the city port underwent major expansion as a lot ofIraqi imports come through the port of Tartus to aidreconstruction efforts in Iraq.[40]
In July 2025, Syria concluded an $800 million deal with Dubai-basedDP World to redevelop Tartus port as part of post-war reconstruction efforts. The contract was signed in Damascus between DP World and the General Authority for Land and Sea Ports, in the presence of Syrian presidentAhmed al-Sharaa.[41]
Tartus hosts aSoviet-era naval supply and maintenance base, under a 1971 agreement with Syria, which is still staffed by Russian naval personnel. Tartus is the lastRussian military base outside the former Soviet Union, and its only Mediterranean fueling spot, sparing Russia's warships the trip back to theirBlack Sea bases throughstraits in Turkey, aNATO member.[42] On 22 January 2025 the new Syrian government terminated the treaty allowing Russian military presence in Syria.[43][44]
Many cultural and literary events, art festivals and theater are held in the city, and in the summer, the activities of the Tartous Art Festival are held in the presence of distinguished Syrian and Arab artists,[46] in addition to a tourist festival called Antaradus.[47]
Assi Rahbani andMansour Rahbani, frequent visitors to Tartus, immortalized their love for the city in a song,Shabab Al-Hilweh, sung byNasri Shamseddine.[48] Among the composers whose name is associated with Tartous andHusayn al-Baher is the musician Safwan Bahlawan Ibn Arwad who has a distinguished performance in the pub and his artistic presence on the Arab art scene.[49] Residents of the city include the singerFarrah Yousef,[50] finalist of the singing competitionArab Idol andTaim Hasan, an actor known for his dramatic roles in Syria and the Arab world.[51]
Many poets and writers have lived in Tartus, includingSaadallah Wannous, Muhammad Omran,Rasha Omran and Nadim Muhammad. Some writers hold their literary seminars and lectures in the local cultural center.[46]
St. Mary's Cathedral was originally built in the 12th century as a Templar church. The cathedral was used as a mosque after the Muslim capture of the city, then as a barracks by theOttomans. It was renovated under theFrench Mandate and since 1956, the building has housed the National Museum of Tartus, which exhibits antiquities recovered from Amrit and many other places in the region.[52]
Ash chest with a Christian symbol, located in the national museum
In September 2021, theDirectorate-General of Antiquities began a comprehensive renovation and fixing operations of architectural elements that were subjected to fragmentation at the National Museum of Tartus.[53]
Tartus is the home city of only one sports club:Al-Sahel SC, founded in 1971. 4 types of sports are being practiced by the club including: football, basketball, table tennis and bodybuilding. The club plays in both stadiums in the city: Municipal (capacity 1,300) and Bassel Al-Assad (capacity 8,000).
In 2018, Al-Sahel was promoted to theSyrian Premier League for the first time in their history.[54] In the2020-21 season, they were relegated and have been playing in theSyrian League 1st Division ever since. The women's basketball team competes at the top level of the Syrian basketball league.[55]
A number of colleges affiliated withLatakia University, such as the College of Arts and the College of Technical Engineering, were opened as part of the government's policy to expand higher education among the various Syrian cities.[56]The city also has a number of institutes, secondary schools and primary schools affiliated with theMinistry of Education, in addition to private educational institutes and secondary schools.[57]
A residential neighbourhood of TartusDowntown TartusAl-Bassel Public Park in the city center
Tartous has expanded over time.[58] Gardens in the city include Al-Basel Park.[59] Tartus was an attractive destination for tourists from Europe and Arab countries prior to the civil war.[60]
Tartus has a developed road system. Tartus and Latakia are connected by the M1 international highway, and the city is connected toDamascus by theM5 highway viaHoms.[61] The establishment of an international road linking Tartus with Iraq and otherArab states of the Persian Gulf through theSyrian Desert was recently studied, as it is the shortest road connecting thePersian Gulf to the Mediterranean and thus Europe from the Port of Tartus. The main commercial coastal road of the city is Al-Thawra Street, named after1963 March Revolution.[58]
The railway network operated byChemins de Fer Syriens connects Tartus with other cities in Syria, although currently only theLatakia-Tartus and Tartus-Al Akkari-Homs passenger connections are in service.[62][63] The restoration of the rail link with Iraq (IRR) and the proposal to extend the railway fromAl-Qaim in Iraq throughAl-Bukamal in Syria toHoms for a total distance of 270 kilometers and thence to Tartus are currently (2022) under discussion.[63][64]
Boats in Tartus harborA formerTemplar citadel, later a naval fortress
The historic centre of Tartus consists of more recent buildings built on and inside the walls of the Crusader-era Templar fortress, whose moat still separates this old town from the modern city on its northern and eastern sides. Outside the fortress few historic remains can be seen, with the exception of the formerRomanesque-Gothic cathedralCathedral of Notre-Dame of Tartus, from the 12th century.[65]
Phoenician Temple (Ma'abed), cella at the center of the court,Amrit of Tartus in 2006
Tartus and the surrounding area are rich in antiquities and archeological sites. Various important and well known sites are located within a 30-minute drive from Tartus. These attractions include:
The outlying town ofAl Hamidiyah just south of Tartus is notable for having a Greek-speaking population of about 3,000 who are the descendants of OttomanGreek Muslims from the island ofCrete but usually confusingly referred to asCretan Turks. Their ancestors moved there in the late 19th century as refugees fromCrete after theKingdom of Greece acquired the island from the Ottoman Empire following theGreco-Turkish War of 1897.[68][69] Since the start of the Iraqi War, a few thousand Iraqi nationals now reside in Tartus.[citation needed]
^Trevor N. Dupuy. (1993). "The First Turko-Egyptian War."The Harper Encyclopedia of Military History. HarperCollins Publishers,ISBN978-0062700568, p. 851
^Douwes, Dick (2010). "Migration, Faith and Community: Extra-Local Linkages in Coastal Syria". In Sluglett, Peter; Weber, Stefan (eds.).Syria and Bilad al-Sham under Ottoman Rule. New York and Leiden: Brill.ISBN978-90-04-18193-9.
^The forgotten Turks: Turkmens of LebanonArchived 2016-03-03 at theWayback Machine (report). Center for Middle Eastern Strategic Studies. February 2010. Retrieved 8-5-2015. p. 14. "The locals of Hamidiye do not describe themselves as Cretan Turks, but as Cretan Muslims or Ottomans (Kiritlar = Cretans in turkish). Some locals in Tripoli define themselves as Cretan Turks."
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