Authors

Abass Hiba Saad
TRANSFORMATION OF THE URBAN STRUCTURE OF DAMASCUS DURING THE FRENCH MANDATE

Architecton: Proceedings of Higher Education №1 (69) March, 2020

Throughout the long history of Damascus, the planning structure of the city has undergone a number of changes. The most significant transformations of the urban planning structure date back to the Greek and Roman periods (VIII BC - IV AD), when the traditionally complex and irregular building structure was partially replaced or supplemented by a regular planning system with rectangular quarters, and also to the Arab period (661-750 AD), when the traditional layout with narrow and curved streets was gradually returning.
At the same time, the most significant transformation of the planning structure of Damascus occurred during the French Mandate (1920-1946), when the architecture of Syria and other countries controlled by France was significantly influenced by the trends of European architecture of the 19th - early 20th centuries. This period is characterized by changes in the urban planning system (primarily in the capitals) in accordance with the urban planning principles, the formation of a system of long avenues (boulevards), the organization of a system of squares, and the construction of large buildings in the form of European architecture from the turn of the 19th to the 20th century. This article is devoted to identifying the processes of transformation of the existing spatial planning structure of Damascus under the influence of the trends in European architecture during the French Mandate.