By Tim Lambert
Ancient Syria
The Ancient history of Syria is one of being conquered by one empire after another. One of the first kingdoms in what is now Syria was Elba, which arose about 3,000 BC. However, it was conquered by Sargon of Akkad about 2330 BC, and it became part of his empire. The Akkadian Empire collapsed about 150 BC. For hundreds of years, several Middle Eastern peoples, including the Egyptians and the Hittites, fought over Syria.
In the 8th century BC, the Assyrians conquered Syria, and it became part of a vast empire. However, the Assyrian Empire fell in 612 BC. Syria was then conquered by the Babylonians. In turn, the Babylonian Empire was conquered by the Persians, and Syria became part of the Persian Empire.
Alexander the Great then conquered the Persian Empire. When Alexander died, his generals divided up his empire among themselves. A general named Seleucus seized parts of Western Asia, including Syria. In 64 BC, the Roman general Pompey annexed Syria, and it became part of the Roman Empire. During the 1st century AD, many Syrians were converted to Christianity. Followers of Christ were first called Christians in Antioch.
Medieval Syria
The Roman Empire split into two, and Syria became part of the Eastern Roman Empire, known to us as the Byzantine Empire. However, in 636, the Arabs defeated the Byzantines at the Battle of Yarmuk, and they conquered Syria. The Arabs brought Islam.
Under the Umayyad Caliphate, Damascus became the capital of the Islamic World. However, in 750, the Abbasids overthrew the Umayyads, and the capital moved to Baghdad.
From 1098 to 1189, the Crusaders ruled parts of Syria. In 1260, the Mongols invaded Syria, but they were defeated by the Mamluks of Egypt at the Battle of Ain Jalut.
However, in 1400, the Central Asian conqueror Timur or Tamerlane invaded Syria. He captured Damascus in 1401. In 1516, the Ottoman Turks conquered Syria, and they continued to rule it until the early 20th century.
Modern Syria
In 1914, during the First World War, Turkey allied with Germany. However, in 1918, the British and their Arab allies captured Syria. In 1920, Syria was made a French mandate, supposedly to prepare it for independence. However, the Syrians rebelled in 1925. The French crushed the rebellion in 1927.
In 1940, France was defeated by Germany. However, in 1941, the British captured Syria. In 1946, Syria became independent. However, there was a series of coups in Syria. In 1958, Syria and Egypt joined to become the United Arab Republic. But it was short-lived. It ended in 1961.
In 1967, Syria lost a war with Israel, and it lost a region called the Golan Heights.
In 1971, Hafez al-Assad became president of Syria. However, Syria was defeated in another war with Israel in 1973. In 1976, an Islamist uprising began in Syria, but it was crushed in 1982.
In 2000, Bashar al-Assad became president of Syria, following the death of his father. Then, in 2011, inspired by a pro-democracy movement called the Arab Spring, a civil war began in Syria. The civil war caused great loss of life as well as material damage, and many Syrians were displaced. The civil war finally ended in 2024 when Assad was overthrown.
Hopefully, Syria will recover from the civil war, and it will prosper again. Today, the population of Syria is 25 million.
Last revised 2026