Hill of the Citadel

The Hill of the Citadel (Arabic: Jabal al-Qal'a) at an elevation of almost 2745 feet (830m) above sea level, this strategically situated fort overlooks what is now downtown Amman, Jordan.

Thought to have been settled sometime during the Neolithic period, and latter fortified during the Bronze age (1800 BC), the site was latter settled by the Ammonites around 1200 BC. It is also believed that this embattlement where Uriah the Hittite, husband of Bathsheba, perished while leading an attack - ordered to the front of the charge by King David (2 Samuel 11).

Today the ruins demonstrate a parade of history that includes:

• the Roman Temple of Hercules built around 161 AD,
• the Ummayad Palace (Umayyad Qasr ) built sometime between 724 and 743 AD,
• a 5th century Byzantine Church,
• other early Islamic artifacts

Many of the findings can be found in the adjacent Jordan Archaeological Museum