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was forty years old, he disseminated the teachings of the
new religion in Mecca and informed people that he was
the Messenger of God. Thus he invited his countrymen
and all mankind to abandon their old pagan beliefs and to
worship their one and only God.
Naturally, many of the population did not support him
at first. So, he was forced, together with his followers,
to migrate to Yathreb (now Medina Munawwara). This
event, which took place on 22 September 622, is known as
“Hijra” (migration) and is the starting point of the Islamic
(Hijra) Calendar. The attraction and comprehensiveness
of Islamic teachings, which, primarily, advocate equality
among all believers, a fair distribution of wealth and
piety in the way of life, in addition to the political and
organizational talents of the Prophet, peace be upon him,
have helped in attracting a great many followers. Thus
in the year 630 – 631 the Muslims, led by the Prophet,
peace be upon him, were able to subdue Mecca, and,
subsequently, the major part of the Arabian Peninsula.
Later on, as is well known, this religion has won the
hearts of hundreds of thousands and spread over many
countries from Spain in the west to India in the east.
Muslims have established the wide-spread Islamic – Arab
caliphate, mixed with the people they conquered, digested
their cultures and produced an outstanding civilization in
which science and art flourished and won the appreciation
of many subsequent generations.
Mecca had for centuries attracted the various greedy,
ambitions powers, ranging from the small Arabian tribes
to the successive great empires. As it changed hands
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from one ruler to another, it always remained a place of
worship. During the last three hundred years, Mecca’s
history was associated with the Saudi House, and in 1932
it became, for good, an integral part of the Kingdom of
Saudi Arabia.
During the twenties of the last Century, it was still
a small town with a population of about 50 thousand.
People of various nationalities and races settled therein
(Indonesians, Egyptians, Sudanese and others). They
came on pilgrimage and stayed on permanently. The city
did not change much during more than 1300 years, since
the time of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him. A
contemporary writer describes Mecca in the early twenties
as follows:
“Mecca is guarded by several towers and two citadels.
The life of the city, as well as the whole of the Islamic world,
is centered on the main Mosque, the inviolable House of
God, which is an old building that has no particular beauty
or size. It has 19 gates and 7 minarets. In the midst of
the Mosque stands the Kaaba in all its majesty. During
prayer time, shops are not open for business, nor are the
cafés. The streets are wide but winding. The water of
wells is somewhat salty. It has many schools and charity
institutions. Industry is confined to the production of a
great quantity of rosaries. Commerce is weak…”
The discovery of oil towards the end of the thirties of
the Twentieth Century has undoubtedly led to the growth
and development of Mecca, particularly in view of the
fact that the desire to which the first king, Abdulaziz,
has aspired was to make the holy places a center that
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attracts and constitutes the great and cherished hopes of
all Muslims in the world. However, the Second World
War was an obstacle in the way of the realization of this
desire and hope. The low level of all aspects of life in the
Kingdom required huge financial investments. Therefore,
the urbanization projects were put off for quite some
time.
Finally, implementation time was at hand. Cleaning
work round the inviolable House started in 1960. It had
been literally full of one-storey houses, and small merchant
shops and stores.
Under the leadership of King Faisal bin Abdulaziz,
plans for reconstruction of the Mosque and the holy
places were drawn up for implementation during a period
of 20 years. As a result of works that lasted many years,
the Inviolable House which went back to the Sixteenth
and Seventeenth Centuries was changed together with the
surrounding landscape and became a place that people
look forward to and is appropriate for the object to which
it is consecrated.
During those years, a sophisticated sewage system
was established, which finally rescued the Mosque and
the main court from the violent torrents that fall from the
surrounding mountains during the rain season, particularly
in view of the fact that the level of the Mosque was lower
than that of the court. This also was changed, two new
minarets were constructed and a wide path was dug in both
directions linking the Safat with the Marwa hills where
Hagar and her son Ishmael were looking for water. The
path was paved with marble slabs and a roofed gallery
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was erected above it. Three floor levels were built in order
to enable all those who pray to see the Kaaba. In addition,
the well of Zamzam was developed.
In 1986, King Fahd announced that he had changed
his title from “his Majesty” to “the Custodian of the Two
Holy Mosques”, i.e. the Inviolable Mosque in Mecca and
the Mosque of the Prophet, peace be upon him, in Medina.
This is not strange, given their undisputable importance
for the political and economic life of the Kingdom. This
noble gesture means that the King focuses his care upon
the two Holy Cities. It would seem that he has inherited
the task from his brother, and that life itself has so dictated.
Thus the numbers of pilgrims who come to perform Hajj
and Umra have multiplied. The narrow roads and mosques
in both cities could no longer accommodate all those who
desire to perform Hajj. Moreover, the health conditions
that had prevailed, when all the multitudes gathered
together were not up to healthy standards. Hence, the old
houses were pulled down.
At this point, with the direct participation of King Fahd
and his two brothers, Crown Prince Abdullah and Prince
Sultan, colossal plans were drawn up for modernizing
Holy Mecca and the Prophet’s City and the rebuilding
of their major and other holy places. Such plans were in
fact highly original and innovative, so much so that many
thought they would not be implemented. Work went on
for ten years. The King’s involvement was not confined
to the laying of the corner stone and the reviewing of the
reports; indeed, he monitored all the activities directly
and visited the sites regularly. Work continued and never
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