Syria - Christian and Muslim period

Let us start with the interesting story of Saint Simeon. In 400 AD, this shepard wanted to live an ascetic life, away from the people, so that he could connect with God. He decided to stay on top of a pillar, first 3 meters high and finally 18 meters high. Pilgrims would come from afar to see this extremely pious person. His way of connecting with religion by staying and praying on top of a pillar spread in the region and even further afield. The legend says it went as far as Central Europe, where it faltered because of the cold weather... So Saint Simeon would preach from the top of his pillar and shout his advices, but he refused to speak to women and would not allow his mother to come close to his pillar. He died in 459 AD. Local people decided then to build a church around his pillar. This church was the biggest at this time. Pilgrims came from far and took away pieces of the pillar as souvenir. St. Simeons' pillar is nowadays reduced to a big stone.

A few years later, in 636, the Muslims entered the capital city of Damascus. They chose an ancient Aramean/Roman/Christian temple to convert it into a Mosque. They actually let the Christians pray inside the Mosque for a few decades. But then, under the Umayyades, Damascus became the capital of the Islamic world. The whole site was then converted into a splendid mosque, that required seven years of taxes to build. It is now the third most holy mosque after Mecca and Jerusalem.

Then, there was a period of constant conflicts between the Muslims and the Christians. The most famous symbol is the Krak des Chevaliers. It was build between 1050-1250. It very impressively dominates the whole region and was a key post for the Christian Crusaders on the way to Jerusalem. It is a huge fortress with an outside wall and its 13 towers and the castle itself. Inside, it is like a town made for around 2000 people, with a church, stables, baths, warehouses with supplies to last for 5 years and of course, many rooms. This castle was actually never conquered. Indeed in 1271, the Muslims surrounded the castle, which had become the last outpost of the retreating Christians. So after a month of siege, the Crusaders agreed to abandon it, in exchange for a safe escape.
Approximately at the same time, in Aleppo, the second city, the Muslims built and reinforced the Citadel. The walls and the main doors are impressive. It is a big and as solid as any of the Crusader's castles.
A last example of the new techologies invented by the Muslims are the norias - wooden water wheels. They are more than 20 meters high and were used to scoop water from the Orontes river and deposit it into aqueducts. A very efficient way to irrigate the neighbouring areas.