René Moawad Garden
Encyclopedia
The René Moawad Garden is located in the Sanayeh district of Beirut
, Lebanon
. The garden is one of the oldest public open-air spaces in the capital. Khalil Pasha (1864-1923), commander of the Turkish Sixth Army during World War I ordered the creation of the garden in 1907.
. It was first called The Hamidi Public Garden, but the public for decades referred to it as the Sanayeh Garden. It was renamed in honor of President René Moawad
who was assassinated on November 22, 1989 not far from the garden.
, from the south by Rue Alameddine, from the east by Rue Halawani and from the west by Rue Sanayeh. Facing the garden on Rue Spears
is the complex of the National Library. Covering 22,000 square meters, the garden is a popular destination for walkers, joggers and children. The garden is also popular among the elderly who sit in the shade of the trees to play cards, backgammon or chess. The garden is also a place where artists exhibit their work.
Beirut
Beirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon, with a population ranging from 1 million to more than 2 million . Located on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coastline, it serves as the country's largest and main seaport, and also forms the Beirut Metropolitan...
, Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
. The garden is one of the oldest public open-air spaces in the capital. Khalil Pasha (1864-1923), commander of the Turkish Sixth Army during World War I ordered the creation of the garden in 1907.
Name
The garden has changed names since its construction in the first decade of the 20th century20th century
Many people define the 20th century as running from January 1, 1901 to December 31, 2000, others would rather define it as beginning on January 1, 1900....
. It was first called The Hamidi Public Garden, but the public for decades referred to it as the Sanayeh Garden. It was renamed in honor of President René Moawad
René Moawad
René Moawad was President of Lebanon for 17 days in 1989, from the 5th to the 22nd of November, when he was assassinated by unknowns. Syria accused Michel Aoun of the assassination....
who was assassinated on November 22, 1989 not far from the garden.
Location
The garden is bordered from the north by Rue SpearsRue Spears
Rue Spears is a street in Beirut, Lebanon that was named after British General Edward Spears who in 1940 liaised with General de Gaulle and his Free French movement to liberate the Levant. He was appointed the British minister in Beirut in 1942. Spears would later also urge the Lebanese and...
, from the south by Rue Alameddine, from the east by Rue Halawani and from the west by Rue Sanayeh. Facing the garden on Rue Spears
Rue Spears
Rue Spears is a street in Beirut, Lebanon that was named after British General Edward Spears who in 1940 liaised with General de Gaulle and his Free French movement to liberate the Levant. He was appointed the British minister in Beirut in 1942. Spears would later also urge the Lebanese and...
is the complex of the National Library. Covering 22,000 square meters, the garden is a popular destination for walkers, joggers and children. The garden is also popular among the elderly who sit in the shade of the trees to play cards, backgammon or chess. The garden is also a place where artists exhibit their work.
In Literature
- Day of Honey: A Memoir of Food, Love, and War by Annia Ciezadlo
- "I went to a small public park called Sanayeh Garden with Jackson and our friend Abdulrahman, who was going around who was going around Ras Beirut buying food and medicine for refugees with his own money."
- "The only people handling the refugee crisis in Sanayeh Garden were a handful of students in their teens and twenties, one of them wearing the splint and bandage of a recent nose job."