The city of Baghdad has a long and eventful history and a vast cultural legacy, for it is considered the

most important centers of culture and ideology, given its status as the capital of the Islamic Arab State at the peak of its prosperity and giving. Baghdad is an ancient city which name occupies a bright sport in the mind of the entire world, as it was at a time in history the capital of the world when the Islamic empire spread to vast lands around the globe and its lands reached the borders of China and the south of France and it spread its wings over the east and west of the earth during the Abbasid period. It was also a cultural center for all these lands and the iron fist that dominated the course of the world in the not so distant past. Hence its name still occupies the center stage of human history and it constituted one of the most important phases of prosperity and success in human history. And it established itself as a center of contribution across history to the point that no mention of the world can be made without Baghdad occupying a considerable space in it. It is not easy for anyone following the history of this city to fully grasp it, but suffice it for us to focus on some important historical stops. The establishment of the city of Baghdad (city of Peace) was preceded by the emergence of important urban centers in this vital location, which lies in the middle of Iraq, and foremost among these centers are the cities of Babylon and Al-Madaen. The name Baghdad was mentioned in the Arabs conquest of Iraq in the first third of the seventh century. The construction of the round city at the time of Abu Jaafar Al-Mansour in 145 Hegira (762 AD) on the west bank of the Tigris marked a new beginning in Islamic archeology that contributed to the emergence of a great city that expanded beyond the wall thanks to its unique location by the river and its special environment. Baghdad is considered the capital of the east and the Islamic world and a theater for Arabian Nights and a center for the attraction of wisdom, philosophy, the sciences and invaluable books, and it enjoyed its own archeological character that confirmed to its location by the river and its unique environment. The City of Baghdad has witnessed numerous ordeals and horrors beginning in 1258 AD following the occupation of the Mongols of the city and its destruction at the hands of Holaco, and the Ottomans and Persians occupied alternately and seized control of it, not to mention the epidemics and floods that the city endured. A clear picture of Baghdad at the end of the Ottoman period can be obtained from the maps drawn by European travelers, as the map prepared by the Danish Kerstin

Nipor in 1766 AD is considered to be the first map for the city of Baghdad based on a technical survey and specific measures according to modern map drawing standards. In the middle of the nineteenth century, Felix Jones and Colbencode drew a map based on a special survey of the city, and this map is considered the clearest map of the city of Baghdad at the time that included all the store and streets on its eastern bank (Al-Rusafa) Rusafa) and western bank (Al-Karkh). Felix Jones and Colbencode described eastern Baghdad by stating (that it is surrounded by a huge wall in front of which stands a deep trench surrounded on the side of the desert strong dams and that the inner wall protects the city from the dangers of being flooded by the Tigris waters running in the trench). They estimated the length of the eastern city wall at (9688 meters), including the water mills alongside the river. As for the western wall of the city, it was estimated to be (5300 meters) long. The area of the eastern part was estimated at (591)* acres and the western part at (141) acres. Mr. Rashid Al-Khouja drew a map of Baghdad in 1908, which was updated by researcher Mohammad Amin Zaki with a scale of 1/10000, which was printed in 1919. Baghdad witnessed during the national rule the beginning of a wide construction boom, especially during the early 1950s of the pervious century following the establishment of the construction council, at which time new housing and construction projects were launched laying the modern foundations and designs of the city. The city also vastly expanded in terms of area and population as a result of the migration of large numbers from rural areas to Baghdad, with the area of the city totaling today approximately 900 square kilometers. Its current population is estimated at 6 million in addition to the administrative units within the province of Baghdad. The city witnessed in the seventies and eighties development in constriction and new housing projects and services and highways were established. However, the working policies of the former regime and the series of wars it entered and dragged the country into have stopped these projects since 1985 and until the fall of the regime in 2003 AD, resulting in a deterioration of services and construction in Baghdad. 309-379 A.D the small village of Karkha was founded in the current location of Baghdad during the King Shahpooor III of the Sassanids, 634 AD THE Muslims occupied the Iraq and entered the village of Baghdad 762 AD Almansour the caliph of the Abassids has founded the round city of Baghdad and the niversity of Mansoor and his royal citadel, 763 the beitolmal of the Caliphate was moved from the city of Kufa to Baghdad, 766 the finishing stone of the round city was laid. The grand Imam Hanifi had died in the city and his body was berried in the mosque of the grand Imam 768: construction of the Russafa (the east-bank settlement of Baghdad) and the palace of Mansours crown son, Mehdi , 774 the construction of the Immortalize palace of Manour in the west bank of Tigris, 785: the construction of Dar ol Rum and its churches and Christian comunties in the Dar ol Rom district in the Dar ol Room Sharghi district (current al Salikh district ) 786: construction of Haron mal Rashid,d palace in the west bank of the Tigris; 799: the death of Imam Musa Kazem and his burial in the Quraish;s cemetery ( the current Hadra al Kazemi) 812: the siege of Baghdad between Amin and Mamoon 815: the death of the grand Imam sheikh Karkhi and his burial in the east of the city (current tomb of Sheikh Maroof ) 830: the esbalishment of the Dar ol Hekma and settlement of many scientists and craftsmen in the city with the order of Alm Mamoon

836: the transformation of the capital of the Abassids from Baghdad to the southern city of Samara; 855: the death of the Imam Hanbal, the founder of the Hanbali tribe of the Sunism and his burial in the Bab al Harb in the west of the city 865: the siege of Baghdad between Mostain and al Motaez; 892: return of the seats of caliph from Samara to Baghdad The establishment of the jame ol kholafa ( the university of Caliphs) in the Sogh ol Ghazal, 945: the sinking of the round city; 946: the occupation of Baghdad by the Moez ol Dowla of Boiiei Secteriaan and tribal conflicts 981: the completing of the medical school and hospital of Almarestan al Azodi in the west bank of Tigris by the Azad ol Dowla Deilmai, Persian king 998: construction of the bridge souk ol salasa (the three makets) 1055 enytering of Toqrul, the qaznawids king to the city to help the existing caliph of that time 1065: the foundation of the university of Nezamia in the east bank of tigris. 1074 sinking the east side of Baghdad and the west bank of Tigris 1136 the siege of the cit by the Maoud ebne Malakshah 1175 the siege of Baghdad by the Sultan Mahmood of the Saljuks and during th ecaliphate of Al Moghtafi 1165: the death of the Sheik Abdol kader Kilani and construction of his tomb and shrine in Bab ol Harba; 1217: Baghdad drowning terrible flood; 1232: the construction of the School of Almantsariah in the east bank, 1258 ; the occupation of Baghdad and the end of the Abassids Caliphate 1340: the occupation of Baghdad by the Jalayereids; 1357: constructionb of the school of Marjaniah by Amir Marjan ; 1392: occupation of Baghdad by Timors soldiers, 1411: the occupation of Baghdad by the Aq qoionloos and the Turkmens, 1507: the occupation of BAGHDAD BY THE Shah Islmaeil the first of Safavids; 1523-1529: ruling of BAGHDAD BY THE Kurdish tribes of Kalhorsi; 1534: The occupationb of Baghdad by the Soleeiman the first, sultan of Othman empire; 1570: construction of the Mosque of Moradia in the Hey al Meidan, square by Shid Morad Pasha, the Ottoman governor of Baghdad; 1623; the occupation of Baghdad by Bakir Subashi and with assistance of Shah Abbas the I 1638: the reoccupation of Baghdad by the sultan Murat 4th 1802: the construction of the mosque of Alkholafa (Jame al Kholafa) 1822: fload of Tigris , ploque empidemy and black death of the most of citys population 1832: increasement of corruption and the riots by Abdolghani Aljamil against Ali Reza ottoman ruller of the city 1869: the caliphate of Medhat Pasha for three decades. 1879: the opening of a hospital by Medhat Pasha , the ottoman governor of Baghdad 1899 opening of the first women school in Baghdad 1917: conquering Baghdad by the Britain general Stanley Mudfy; 1920: the first anti-British riots 1921: establishment of the Hashemite monarchy by king Feisal the first; 1957: construction of main bridge in the city for connecting Baghdads Alkazemie and other districts ( the so called Imams bridge) 1958: the upraising of republications; 1980: Baghdad has seen air strikes with a devastating bombing

1985: Iranian rackets has been targeting Baghdad 1990: Iraq occupied Kuwait 1991: the first golf war and coalition forces air strike 2003, second golf war and occupation of Baghdad by the Americans and alliances Suleiman took the Baghdad without any bloodshed, the city was surrounded very easily and they gave him the keys of the city. .the next two centuries was difficult for Suleimans descendants because Iraq was very difficult to govern because of tribalism and other Iraqi cities were small and few. The ottoman administration was very tiny institution, which concerned mainly of Ottoman Turks and few Arabs. At the early nineteenth century, the ottomans had divided Iraq into to three administrative districts: Mussel, Baghdad and Basra, which was the only access to the Persian golf. From the second half of the nineteenth century, Basra started to grow faster than Baghdad and other Iraqs cities. Later crude oil was discovered in Iraq. In 1909, the Angelo-Persian oil company was formed between the Britain and the new government of Iran. The British investments were increased and at least there were many reasons to invent Iraq for Britain in 1917. They entered Baghdad at the eleventh of march 1917. Later during the period after the WWI, the Arab nationalist movements have started and many Arabs were opposed to be controlled by the Turks and BRITISH. IN 1921 Winston Churchill was offered an end of the British mandate of Iraq and proposed an non Iraqi Arab form the Hashemite family who ruled the Mecca as the King of Iraq. America tries to brake the British hegemony in the Middle East by supporting a military coups of Nasser in Egypt in 1954 and Qassim and Abdul Salam Aref in Iraq in 1956. in 1958, the officers over trough the monarchy of Iraq and established a republic. From 1961, based on the new Iraqi law, the most of the Iraqi oil, was produced by the Iraqi state controlled oil company. Abdul Salam was loyal to Nasser and preferred to join to Egypt and Syria in the United Arab Republic however, Qassim was against this, and he could remove Aref from power and put him on trial. During the last years of his rules, Qassim started to work with communist. This further rallied the American and the Britain against him. Nasser strongly condemned him and his ties with Moscow and his communist allies and helped anti Qassim revolutions to overthrow him from the power in 1959. However the military forces backed by American and British continued removing Qassim from power. In 1963, the nationalist officers directed by Abdul Salam Aref, killing Qassem and the eliminatiated and the tortured many Communists. Strongly supported by the British and Americans, the Iraqi new government settled invade of British by the British groups who were loyal to the British.

Urban planning in Modern Iraq: Questions:

Did Iraq have a planning system in place when Saddam Hussein was in power? If so, was it flawed in any way? * If there was planning before the occupation, was it administered on a mostly local level (US, Canada) or was the system highly centralized (UK)? Given Iraqi culture, what do you think would be most workable? How about Kurdish culture? * How is land use now regulated? Do communities have a master plan and a zoning scheme? Something else? Can the system be easily corrupted through bribery or threats? In the US, the worst thing that can happen is that Bubba will threaten to use his "connections" to fire you if something

doesn't go his way. In Iraq, I imagine the implications of telling the wrong people "no" would be far worse. * Are there any other models in the region to follow? There are a LOT of Iranians on Cyburbia that could offer advice, but unfortunately most stay silent. I know relations between the US and Iran is rocky, but perhaps one way to being the two countries together is through exchanging ideas in planning. Iranians are generally friendly, intelligent and generous people. Say the word, and I'll send out an email to the Iranian Cyburbians. * Iraq used to be a secular state, but are some Islamic principles of planning and public space being considered? There are elements of urban design that are uniquely Islamic; for instance, privacy walls surrounding houses instead of the open yards encouraged in developed English speaking countries they offer protection to women on the property, and an environment where they can get some relief from modesty laws. Embrace the concept of the haram.

Creating defensible space - probably of primary importance now. However, defensible space can also be miserable space; wide open plazas and vistas that would stifle pedestrian traffic and create a cold "third place" that seems contrary to the Middle Eastern concepts of the commons - busy streets, markets and souks. How can you create defensible space that won't harm a vibrant third place?

The city of Baghdad have witnessed during the past four decades, the preparation of development schemes several first of the year (1973) for the long stretch until the year (2000) and necessitated the rapid growth and changes in the city. amend and revise this plan initiating the Secretariat in the early eighties of last century in the study planning other comprehensive called the (planned integrated development of the capital Baghdad), but that did not complete the work stopped in (1990) because of the circumstances experienced by Iraq during that period.

Baghdads master-plan: In such a system, detailed plans reflect the master plan but set out all the rules for assessing development and building proposals, including public sector ones. It also means that the master plan is not enough. It's actually the detailed plans that get implemented.
The other major difficulty I have faced is that there was never any deliberate attempt to link the physical plan to urban management, so it never became a tool of city managers. Beyond that, the plan was never designed within the framework of finances and human capacity available to implement the plan. The result was masses of thick documents and nice maps of plans...but nothing changed on the ground. This isn't helped by the fact that cities many many countries in the middle east have no or minimal finance of their own. They have extremely limited authority to raise finance and much of what they raise must be sent to the Central Government Treasury.

Have you checked out the local government structure, the options fof financing the implementation of plans, and the urban management system itself? If not, look closely at capacity, and plan to build capacity in small steps. Ask hard questions of how, in practical terms, the plan is going to be implemented. Realising the local authorities couldn't implement plans, we felt we must have other local actors involved who might be able to participate more directly. In the past two years we have begun an entirely new approach in which we have worked very much with local authorities, local business people and civic society. We held numerous workshops, applying "appreciative inquiry" approaches, similar to the Assets Based Community Development approach. Start with Assets (all kinds, especially social networks), ask what you can build on these assets and through them build a vision. Once you have a vision, unpack it into a number of long term goals. Then ask, "what are the preconditions, what are the constraints, what are the hindrances, in the way to achieving the long term goals?" From there we prioritised and strategised and came up with a lot of ideas of what people can do themselves, what they need some help with, what they need government to do on their own.