page_title: Ta'if
section_title: Arab Revolt
hierarchical_section_title: Ta'if / History / Arab Revolt
caption_attribution_description: Picture of the landscape surrounding at-Ta'if, a road towards it in the foreground and the mountains surrounding it in the background.
context_page_description: Ta'if is a city and governorate in the Makkah Province of Saudi Arabia. Located at an elevation of 1,879 m in the slopes of the Hejaz Mountains, which themselves are part of the Sarawat Mountains, the city has a 2020 estimated population of 688,693 people, making it the 6th most populous city in the kingdom.
  The origins of the name Ta'if are unclear, however, it is known that in the pre-Islamic Arabian age, Ta'if housed an idol of the goddess Lat, and was frequented by pilgrims, which could explain the name. Ta'if has been indirectly referred to in the Qur'an in verse 31 of Surah 43. The city was visited by the Islamic prophet, Muhammad, sometime in the early 7th century and was inhabited by the tribe of Banu Thaqif and is still inhabited to this day by their descendants. As a part of the Hejaz, the city has seen many transfers-of-power throughout its history, with the last being during the Saudi conquest of Hejaz in 1925.
  The city has been called the unofficial summer capital of Saudi Arabia and has also been called the best summer destination in Saudi Arabia as it enjoys a moderate weather during summer, unlike most of the Arabian Peninsula.
context_section_description: Prior to the Arab Revolt, Ahmed Bey had been made the commander of Ottoman forces in Tā'if. He had under him a force of 3,000 soldiers and 10 pieces of mountain artillery. Ghalib Pasha, the governor of the Hejaz was also present in the city. In 1916, the Hashemites launched their revolt against the Ottoman Empire in Mecca in June. That city had fallen and then in July, Abdullah, the eldest son of the Hashemite leader and Sharif of Mecca Husayn ibn Ali, came with seventy men to Tā'if. Whilst his activities in the area aroused the suspicion of Ahmed Bey, Ghalib Pasha was unconcerned by so small a force. Abdullah secretly built up his army to 5,000 men. He then cut the telegraph wires to the city and took the offensive. All Hashemite assaults on the city were repelled by the mountain guns, and both sides settled down to an uneasy siege. However, Hashemite guns were slowly brought up to Tā'if, and then the city held out a little longer; before finally surrendering on 22 September. The city thus later became a part of the self-proclaimed Hashemite Kingdom of Hejaz.
caption: Road to Ta'if in the foreground, with the Hijaz Mountains in the background
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