Dome

In the 19th century, the square was known as Place des Canons. During World War I, Lebanon was under Ottoman rule. In 1915, Beirut suffered a blockade by the Allies, which was intended to starve the Turks out. The effect was a famine, followed by plague, which killed more than a quarter of the population. A revolt against the Turks broke out which resulted in hanging of six rebel leaders in the renamed Place des Martyrs. Some remains of the opera and the bronze Martyrs statue are the only features left of the Place des Martyrs. The statue, riddled with bullet holes, has become a symbol for all that was destroyed during the Lebanese Civil War. The Martyr's Square is a common location for protests and demonstrations, among the more notable demonstrations were the 2005 anti-Syrian protests of the Cedar Revolution and 2007 anti-government opposition protests led by Hezbollah and The Free Patrotic Movement.exterior, 19th century French gendarmerie building, 1991