Al-Azlam Fort, also known as Alozlam Castle is located at Wadi Al Aznam, 100 kilometres north of Al Wadj and 45 kilometres south of Duba in north-western Saudi Arabia. It is a historic fort located on the right side of the road heading towards Duba and only about 200 metres from the main road itself. It is in an area with palms suggesting an oasis was here or at least water is close to the surface in the area of the fort. It is a fort on the Egyptian Hajj Road, a proposed World Heritage Site, andis one of the stations of the Egyptian pilgrimage route during the Mamluk era and the Ottoman era. It was built in the era of the Mamluk Sultan Muhammad ibn Qalawun (684 e (1285 - 741 AH / 1341). It was rebuilt during the reign of the Mamluk Sultan Qansoh al-Ghouri in 916 AH. The castle consists of a large courtyard, interior units, rectangular and semi-circular chambers and a chamber. The castle is built of limestone and the courtyard is open to all interior units Which consists of a castle of rooms, the area of the castle 1500 metre Square. The Egyptian Hajj Road is one of the important pilgrimage routes in Islamic history, linking Egypt to Makkah and Medina, through which benefited the masses of Muslim pilgrims coming from Egypt, Sudan, Central Africa, Morocco, Andalusia and Sicily. They would meet in Egypt, then travel through Sinai to Aqaba and march across two trails: the first, is internal trail moving to Medina passing Shaghab, Beda, valley of the villages, and the second is coastal trail passes through a number of stations including Al-Azlam Fort. The most important forts are: Ainouna, Al- Muwailih, Dhuba, Al-Owained, Al-Wajh, Al-Hora, Nabat, Yanbu and Al-Jar. From Al-Jar the trail heads to Makkah through Al-Juhfa then Khulais then Usfan or heads through Badr until it reaches Makkah or Medina. Like all the other Islamic pilgrimage roads it received great interest and attention of Muslim rulers in different Islamic eras and periods. They established many structures on the path of this road like pools, canals and wells and built barricades, bridges, castles, forts and mosques, and on the road near the camps are numerous Islamic inscriptions and commemorative writings, engraved by pilgrims as they passed along the road. This path is important not only for Egyptian pilgrims, but for pilgrims from Libya, Tunisia, Morocco, Ghana, and Central Africa; it was also the path for pilgrims from Andalusia (Spain). The course of this road changed through time, according to political circumstances and technological development.
