Yanbu'

Yanbu al-Bahr is a port on the Red Sea, connected by a passage through the Hejaz mountains to Medina. Its harbour received pilgrims and goods from Egypt and other shores, while the older oasis of Yanbu al-Nakhl lay inland among springs and palm groves. By the beginning of the sixteenth century the port had become a principal landing place for travellers and grain destined for Medina.

Under Ottoman rule, grain from Egypt reached the holy cities through Yanbu and Jeddah. The port's warehouses and roads supported both the pilgrimage and the supply of Medina, while its merchants distributed goods inland. Jeddah's growth in the Red Sea trade made Yanbu a smaller regional centre, but its connection to Medina preserved its importance. In 1811 troops sent by Muhammad Ali of Egypt landed here under his son Tusun, beginning their campaign to recover the Hejaz from the first Saudi state.