The idea for the construction of a new government house came when the State of Aleppo was declared by the French General Henri Gouraud in September 1920. However, the construction started only in 1928, after the formation of the Syrian state under the French mandate. The serail was designed by the Syrian-Armenian architect Kegham Akgulian, and the construction was carried out under the supervision of another Syrian-Armenian engineer Kevork Baboyan.