Kerak Castle

Kerak Castle
Kerak Castle
al-Karak, Jordan
	Kerak Castle
	Kerak Castle
Coordinates	31°10′50″N 35°42′05″E / 31.180556°N 35.701389°E
Type	Castle
Site information
Controlled by	Oultrejordain; Ayyubids; Mamluk Sultanate; Ottoman Empire
Site history
Built	1142
In use	1142–1917
Materials	Stone
Battles/wars	Siege of Al-Karak (1183)
Garrison information
Past; commanders	Pagan the Butler; Raynald of Châtillon

Kerak Castle (Arabic: قلعة الكرك, romanized: Qal'at al-Karak) is a large medieval castle located in al-Karak, Jordan. It is one of the largest castles in the Levant. Construction began in the 1140s, under Pagan and Fulk, King of Jerusalem. The Crusaders called it Crac des Moabites^[1] or "Karak in Moab", as it is referred to in history books.^[2] It was also colloquially referred to as Krak of the Desert.^[3]

^ Miller, Max (2020-01-15). Discover the Holy Land: A Travel Guide to Israel and Jordan. Wipf and Stock Publishers. ISBN 978-1-5326-6033-7.
^ Hindley, Geoffrey (2013-02-07). A Brief History of the Crusades. Little, Brown Book Group. ISBN 978-1-4721-0761-9.
^ The Encyclopaedia Britannica, Eleventh Edition, 1910.

[1] Miller, Max (2020-01-15). Discover the Holy Land: A Travel Guide to Israel and Jordan. Wipf and Stock Publishers. ISBN 978-1-5326-6033-7.

[2] Hindley, Geoffrey (2013-02-07). A Brief History of the Crusades. Little, Brown Book Group. ISBN 978-1-4721-0761-9.

[3] The Encyclopaedia Britannica, Eleventh Edition, 1910.

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