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Syria's Crusader Castles
Contemporary Review, Jan, 2000 by Habeeb Salloum
A LEPPO, Syria's second largest city with its massive citadel which had withstood the fiercest onslaughts of the Crusaders, was behind us as we made our way through man-planted forests edging the four-lane highway. A few years back, I had travelled the same road and all one could see was bare countryside. Now, trees and stunning villas, many under construction, kept us company far beyond the environs of the city.
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At the town of Saraqab, surrounded by rich farmland, we turned westward on our way to explore the Crusaders' castles along the Syrian Mediterranean coast. Driving through a land which has been intensively farmed since the dawn of civilisation, we soon reached the Ghab, a rich agricultural valley which had once been marshland. In about fifteen minutes we passed Jisr al-Shougour with its huge sugar beet factory and entered the green Syrian mountains. After having driven through the desert land in the eastern part of the country, it was as if we were in another world.
At al-Qusatil, a roadside open air restaurant about 28 miles before Latakia, we stopped for lunch. The cool air carrying the perfume of the surrounding trees soothed us as we feasted on a huge tasty meal of barbecued chicken, lamb and kabab with their accompanying appetizers and salads. The mountain breezes opened up our appetites and we stuffed ourselves. I could not believe it when we were handed the bill. The huge feast came to about $20. U.S. for our group of four -- and that included a large tip.
About six miles past the restaurant, we almost missed a partially hidden sign indicating Qalat Salah al-Din (Saladin's Castle). Turning on a fairly good mountain road edged by pines, we made our way to the beautiful clean town of Haffah (edge) -- a name derived from its location atop a cliff. In the middle of the village, we turned and drove on a narrow winding road towards Saladin's Castle.
From a high hill, across a ravine, it loomed before us, appearing to be a heap of massive ruins overgrown with vegetation -- a sight of savage beauty. As we moved down into the ravine the sharp curves on the road were frightening. A wrong turn and we would have tumbled into oblivion.
Up the other side we were soon in a part of the castle's incredible moat, 66 feet wide, 82 feet deep and 512 feet long, which the Crusaders cut entirely by hand through solid rock. Parking at the bottom of what appeared to be a quarter mile of steps, we laboured up to almost the point of exhaustion until we reached the gate of what one writer described as the greatest Syrian monument in terms of human effort.
Once known as Sahyoun or Saone, Saladin's Castle is of ancient origin. It was first built by the Phoenicians, became an important Byzantine stronghold, then was taken in the twelfth century by the Crusaders. Erected on a rocky spur, 1,345 feet high, it is triangular-shaped and protected on two sides by vertical mountain inclines at the junction of two ravines.
The third side was made secure by the hand hewn channel through which we had driven. To remove approximately 85.150 cubic yards of hard stone must have been a Herculean task. Only a solitary rock needle was left to support a wooden draw-bridge which once joined the edging town and the castle.
Yet, all the Crusaders' work was to no avail. This prestigious medieval fortress fell to Saladin, the Sultan of Egypt, in 1188 after a four-month siege. He added a mosque and bath-house inside the confines of its 12 acres' area which could hold up to 10,000 men. In 1957, in remembrance of Saladin's feat, the castle was given his name.
Soon we were revived by the fresh mountain air as Muhammad Ali Bitar, our guide who had been born inside the castle, related the history of the fortress. We toured the huge stables, mosque and school, king's palace and a number of other parts of the citadel. Muhammad pointed out a secret escape spiral staircase before our exploration ended. We were astonished at how well preserved the castle was inside, in comparison to our first view from outside.
In less than half an hour we were in Latakia, Syria's main seaport. Here in the luxurious Cote d'Azur Chain Palace Hotel, overlooking the best beaches in any Mediterranean country, we spent the night dreaming of Crusaders and their wars.
Early next morning we were in Ras Shamra, ten miles north of Latakia, where the ruins of Ugarit are located. An ancient port whose origin is lost in the mist of history, it reached its golden age between the sixteenth and thirteenth centuries B.C. under the Phoenicians. During this period it gave the world the first alphabet. Its remains, through which we had wandered, have yielded a rich collection of objects, filling in much of the empty spaces in the history of the ancient world.
The four-lane highway south of this once proud city traversed a landscape of citrus orchards, divided by cypress trees. In the distance, the green mountains were dotted with villages -- a scene which could very well have been from a south European landscape. Perhaps it was because of this that the Crusaders felt at home. The remains of castles, towers and look-outs have made this part of Syria a paradise for those who continue to find romance in the Crusades.
