Belvoir Fortress
Belvoir national Park
Israel has more Crusader castles than any other country but Belvoir Fortress is the best preserved of them all. Located in a strategic spot to the north of Israel some 500 metres above the Jordan Valley, it began to be constructed in 1168 on the orders of Gilbert of Assailly, the Grand Master of the Knights Hospitaller. It was also built to a concentric design – effectively a castle within a castle.
As such, its outer wall was lower than its inner wall so that archers in the main section could peer over and fire. It was an effective defence made all the better by corner towers for added reinforcement and, as you walk around the extensive outer and inner fortress (having made the steep drive up there), you can get a great feel for this.
Even so, the castle was destroyed. Its strength had been tested in 1180 when it was unsuccessfully attacked by Muslim forces but it was eventually surrendered in 1189 following an 18-month siege after which it was pulled apart for fear of reconquest. When it was ceded back to the Crusaders in 1240, they lacked the funds for restoration and the structure continued to decay.
What we have today, then, is the result of painstaking excavation starting in the 1960s and there’s lots to see from a great arch and a bridge overlooking the wellpreserved moat to the clear fortifications. It also lacks huge numbers of tourists so you may even get the place to yourself.
It will cost you 22 Israeli New Shekel (or 10 NIS for children) to visit Belvoir Fortress and it is open between 8am and 5pm from April to September and between 8am and 4am the rest of the year.