Castle Rouge

It is one of the Crusader castles in Syria, built in the early 12th century during the Frankish occupation of the Syrian coast. In 1188, Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi captured and destroyed it. The Crusaders later regained control and maintained possession of the fortress until the fall of the County of Tripoli to the Mamluks in 1289. The castle had formed a key part of the County’s defensive network.

In 1112, Tancred granted the castle to Pons, and it later came under the control of the Montolieu family, vassals of the Count. In 1177, ownership of the castle was transferred to the Knights Hospitaller, who compensated the family with a sum estimated at 400 Byzantine gold coins. Although Salah al-Din had seized and demolished it in 1188, the Crusaders returned and reclaimed it, maintaining control until the Mamluks ultimately ended the County of Tripoli in 1289.

Archaeological excavations at the site have revealed remains dating back to the Phoenician era, as well as inscriptions from the Greek and Roman periods—evidence that the location had been inhabited in antiquity.