Castle
Kerak Castle
🇯🇴 Jordan · 12th century
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 or "Karak in Moab", as it is referred to in history books. It was also colloquially referred to as Krak of the Desert.
Text adapted from “Kerak Castle” on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Kerak Castle ranks #428 of 7,738 worldwide in the atlas's castle fame ranking, and #1 of the 22 mapped in Jordan. Founded 1142, it is older than 84% of the atlas's dated landmarks — one of 544 atlas entries founded in the 12th century. Its Wikipedia articles were opened 16,237 times in the last 60 days, more than 96% of the atlas. The nearest day-trip guide is Yatta, 65 km away. It is one of the 109 landmarks on the atlas's regional map of the Levant. See how Jordan compares in the castle statistics.
View on the interactive castle map →Frequently asked questions
Where is Kerak Castle?
Kerak Castle stands in Jordan, at 31.18056°, 35.70139°.
When was Kerak Castle built?
The atlas dates its founding to 1142. Earlier structures may have stood on the site; this is the earliest documented founding year.
How famous is Kerak Castle?
In this atlas's fame ranking: #428 of 7,738 worldwide, and #1 in Jordan. Fame here combines how many Wikipedia language editions cover a landmark with how many people read them.
What is the nearest castle to Kerak Castle?
Qasr Bshir, about 32 km away.
More castles in Jordan
- Amman Citadel Jordan · 18th century BC
- Qasr Azraq Jordan · 4th century
- Ajlun Castle Jordan · 12th century
- Aqaba Fortress Jordan · 12th century
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