Crac Des Chevaliers & Apamea

The Citadel Qal'at Al Hosn (Crac Des Chevaliers):

It was built in order to control the so-called "Homs Gap", the gateway to Syria. It was through this passage that Syria communicated with the Mediterranean. In ancient times the importance of this strategic corridor was immense. It was of crucial importance to the Crusaders and other foreign invaders in their conquest of the coast.

Conflict over the Crac des Chevaliers continued through the ages. It was a fierce and bloody dispute, but in the end, Sultan Beybars managed to recover it in 1271 through a military trick and one month of fighting. Crac des Chevaliers was built on the site of a former castle erected by the emirs of Homs to accommodate Kurdish garrisons; "Crac" is a modification of the Arab word "Qal'a".

The citadel covers an area of 3000 m² and has 13 huge towers, in addition to many stores, tanks, corridors, bridges and stables. It can accommodate 5000 soldiers with their horses, equipment and provisions for five years.

Apamea:

Apamea is located on the right bank of the Orontes, about 55 km to the north west of Hama. It overlooks the Ghaab plain. It was built by Saluqos Nikator, the first king of the Seleucids in Syria in 300 BC. He named it after his wife, Afamia. The city flourished to such an extent that its population numbered half a million. As an Eastern crossroads, it received many distinguished visitors: Cleopatra, Septimus Severus and the Emperor Caracalla. In the Christian era, Apamea became a centre of philosophy and thought, especially of Monophostism.

Most of the uncovered ruins date back to the Roman and Byzantine ages. It is distinguished for its high walls and the main thoroughfare surrounded by columns with twisted fluting. The street is about 2 km long and 87 m wide. The ruins of the Roman theatre, which have been frequently disturbed, are now a great mass of stone. Its colonnade is 145 m long. Erected in the 2^nd century, it was destroyed in the 12^th century by two violent earthquakes; some columns are still standing nevertheless.

To the west of the city stands the Mudiq citadel which once formed a defence line along the Orontes. Fierce battles with the Crusaders attempting to conquer it took place in the 12^th century, and Nur al-Din finally surrendered it in 1149. The citadel has huge towers, overlooking the Ghaab plain. It also has a khan built by the Turks in the 16^th century, and transformed into an archaeological museum which houses Apamea's mosaics.