- Type
- Ruin
- Built
- c. 1241 · 13th century
- Visiting
- probably – Wikidata lists it as a museum or gives tickets, opening hours or visitor numbers; check before you go
- Coordinates
- 32.1952°, 34.8068°
History
The town was founded by the Phoenicians in the Persian period and named after the god Reshef; the Greeks identified him with Apollo and called the settlement Apollonia. In Byzantine and early Islamic times it was a fortified port, which Baldwin I, King of Jerusalem, captured in 1101. In 1191 Richard the Lionheart defeated Saladin's army nearby at the Battle of Arsuf. Around 1241 John of Ibelin, Lord of Arsuf, built a new castle on the cliff, which passed to the Knights Hospitaller in 1261. In 1265 Sultan Baybars took the town and castle after a siege of several weeks and had them razed.
What to see
The castle remains lie in Apollonia National Park on a high cliff above the beach. You can see a deep dry moat, tower bases, a gateway and walls dropping towards the sea, as well as traces of the small Crusader harbour at the foot of the cliff. The park also includes the ruins of a Roman villa and stretches of the medieval town wall. The clifftop looks along the coast to the towers of Herzliya and Tel Aviv.
Wikipedia article Wikidata Q1024886
Popularity: articles about this site in 25 Wikimedia projects (Wikipedia language editions and others).