Set on a high windswept ledge above a rocky valley, Krak has superlative views of the mountains in every direction. Built by the Knights Hospitallers in the 12th century AD in order to control the mountain passes to the Holy Land, Krak is the largest and most impressive Crusader castle in Syria. In its heyday the castle could house 2000 knights and its impregnable defence system consists of outer walls with a line of towers, inner walls, four gates and a series of deadly traps.

Krak survived two major Arab attacks in the late 12th century but by the middle of the 13th century the Crusaders' presence in the Middle East had thinned out considerably and the castle was left with a garrison of only 200 men. In 1271 Sultan Baibars besieged the castle but never managed to breach its inner defences. A short time afterwards the demoralised Crusaders surrendered the Krak and within the next 20 years the Crusader presence in Syria vanished.