Nimrud's Castle: aerial view

This photograph shows Nimrud's Castle, which sits on top of a steep hill in the northern Golan Heights, underneath Mt. Hermon. It guarded one of the roads from Tyre to Damascus. This slide looks southwest; in the background is the Huleh Valley and the hills of Upper Galilee. It is unclear when this fort was built, but it was part of the area's defenses during both Crusader and Muslim control of the area. In 1187 it was the site of a large battle between Saladin and Baldwin III, the king of Jerusalem.