Knights Hospitaller Fortress Network

Timeline

1. c. 1140–1170Around Tripoli and Antioch · LebanonThe order acquired castles such as Krak des Chevaliers and Margat around the County of Tripoli and Antioch, forming an early chain of land defenses and establishing supply links with port cities.
2. 1187–1190Acre and Belvoir · GalileeAfter the defeat at Hattin and the fall of Jerusalem, the order withdrew to fortresses such as Acre and Belvoir, reinforcing defenses and coordinating garrisons of the remaining Latin forces; between 1187 and 1190 the network shifted its core task from land-based castle defense to sea-lane supply and defense of port hubs.
3. 1191–1291Acre · PalestineAfter Acre became the last capital of the Latin Kingdom, the order's fortress network centered on that port, coordinating outlying nodes such as Margat and Belvoir, until its fall in 1291.