Baibars captures Krak des Chevaliers

April 8, 1271

The great Hospitaller fortress, perched on a Syrian hilltop and thought impregnable, surrendered after a month's siege. Baibars had forged a letter from the grand master commanding capitulation. The mightiest crusader castle became a Mamluk garrison. The fortress's concentric walls and massive towers, which had withstood every previous assault, proved vulnerable to Baibars's combination of military engineering and calculated deception.