The kingdom of Jerusalem crusaders was founded in the 1099th year after the completion of the First Crusade and the conquest of the Holy Land. Jerusalem was the capital of the kingdom, while Acre was then a port city and was the main gate of the Holy Land. After the battle of Carne Hietin in 1187 and the defeat of the army of the Crusaders, the kingdom was conquered by Saladin, who was at the head of the Muslim forces. He was the ruler of Jerusalem and Acre for four years. In the 1191st year, after a two-year siege, Richard the Lionheart, who led the Christian armed forces, conquered Acre. During the Third Crusade, the Christians did not manage to conquer Jerusalem, and therefore they formed a new kingdom, located along the seashore, between Zur and Ashkelon. Acre, the second most important city in the Crusader Kingdom, became the capital of the second Christian kingdom. The Order of the Hospitallers, located in Jerusalem during the time of the First Kingdom of Jerusalem (1099-1187), moved its headquarters to Acre during the existence of the Second Kingdom of Jerusalem (1191-1291). The Hospitallers, who had their own quarter during the existence of the First Kingdom, returned to Acre, expanded their headquarters and built a new complex. The buildings of this complex were two- and three-story, they were located around the central courtyard; there were also underground parts - water tanks and sewer system. Not the whole complex has been investigated by archaeologists. So far, experts have investigated the territory, which is a total of about 5,000 square meters, and this territory includes the central courtyard and the northern, eastern and southern buildings. The western wing has not yet been investigated by archaeologists. The visitor of the complex can, in the main, admire the ruins of the first floor of the Hospitaller headquarters, because the upper floors were destroyed by Muslim invaders and time ... At present, there is an underground history museum under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Defense. : the headquarters (Knight's Halls), the Church of St. John the Baptist - to the south of the headquarters (at present, the city club, located in the building of the Ottoman Saray) and the hospital, located her church, which has not yet been investigated by archaeologists.

Source: Old Acre Development Company http://www.akko.org.il/ National Library of Israel, Shepel Family Digital Project and Hebrew University in Jerusalem, Department of Geography - Historical Cities Research Project [Munster, 1550]

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