Caesarea during the time of the Crusaders was much smaller than in Byzantine times. The city was surrounded by a fortress wall built with his own hands by King of the Franks Louis the Ninth. A wide moat filled with water ran at the foot of the fortress walls. A drawbridge threw over the moat led into the city from three sides: east, north, and south. In the west, there was a seaport - an only linking of Caesarea to Europe.