T. E. Lawrence’s Undergraduate Dissertation – Page 96

Any very great uniformity in the Syrian fortresses of unquestioned Latin parentage of the 12th century would be surprising. The piece-meal character of the Frankish conquest of the country, and the fact that their political divisions often implied racial differences would tend towards the formation of local schools of architecture and, as a matter of fact, castles quite opposed in principle were erected at the same time in different districts. The Normans of Sicily had adopted many Eastern customs: in Antioch and Edessa they adopted the Greek fortresses: a few slight walls in the castle at Antioch are the only sign of Latin occupation in that province. In Tripoli great builders among the nobles were succeeded in their fiefs by the military orders, who carried out - or surpassed - the intentions of their predecessors, and accordingly we find there the most elaborate fortresses. In the Southern part of Syria, that depending particularly on Jerusalem, very few castles have been preserved. Later occupation is responsible for the destruction of most, but there are some, beyond the Dead Sea, still standing tolerably perfect, but quite undescribed. Rey has published a plan and description of Kerak in the Desert, but neither is his own work.(1) indeed Kerak has never been studied by a mediaevalist. ------------------------------------------------------------ (1) The unthinkin... activity of s...e Bedawin, in tearing up the Hedjaz railway near Amman, prevented my going there in 1909. ...d ...['']...uu... ...d U...u u... D...... ..j..l ... ....... ...r .......h.... ... Th...... ......., ...d .....t H. M...... ........ ....... ..th