Al-Rusafa Castle near Masyaf

Al-Rusafa Castle stands on a hill at the northern end of the village of al-Rusafa, southwest of Masyaf, 60 metres above the houses. It was one of the smaller castles of the Nizari Ismailis, the Shia community whose Syrian headquarters was Masyaf. The building is largely intact but overgrown with trees and plants. Despite the name, it has nothing to do with the ancient city of Resafa in the Raqqa desert.

Getting there

Take the road southwest from Masyaf to the village of al-Rusafa. Sources give the distance as anywhere between 10 and 15 kilometres, so check on the way. The castle is on the hill at the northern edge of the village, and the way up from the village is on foot.

How long it takes

An hour: the climb, a walk along the outer wall and the vaulted rooms inside.

Who used it

Some sources date the castle to the end of the 10th century. It later became part of the Nizari Ismaili network of castles centred on Masyaf: Rashid al-Din Sinan, who took over the leadership in 1162, refortified al-Rusafa and al-Khawabi. When Ibn Battuta listed the castle villages of the Masyaf region in 1355, he named al-Rusafa alongside al-Kahf, al-Qadmus, al-Ulayqa and al-Maniqa. In 1929 al-Rusafa was among the villages separated from Masyaf and given to the Alawite State.

What is there

The castle is oval, about 75 metres by 30 at its widest. It is built of local quarried stone and has three storeys. A tower guards the entrance on the northwest side. The outer walls contain galleries and rooms that served as firing positions. The central area has many vaulted rooms, and on the lowest level are storerooms, some reaching 20 metres into the ground. According to Peter Willey, who studied the castle, the central towers are ruined but still tall.

What most people miss

The storerooms on the lowest level. Some go 20 metres into the ground, and they show better than anything how the castle prepared for long sieges. It is dark inside and the floor is uneven; going down without a torch is hard.