crusader state · Anatolia and the Levant

Lordship of Oultrejordain

1118 CE – 1189 CE (approx.) · capital Kerak

The Crusader lordship east of the Jordan, whose castles of Kerak and Montreal controlled the routes between Syria, Egypt and Arabia.

Origins

Baldwin I built the castle of Montreal at Shobak in 1115 to control the land beyond the Jordan, and the region was organised as a lordship from around 1118. Payen the Butler built the great castle of Kerak in 1142, which became its centre.

Rule and society

The lordship taxed the caravans and pilgrims moving between Damascus, Egypt and the Hijaz, and the Bedouin of the region. It passed to Philip of Milly and then, through the heiress Stephanie of Milly, to Raynald of Chatillon in 1176. Raynald raided the Red Sea coast in 1182-1183, threatening Mecca and Medina, and attacked a caravan in breach of a truce, provoking Saladin.

Decline and legacy

Raynald was executed by Saladin after the battle of Hattin in 1187. Kerak surrendered after a long siege in 1188 and Montreal in 1189; the castles became Ayyubid strongholds.

Connections (2)

More states of Anatolia and the Levant →

Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Lordship of Oultrejordain. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/lordship-of-oultrejordain
MLA
“Lordship of Oultrejordain.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/lordship-of-oultrejordain. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Lordship of Oultrejordain.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/lordship-of-oultrejordain.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Lordship of Oultrejordain’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/lordship-of-oultrejordain (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻