Beneath the streets of Akko’s old city lies another city entirely. The Knights’ Halls (also called the Hospitaller Fortress) are a vast underground complex of vaulted halls, passageways, and chambers built by the Knights of the Order of St. John (the Hospitallers) during the Crusader period, when Akko served as the capital of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem after the fall of Jerusalem to Saladin in 1187.
Order of St. John
The Knights Hospitaller began as a charitable organization running a hospital for sick pilgrims in Jerusalem (at the Muristan). After the First Crusade, they evolved into a military-religious order, combining the care of the sick with the defense of the Holy Land. When the Crusaders lost Jerusalem in 1187, they relocated their headquarters to Akko, where they built the fortress complex that visitors explore today.
Halls
The underground complex includes a series of massive vaulted halls that served as the Hospitallers’ refectory (dining hall), dormitories, hospital, and administrative center. The Grand Manoir (the commander’s residence) is the largest hall, with Gothic columns supporting a ribbed vault ceiling that rises to impressive height. The halls were buried under centuries of Ottoman construction and were only first uncovered in excavations beginning in the 1950s, with major restoration continuing through subsequent decades. Walking through them is walking through a Crusader building that has been sealed since the 13th century. One of the most atmospheric spaces is the so-called Prisoner’s Hall, a long vaulted chamber where light filters through narrow openings in the ceiling. The entire complex covers approximately 5,000 square meters — a subterranean city of stone, echoes, and eight centuries of silence.
Prisoner’s Hall
One of the most atmospheric spaces is the so-called Prisoner’s Hall, a long vaulted chamber where light filters through narrow openings in the ceiling. The hall’s original purpose is debated, but the sense of entering a medieval underground world is powerful regardless of the room’s function.
The
The excavated complex includes an open courtyard, the Enchanted Garden, that was once the inner courtyard of the Hospitaller compound. The garden sits below the level of the modern city, surrounded by Crusader walls, and creates a pocket of medieval atmosphere in the middle of the bustling old city.
Visit with Hoshen Tours
The Knights’ Halls are the centerpiece of any Akko visit. Hoshen Tours explores the underground complex and tells the story of the Hospitallers, from their humble hospital in Jerusalem to their fortress capital in Akko.