This is a list of fortified buildings and complexes in Jordan from across all historical periods: forts, fortresses, castles, fortified palace complexes, caravanserais, pilgrims' inns, etc.
Some date to Roman times, or were built by the Crusaders in the 12th century.[1] Others were built by various Muslim dynasties and groups, such as the Umayyads, Abbasids, Ayyubids, Mamluks, Ottomans, and local tribal leaders.
A distinct group of fortified sites are the so-called desert castles, known from the entire region but particularly well represented in Jordan. What is known in English as a "desert castle" is known in Arabic as qaṣr (singular), quṣur being the plural in Arabic[2] (see here) and usually date to the Umayyad period. To make things complicated, not all Umayyad qasrs were built in the desert, 'qasr' may be used in Arabic for any type of fort or castle (but not in English-language academic literature), and certainly not all fortified places in the desert can be called desert castles in this sense.
- ^ Kennedy, Hugh (1994). Crusader castles. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0521799133.
- ^ Khouri, R.G., The Desert Castles: A Brief Guide to the Antiquities. Al Kutba, 1988. pp 4-5