The Muslim conquest of the Sea of Galilee area changed the region's history. Decline and decay replaced a prosperous territory. The Amayyad Caliphate built the palace of Minya by the Sea of Galilee between 705-715AD. Except for Tiberias, all the other major cities were abandoned.

Khirbat al-Minya was probably built during the reign of al-Walid I. Located on the Via Maris. the palace's mosque is one of the earliest to be constructed in the Sea of Galilee region. Though damaged by an earthquake in 749AD, the palace was occupied until about 750AD. The complex contains a courtyard, an upper floor level with several rooms, a throne room, a basilica hall, residential quarters, and several mosaics.

The Muslim Sultan Saladin defeated the First Kingdom of Jerusalem in 1187. This Crusader State was located in the Southern Levant (Modern Day Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Southern Lebanon, Southern Syria, and the Sinai Peninsula).

Fought near Tiberias, along the Roman-built Dard al-Hawarnah road, (the main east-west corridor between the Sea of Galilee and Jordan), the Muslims won the Battle of Hattin mainly because Saladin succeeded in cutting the Sea of Galilee off from the Crusaders.

Also known as the Battle of the Horns of Hattin, because of the shape of the nearby extinct volcano Kurun Hattin and its twin peaks, this war was contested on July 4, 1187. Saladin's armies captured or killed most of the Crusaders. The Muslims became the prominent military power in the Holy Land. They also recaptured Jerusalem.

Prior to the battle, the French knight Guy of Lusignan became the king of Jerusalem from 1186 to 1192. At the same time, Saladin vowed to eliminate the Christian Franks from Jerusalem through commission of a holy war. A large portion of the Jerusalem military was destroyed in this conflict.

Saladin gathered his forces on the Gulan Heights. He lured the Crusaders away from their fortified encampment near the important water springs at La Saphorie in the Central Galilee area (believed in Late Antiquity to be the birthplace of Mary, the mother of Jesus).

A 5th Century basilica sits on the site honoring Mary's birth. A Roman theatre, two early Christian churches, a Crusader fort, and more than sixty mosaics from the 3rd to the 6th Centuries are also located there.

Records of the battle indicated the conflict played out something like this:

Saladin crossed the Jordan River on June 30, 1187. He organized his forces as a center with two wings. All able-bodied men in Jerusalem were gathered by the Crusaders to oppose him. Their army included knights, cavalry, soldiers, crossbowmen, and mercenaries, who Henry Ii, the King of England, financially donated to. Remnants of the True Cross (some Christians believed were remnants from the cross Jesus was crucified on), was their relic.

Saladin decided a field battle would be easier to fight than attacking the Crusaders' fortified encampment. He led an assault on the fortress at Tiberias, but kept his main army at Kafr Sabt, a village on the eastern Lower Galilee about six and a half miles southwest of Tiberias.

The Crusaders at Tiberias attempted to bribe Saladin to leave their castle undisturbed. He refused. One of the towers was mined, and a tunnel dug underneath it for access to the fortress. Saladin's troops stormed the palace.

On July 3, 1187, Saladin's army dug another tunnel under a second tower and the Crusaders' army began to move east for a counter-attack against Saladin's forces. They first encountered Muslim archers, then passed the Springs of Turan, and headed for the Springs of Hattin. Saladin positioned his forces between the Crusaders and the water. This move cut it off from them.

On the night of July 3, 1187, Saladin's army, some 40,000 strong, sang, beat drums, and chanted. These actions demoralized the Crusaders. On the morning of July 4, 1187, Saladin's army burned the dry grass making the Crusaders' thirst for water worse. Smoke blinded the Crusaders and Muslim archers attacked them. Many of the Crusaders' army fled to the Horns of Hattin. Surrounded, the Crusaders were defeated.

Guy of Lusignan was taken prisoner. Saladin offered him water. A sign his life would be spared. Guy of Lusignan passed the water to his cohort Raynald. Saladin knocked the water out of his hands and executed Raynald.

Other fallouts from the Crusaders' defeat at Hattin included:

-Captured nobles of the Crusaders were released upon Muslims receiving ransom

-All 200 of the Templar and Hospialier knights taken prisoner were executed except the Grand Master of the Temple

-Crusader archers were executed

-The Crusader soldiers were sold into slavery

-On July 5, 1187 the Crusader kingdom fell to Saladin. So did 52 towns and fortifications in the Sea of Galilee region, including Jerusalim

Battles that led up to the Battle of Hattin:

-Battle of Montgisard in 1177. In this skirmish, 16-year old Baldwin IV, the King of Jerusalem, led an army that defeated Saladin's forces. This was one of the Crusaders' most notable engagements.

-Battle of Marj Ayyun in 1179. This was fought between Saladin's army and Baldwin IV's army in Modern Day Lebanon. A decisive victory for Saladin. His first against the Christians.

-Battle of Jacob's Ford in 1179. Saladin destroyed a Templar Knight's castle on the Upper Jordan River.

-Battle of Belvoir Castle in 1182. A Crusaders' victory in Galilee, Transjordan, Ayla, and Beirut against Saladin's army.

-Battle of al-Fule in 1183. Guy of Lusignan's army fought Saladin's army for a week. No clear winner.

-Battle of Cressan in 1187. Fought near Nazareth. Led to Battle of Hattin.

Next Time: Sea Of Galilee #8: Kibbutz