It was towards
the end of the 6th century BC, that Sidon experienced
its golden age. Made capital of the Fifth Province of
the Persian Empire, Sidon was an open city with many
cultural influences, including the Egyptian and Greek.
The crusader period, between 1110 and 1291, brought
Sidon new prestige as the second of the baronies of
the Kingdom of Jerusalem.
Today the ruins
of the Crusader Sea Castle and the Castle of Saint-Louis
can still be seen in Sidon. From the Mamluke and
Ottoman periods we have the Great Mosque, built
on the foundations of a Crusader church and the
khan-el-Franj built by Fakhreddine II.
