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The Battle of Jacob's Ford was fought in 1179 between the Kingdom of Jerusalem and the forces of Saladin. The site is also known by the Latin name of Vadum Iacob and in modern Hebrew as Ateret.
In October 1178, King Baldwin IV of Jerusalem and the Knights Templar began building the castle of Chastellet at the site of Jacob's Ford, the only crossing place of the Jordan and the main route from Saladin's Empire to the Kingdom of Jerusalem. The castle was only a day's march away from Damascus, Saladin's capital, and would severely undermine his authority there. The castle was set to rival the size of Crac des Chevaliers. At the beginning of constructions Saladin was away quelling a rebellion in Lebanon. When Saladin returned, the castle's first ring of walls was finished, standing ten metres high, but the rest of the castle was still unfinished.
In the Spring of 1179 several skirmishes took place, mainly with Saladin victorious. Baldwin retreated to Tiberias and later Jerusalem to regroup, while Saladin summoned reinforcements from northern Syria and Egypt. By August 1179 Saladin was ready to assault Jacob's Ford. Baldwin was now stationed at Tiberias, only a half-day's march away. Saladin began by bombarding the castle with arrows from the east and west and then sending specialist miners to sap the walls, causing a breach through which Saladin poured his men, killing 800 of the garrison and taking a further 700 captive. Saladin ordered his men to fill the castle well with the bodies of slain men and horses, spoiling the water source for many years to come and deterring reconstruction on the site. Baldwin arrived six hours later and, seeing his castle in flames, turned back. Saladin dismantled the castle, but not before a "plague" ravaged his army killing ten of his commanders.
