Lecture 18: (Final) 20th and 21st Century Jerusalem

This was our final lecture for the quarter. We began with finishing the lecture on 20th century Jerusalem. After Jerusalem declares its independence, Jordan takes control of East Jerusalem and the West Bank. Later during the Six-Day war in 1967, the Arab nations of Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Egypt ally together against Israel. They plan a preemptive strike against the Israeli state. However, Israel preempts the attack and destroys the Egyptian Air Force. As a result, Israel gained control of the Sinai Peninsula and the Old City.Later they also gain control of the Golan Heights after confrontations with Syria. This War resulted in Israel gaining more land than they would have under the Peel plan made by the UN.

After the Six-Day War ended in the creation of a larger Israeli state, the Palestinians had a difficult task in trying to establish their own national state. In 1987, they started the Intifada, the Uprising against the Israeli state. Later they declared their independence in 1988. The uprising gave a precedent that would lead to the creation of the Oslo Accords in 1993. The Palestinians were being taxed and the money was sent to West Jerusalem. The Uprising was staged against a perceived Israeli Occupation. It began with peaceful protests that focused on civil disobedience tactics like boycotting Israeli goods. However, these demonstrations later turned violent when Ariel Sharon the Prime Minister of Israel visited the Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Another attempt to establish a Palestinian state failed with the Oslo Accords. They were held in Norway and called for the creation of a Palestinian National Authority as well as the withdrawal of Israel from the Gaza strip and West Bank. The outcome was not what the Palestinian group had hoped for. They ended up recognizing Israels's right to exist as a state and renounced terrorism. Israel, in turn, only recognized Chairman Yasser Arafat of the PLO as the legitimate representative of the Palestinian people instead of recognizing a Palestinian state. As a result, the Palestinians are still calling for the establishment of their own National State with pressure coming from the rest of the world leaders. However insurgents and radicals from both sides are preventing the peaceful negotiations of for this issue.

Now in the 21st century, Israel has withdrawn from Lebanon. On Sept 28 2000, the second Intifada occured calling for a Palestinian state. Later in 2002, Israel begins the construction of the West Bank barrier, The borders were based on the boundaries in 2002 rather than the Peel plan boundaries. Many argue that this was an apartheid fence that formed a wall between two villages. With the death of Yasser Arafat, the Hamas group wins the elections in the Gaza strip after news of embezzlement by Arafats's group is exposed. The Hamas group launches attacks on the Israeli state. Israel retaliates by shooting missiles back into Gaza and the Fatah group, Arafat's party, takes over the West Bank which is both politically and economically weak. There has been many attempts by the global community to send humanity aid into the area but had been blocked by Israel.

Lecture 17: 20th Century Jerusalem

We began our final lecture on 20th Century Jerusalem. Three major periods during this time was the Ottoman administration from 1516-1917, the British Mandate Period from 1918-1948, and finally the Israeli State from 1948-present day. One of the key movements that lead to many later events was the spread of Secular Zionism. Theodore Herzl was a proponent that called for the establishment of a Jewish State. He promoted the idea that Jerusalem itself isn't important but a Jewish State was. Later He was described as "Messiah the Son of David". These Zionists later build Tel Aviv. Alongside Zionism was an increase in European Nationalism and Anti-Semitism. Anti-Semitic Pogroms in the Islamic world and Russia brought Jews into Palestine. Hitler's policy of blaming Jews for the problems in Germany also brought an increase in the Jewish population in Palestine. However, one negative repercussion was increased conflicts with the Arabs in Palestine.

World War I helped to further the establishment of a Jewish State. In 1917, British General Allenby conquers Palestine. The creation of the Balfour Declaration in 1917 promised a Jewish National Homeland. One condition the British made for supporting the establishment of a Jewish State was that non-Jewish rights had to be preserved and honored. British occupation of the area lasted from 1918-1948. The British also helped with the Peel plan which was designed to partition the area for Jews and non-Jews. Britain's stance on a Jewish state were vague and were questioned by people in Palestine. The British clarified their stance in the White Paper by Winston Churchill in 1922. They partitioned an area to the west of the Jordan for a Jewish settlement and denied Arabs that an independent nation would be established for Palestinians. The Peel Commission to create both a Jewish and Palestinian state was supported by the Jews but rejected by the Arabs. Later in 1948 there was the Arab Israeli war. A Truce was arranged and later Israel and Jordan signed an armistice. A new Israeli state was established while Jordanians gained control of the west bank.

The new Jewish state defied the international community and made West Jerusalem the Capital of the new Israeli State. When King Abdullah of Jordan came to Jerusalem to pray, he was assassinated by an Arab radical. There were rumors that he came to pray and have a secret peace meeting. The next ruler, King Hussein declared that Jerusalem would become the second capital of the State of Jordan. We also see that the economy within the area began to revolve around tourism. Eventually, 85% of the economy of the West Bank is centered on tourism. Many of the leaders saw that the fighting with the area would decrease the amount of tourist trade and thus decrease profits.

Lecture 16: Mamluk and Ottoman Jerusalem

We went back an finished up a few more details regarding Islamic Jerusalem before starting the new lecture on Mamluk and Ottoman Jerusalem. During the Abbasid Dynasty, Cliph Al-Ma-mun took credit for the building of the Dome of the Rock but forgets to erase the date of its real construction during the 72nd year of the Moslem era. The Caliph continued the policy of accepting Jewish prophets but did not agree with their beliefs. There was also increased hostility between Muslims and Christians when Muhammid al-Sanhaji killed John, the Christian patriarch of Jerusalem. When the Fatimids came to power, they were a minority group within Islam. Depending on who was in power at the time, tolerance of other faiths varied. In 1009 CE, Caliph al-Hakim destroys the Holy Sepulcher. We see that many Muslim regimes fighting each other.

The Mamluk rule of Jerusalem was from 1250-1516. The Mamluks were owned soliders of slave origins that later converted to Islam. Their rule was not really a dynasty. During this time Jerusalem becomes more of religious center than a political center. Some of the Mamluks gained regional power and others became sultans. Jerusalem was politically and militarily insignificant because it was no longer a walled city and was a place of political exile. The Mamluks built up the temple mount and used Muqarnas in their architecture. They also set up Qur'anic schools called Madrasas. In addiction, they built public water fountains and hospices. They helped to restore the Dome of the Rock and the al-Aqsa Mosque.

Later during Ottoman rule of Jerusalem from 1516-1918, Jerusalem regains a strong centralized government. The Ottomans took Constantinople in 1453. Although their rule was very long, they lost control of Jerusalem temporarily to Mohammed Ali of Egypt in 1831 but restored control in 1840. One very influential ruler of the time was Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent who ruled from 1520-1566. Under his rule, there were many public works projects done. He rebulit the walls of Jerusalem large and higher, refurbished the temple mount and its monuments, renovated the markets, and enlarges the aqueducts and Sultan's pool. All of his actions were to make Jerusalem comparable to Mecca and Medina as the third great city. The law of the land was based on the laws outlined by the Qur'an. We also see that Jews were encouraged to resettle in the land and as a result tthe Jewish population in the city increased. In addition to the political significance of the city, Suleiman also built up the spiritual importance of the city as well by restoring the Church of the Holy Sepulcher and granting concessions to various religious groups. Jews were given a place to pray at the Western Wall of the Temple Mount.

Lecture 15: Crusader Jerusalem

We had a guest lecturer for Crusader Jerusalem. One interesting thing about the Crusades is that the terminology it used still exists today. The idea of a Holy War is invoked several times beyond the era of the actual Crusades. As a result of the Crusades, Jerusalem returned to Christian rule. In 638 CE, Byzantine control of the city fell to Islamic groups all the way until 1099 when Crusaders lay seige to the city. During the Islamic rule, there were several dynasties in power such as the Umayyad from 661-750, the Abbasid from 750-969, and the Fatamid from 969-1099. During the Abbasid rule, there was an increase in the amount of pilgrimage to the city. During the Fatamid era, there were increased conflicts between the Fatamid Muslims and the Turks. Later when control of Jerusalem passed to the Crusaders, they established the Latin Kingdom from 1099-1187.

There were several causes for the Crusades such as political, religious, and socio-economic reasons. When Pope Urban II issued his speech in 1095 CE, he called the people to free Jerusalem and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. There was also a late reaction to the difficulty of Christians making pilgrimages to Jerusalem. 2nd and 3rd sons ventured in the Crusades to make something for themselves because they did not receive the family inheritance. One unexpected result of Pope Urban II's speech was the large response from people of different classes including peasants and nobility. The reason for the 4 year gap between the time of the speech and the taking of Jerusalem was that the nobility took time to pool their resources. The peasants went first and were massacred by the Turks.

When the city was taken, the scene was depicted as extremely bloody. The Franks slaughtered more than 70,000. After taking the city, the Crusaders increased the construction of buildings in the city. They also established quarters. The Patriarch's quarter was for religious aspects. The Templar quarters was for the knights. The Syrian quarter was where the walls were first breached and the Armenian quarter. One of buildings that was rebuilt was the Holy Sepulcher church to have a more Romanesque style featuring walls with small openings. There is alot of tension between the various sects of Christianity regarding the Church. It is so tense that the keepers of the church are Muslims from a long lineage of  gatekeepers for the church.

Later, the Crusaders were defeated by Saladin and the city falls to Muslim rule once more. One of the agreements that Saladin made with the Christians was that Christians would be allowed safe passage if they surrendered the city. He also gave the Holy Sepulcher to the Greeks. The Muslim retaking of the city was much more humane than the manner in which the Christians took the city in 1099.