Lecture 18

In this final lecture we began talking about modern Jerusalem and the more current issues tackling the area.  We first began by talking about the Six Day War.  Here are notes on this:

·         Six-day war, 1967

o   Soviets “informs” Syria of impending Israeli attack (may 13)

o   Egypt amasses troops in sinai

o   Jordan signs military agreement with Egypt (May 30)

o   Israeli forces launch pre-emptive strike and reduce Egyptian air force within hours (june 5)

o   Israeli forces enter the old city (june 7)

§  Rabbi Zvi Yehuda Kook announces at the wall: “we shall never again move out of here”

o   Moshe Dayan

§  Israeli general

·         Gives control of Haram to Muslims (June 17)

o   Jews forbidden to pray on the Haram (Temple Mount)

·         Israeli Knesset formally annexes old city and east Jerusalem (june 28)

·         UN rejects annexation of Jerusalem (July)

o   Everyone wants the Golan Heights

§  Top of the mountain

·         Strategic

§  Comes from mountain to eastern shore of sea of galilee

§  Lots of good, fertile, volcanic soil 

We then discussed "Terrorist" attacks at the King David Hotel.  This led us to a discussion of what true terrorism is, and the connection to the recent intifadas that have taken place.  These intifadas came for different reasons, such as the Oslo Accords (1st intifada).  Here are notes on the Oslo Accords and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO):

·         Oslo Accords, 1993

o   The “declaration of principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements” or Declaration of Principles (DOP)

o   First face-to-face agreement between Israel and PLO in Oslo, Norway

o   Called for creation of PNA

o   Called for Israeli withdrawal from Gaza strip and West bank

o   Letter of mutual Recognition

§  Israel acknowledged PLO (Arafat) as legitimate representative of Palestinian People

§  PLO recognized israel’s right to exist as a state and renounced terrorism

o   Officially signed at a public ceremony in Washington DC on Sept 13, 1993

·         PLO (Palestine Liberation Organization)

o   Founded in 1964

o   “Sole legitimate representative of the Palestine people”

o   Considered by US to be terrorist organization until Madrid Conference in 1991

o   Yasser Arafat was Chairman of PLO executive committee from 1969-2004

o   State of Palestine unilaterally declared nov 15, 1988

We then went into 21st century Jerusalem.  I have a list of dates here that describe what has been recently happening in this small land mass:

·         2000 – May, Israel withdraws from southern Lebanon

·         2000 – Sept. (28?), Second (“Al-Aqsa”) Intifada

·         2001 – Sept. 11^th attack results in invasion of Afghanistan (Oct 2001) and Iraq (March 2003)

·         2002 – Israel begins construction of West Bank Barrier

o   West bank barrier

§  Good fences make good neighbors? Or apartheid?

·         2004 – PNA Chairman Yasser Arafat dies Nov 11

·         2005 – Aug-Sept. “Israel’s Unilateral disengagement plan” forcibly removes Israelis from gaza

·         2006 – Jan 25, Hamas defeats Fatah in Palestinian elections

·         2006 – July, Israel-Hizbullah war or “Lebanon war” fought in Southern Lebanon and Northern Israel

·         2007 – June, “Palestinian civil war” (wakseh).  Hamas controls Gaza, Fatah controls West bank

·         2007-9 – “Operation Cast Lead” or “Gaza War” Dec 27 – Jan 21 2008

·         2010 – March 9, Israel announces new housing settlements in East Jerusalem

·         2010 – May 31, IHH Gaza Flotilla boarded by Israeli troops resulting in 9 deaths

This brings us up to date with the current affairs surrounding Jerusalem.  Will peace be achieved in those countries?  I think so, but they need to work together and learn what it means to sacrifice in order to attain peace.  We are close, but who knows how long it could take now.  This class is one small step to enlightening students about this area and the current affairs, and could help inform those that could potentially have an impact.  Thank you for reading!

Lecture 17

Today we talked about modern Jerusalem, and finished up other sections about Jerusalem's past such as the rule of Saladin, etc.  In this time period the rise of Jewish Zionism, the belief where Jews should go back to Jerusalem, started to grow.  Here are notes on some factors regarding this early Zionism:

o   Saladin allows Jews to resettle

§  Saladin proclaimed as “the New Cyrus” (cf. Isaiah 45)

§  Ashkelon Jews given the Maghribi Quarter

o   Judah Halevi (Toledan physician), fleeing Spain, tries to make aliyah (d. 1141? CE)

§  Jews must return to “land of their fathers” and “risk their lives for Zion” so that the Shekhinah could return to Jerusalem and the Redemption would begin

§  Jerusalem is the “gate of heaven” wherein Jews need to stake their rightful claim

o   Maimonides, Jewish philosopher

§  Jerusalem is the “center of the jewish people”

§  Jewish Kingdom and jewish law had to be based on the temple

§  Held in high regard in Egypt

§  Haram must be treated as if the temple still stood

§  The divine presence (Shekhinah) could not be banished from the temple mount

We also saw a change in demographics over time, with the population of Jews growing steadily as the population of Arabs/Muslims soon was overtaken by the Jews.  With this in mind, we moved into Moderm 20th Century Jerusalem.  With this time period came the rise of European nationalism, and the rise of Anti-Semitic feelings.  We see pogroms developing in Russia, Catholicism, Hitler, etc.  Thus, at this time period, the British started to conquer.  They conquered Egypt in 1882, at the end of WWI General Allenby captures Palestine (1917), and settled the Sykes-Picot Agreement (1916).  This agreement split up the Ottoman Empire amongst the French and the British.

We see, however, with the Balfour Declaration that Britain secretly supports the existence of a Jewish Zionist state in Palestine.  With this later comes the British Mandate (1918), where Britain promises to protect all holy places for all the faiths.  In the future we also see the rise of Churchill's White Paper and the Peel Commission.  Here are notes for both of those:

·         Churchill’s “White Paper” (1922)

o   Also called the British White Paper of 1922

o   Clarified how Britain viewed the Balfour Declaration of 1917

o   Issued June 3, 1922 after an investigation of the Arab Riots of 1920-21

o   Britain at first did not support a jewish National Home, but a continuation of a community in Palestine

o   In July 1922, Britain partitioned area to west of the Jordan for a Jewish Settlement

o   Area east of Jordan (76%) was renamed Transjordan and given to Abdullah I

·         Peel Commission (1937)

o   Suggested in response to violence between arabs and jews prior to WWII

§  Factions among jews

·         Hagganah (revisionist Zionist Liberation army)

·         Irgun (radical group, terrorist tactics)

·         Lehi (freedom fighters for Israel)

§  Similar factions among arabs

o   An early “two state” solution

§  Partition of Palestine

·         Jewish state in galilee, upper Jordan valley, and coastal plain

·         Arab state in central hills, west bank, and Negev

·         Jerusalem an “international city” (corpus separatum)

§  Approved by UN, August 1947

·         United nations general assembly resolution 181 (II) future government of Palestine

·         Accepted by Zionists, rejected by arabs

·         Fighting breaks out in Jerusalem 

With all the influence of the British, we see that Palestine was ready to rebel.  This reached a breaking point in 1948 with the War of Independence (Arab-Israeli War).  With this the British decides to leave, and the UN established the Green Line splitting the region for the people inhabiting it.  Israel and Jordan are the major winners in all this.  With this influence we see the rise of Jordanian Jerusalem.  Here are notes for that:

·         Jordanian Jerusalem

o   Jordan Arrives May 16, 1948

§  Occupation by both Israel and Jordan considered illegal by the UN

§  The “catastrophe” (al-Niqba) referred both to the establishment of the Israeli state and the assertion of Jordanian control of the west bank

o   King Abdullah assassinated in front of the Al-Aqsa Mosque, April 1951 by Arab radical

o   King Hussein declares Jerusalem “the second capital of the state of Jordan” in 1953

o   Jordanians develop tourism

§  One hotel in 1948, 70 by 1967

§  85% of economy of west bank

We continually see a switching of rule for this city.  When will it end?

Lecture 16

In this lecture we continued on Islamic Jerusalem, the Crusader topic, and then went into Mamluk and Ottoman Jerusalem.  First, with the finishing of Islamic Jerusalem, we see explanations about the two groups that ruled (at different time periods).  Here are notes on both the Abbasid Dynasty and the Fatimids:

·         Abbasid Dynasty, 750-969 (Baghdad)

o   Abbasids try to wipe out memory of umayyid accomplishment like palaces

o   Abbasid Caliph Al-Ma-mun takes credit for building the dome of the rock in the 9^th century

§  Forgets to erase the date of the construction 72^nd year of Moslem era

o   Al-Ma-mun’s Polemic against Christianity

§  “believe therefor in God and his apostles, and say not “Three” [i.e. Trinity]…God is only one God.  Far be it from his glory that he should have a son

o   Muhammad al-Sanhaji, governor of Jerusalem, kills John, Patriarch of Jerusalem, 965 CE

·         Fatimids, 969-1099 (Egypt)

o   Period of upheaval, but pop. Of Jerusalem steadily increases (up to ~20,000 on eve of Crusader conquest)

o   Welfare of Christians and Jews changes depending on ruler

§  Near the end of their rule Fatimids appoint Jewish and Christian governors of Jerusalem

o   969-1029 “The war of sixty years”: Byzantine army advances southward, gradually capturing Muslim territory in Syria, with the aim of recapturing Jerusalem

o   1009 Caliph al-Hakim orders destruction of all Jewish and Christian houses of prayer, including Holy Sepulcher

o   1033 – earthquake severely damages Jerusalem’s walls and other buildings, including the Dome of the Rock

§  1034-1035 Dome of the rock restored

§  1034-1064 city walls rebuilt

o   1070-1098 – Seljugs occupy Jerusalem, destroying and looting much of the city and massacring thousands of its inhabitants

o   1098 – fatimids lead 40-day siege on Jerusalem’s fortifications, destroying several sections of the city wall, and eventually retaking the city from the Seljugs

We see people trying to take credit for others' work in the nonstop quest for glory and fame.  Does this cause or instigate the emotions for the crusades?

We then moved on to Saladin's Jerusalem after the Crusades.  This time period is called the Ayyubid Jerusalem (1187-1250).  This began when Saladin took over Jerusalem on September 26th, 1187.  His legend stems from the contrast of how his people are said to have won versus how the Crusaders said he won.  Overall, though, he was a good ruler that was religiously tolerant.  His successors sadly struggled with power, and eventually there were several more crusades.

We then talked about the Mamluk and Ottoman Jerusalem.  First came the Mamluk Jerusalem, from 1250-1516.  This was actually a very long time period of rule.  This rule, however, was strong only in a religious sense because the city was not significant at all in a political or militaristic way.  Here are some notes on the Mamluk Jerusalem:

·         Mamluk Jerusalem (1250-1516)

o   Jerusalem becomes a religious center

§  Ziyara (visit) to Jerusalem (vs. Haji – pilgrimage to Mecca)

§  30 anthologies made “in praise of Jerusalem” (begun during crusades)

§  Muhammad reportedly said, “he who lives in Jerusalem is considered a warrior of the jihad”

o   Politically and militarily insignificant

§  Used as a place of political exile

§  A city without walls

§  Only citadel restored, 1310

o   Development of the Haram

o   Intensive building of schools, hospices, hostels

§  Used crusader structures as quarries for stone (or incorporated their walls)

§  Two-bath houses built

§  Colonnaded madrasas (schools) built around the Haram

§  Cotton market built along Sha’ar Ha’gai, crusader markets enlarged

§  Only 2 new mosques built, one of which is Friday mosque in citadel

o   1351-1353 jerusalem suffers from the Black Death (plague)

At this time of Jerusalem we see a fluorishing of architecture, Harams, and religious strength.  Also, there was an increase in the size of the Jewish quarter.

Afterwards we talked about Ottoman Jerusalem, mainly with the rule of Suleiman the Magnificent.  He was actually a good leader, tolerant, established many good structures, and helped the country thrive.  Here are some notes on him:

·         Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent (1520-1566)

o   Public work:

§  Repairs and enlarges aqueducts and Sultan’s Pool, 1532

§  Rebuilds walls of Jerusalem (1536-1541)

·         2 miles long, 40 feet high, 34 towers, 7 gates

§  Extensive campaign to refurbish the Haram and its monuments

·         Replaces mosaics on exterior of Dome of the Rock with Syrian tiles

§  Rebuilds and renovates the markets

§  Builds the Khassaki Sultan complex, a huge public charity for Jerusalem’s inhabitants

·         Includes a bakery, market, mausoleum

§  His work in Jerusalem parallels that at Mecca and Mediina: Jerusalem the third great city of Islam

o   Establishes a shari’a court

o   Jewish refugees encouraged to settle in Jerusalem to restore city

o   1553, population 13,384 including 1,650 Jews (population tripled from 1525)

o   In 1535, david dei rossi writes, “here we are not in exile, as in our own country…there are no special jewish taxes”

o   Restorations of Holy Places

§  From Suleiman (1520) to Abdulhamid II (1909), restorations of the Haram coincided with the granting of concessions to foreign rulers and religious groups abroad and in Jerusalem

§  There also usually immediately preceded or followed a restoration of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher 

We lastly spoke of the Western wall, not of the temple, but of the surrounding structure (by Herod).  Suleiman gave this area to the Jews as a place of Prayer, showing his tolerance.  From this myths started to be pulled to the wall, such as Suleiman having purified it himself.  With time this wall became a symbol for the temple.

Lecture 15

This lecture we spoke about Crusader Jerusalem.  There were several factors that contributed to the start of the Crusades, but the primary ones were Political and Religious reasons.  Here are notes for both:

o   Political

§  Emergence of holy roman empire in western Europe

·         Divisions in Christianity

o   Religious

§  Late reaction to persecution of Christian population of Jerusalem

·         Holy sepulcher set on fire, dome collapses and kills patriarch of Jerusalem (965)

·         Al-Hakim destroys holy sepulcher (1009) in connection with the “descent of the holy fire” on Easter

·         Difficulty of Christian pilgrimage to Jerusalem

o   Massacre of german pilgrims in 1064 (William of tyre)

It can be said that the speech by Pope Urban II instigated the crusades.  His speech is trying to get the people to go fight against those in the way of their faith.  They were told to go on a crusade, which is a journey on "Christ's behalf" where they would head to the holy land.  There were several crusades, and once a particular group took over there would be a new establishment of rules.  After the end of the first crusade, the Crusaders decided to rebuild the Holy Sepulcher.

Upon these crusades, there were different sects of people, one of which were the templars.  Here are notes on them:

·         The templars

o   Stayed at the modern day temple mount

o   Protect pilgrims making their way through Jerusalem

o   Order of knights Templars founded in 1118

§  “brethren of the soldiery of the temple”

o   Domain located on temple mount

o   Meant to protect people making the pilgrimage to Jerusalem

From all this we see the Crusades as a bloody time, one where several injustices were done against many unsuspecting people.  How did the bloodshed end?  We see that around 1100 at the Battle at Hartin, Saladin won Jerusalem from Richard the Lionheart of England.  How did Saladin's rule compare to others?