Tiberias General History

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Tiberias
Abuhav Synagogue
Hebrew:
טבריה
Pronunciation:
T’ver-ia
Other Names
Tiberias
Description:
One of the Four Holy Cities of Judaism

Tiberias is a popular venue for tourists who come to explore the city's deep historical meanings to followers of Islam, Christianity and Judaism.

Contents

[edit] Tiberias History

Tiberias is one of the oldest and largest of Israel’s northern cities. Its history encompasses all of the major events and upheavals in the Land of Israel of the last 2000 years.

[edit] Early Settlement

Following Herod's death in 4 B.C.E. the ruling Romans passed authority for the Galilee region to his son Herod Antipas. Herod Antipas wanted to show his skills as a builder and a ruler and began building the town of Tiberias along the western shoreline of Lake Kinneret -- the Sea of Galilee -- in 20 A.D. Jews were reluctant to live in the city because they believed that the city was built on a cemetery so Herod Antipas brought residents in by force. Subsequently the area was declared fit for Jewish inhabitation and it became a major center of Jewish life.

[edit] Romans

The Romans quickly discovered the curative powers of the nearby hot springs and built the resort of Hammat next to Tiberias. By 70 A.D., Jews from Jerusalem began to flee to the Galilee after the destruction of the Temple. More arrived after the failed Bar Kochba revolt of 135 A.D. The Sanhedrin, the Great Court, also resettled in Tiberias and continued to hand down decisions for several centuries, though they were wary of the Romans and sometimes met in the dark in a grotto near Tiberias in order to circumvent Roman supervision. Judah HaNasi compiled the “Mishna” -- written commentaries of rabbis of the era -- in Tiberias and much of the Jerusalem Talmud was written in the city as well.

[edit] Byzantines

Jewish scholarship continued to flourish during the early years of the Byzantine Empire and a Samaritan center existed in the city in the fourth century. In 614, many Jews of Tiberias lent their support to Persian invaders who revolted against the Byzantines. After the defeat of the Persians together with the Jewish rebels the Byzantines massacred the Jewish population in the Galilee, emptying Tiberias and northern Israel of almost all Jewish life.

[edit] Arabs

The last centuries of the first millenium saw Tiberias conquered by the Arabs. Arab rulers allowed the Christians to live side-by-side with Muslim residents. Jewish residents slowly returned to Tiberias though many Jews chose to live in nearby Beit Shean. Scholars who returned to Tiberias included Aaron ben Moses ben Asher who compiled the systematic rules of Hebrew vowels and grammar as well as a system of trope symbols used by Torah readers for cantillation. Maimonidies -- the Rambam -- later based many of his own 11th century writings on ben Asher’s works.

[edit] Crusaders

The Crusaders declared Tiberias the Principality of Tiberias when they captured it in the 11th century and moved the site of the city northward along the Kinneret’s shoreline. Jews lived in Tiberias during this era. In 1187 the Beybar Saladin defeated the Knights Templer of Tiberias and again at the Battle of Hattin outside of Tiberias. This victory was a major step in ending the Crusader era in the Land of Israel. Saladin’s successors, the Mamlukes, governed Tiberias until the Ottoman Empire conquered Israel in 1517.

[edit] Ottomans

Ottoman rule in Israel lasted for 400 years and was marked by the whims and impulses of Ottoman governors and local rulers. The Ottoman Sultan Suliman the Great encouraged Jews who were fleeing the Inquisition and persecutions of Europe to settle in Israel and many came to Tiberias due to its hospitable population and options for economic survival. Dona Gracia, a Spanish exile, used her family’s fortune to help many of these refugees. She herself settled in Tiberias and brought many Jewish efugees to the city. By the 1700s Jewish settlement from Eastern Europe was also in progress and in the 19th century Jews accounted for about a third of the city’s population, with Muslims and Christians making up the rest of the population.

[edit] British

The British entered Tiberias in 1918 after defeating the Ottoman Turks in World War I. During the 30 years of British rule and Christian population of Tiberias declined while the Jewish population expanded. The Jews of Tiberias were spared the violence of the 1929 Arab riots but were attacked by Arab rioters in 1938.

The Haganah captured Tiberias in 1948 after the British evacuated the Arabs.

[edit] Present Day

Tiberias is today a town of approximately 50,000 people with a large tourist industry. The town serves as a regional center of governmental and medical services for residents of the Jordan Valley and the Golan Heights. In addition to commercial and tourist services there is a large amount of agriculture in the Tiberias region. Local residents also work in some of the region’s small factories and educational institutions.

 
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