Revision as of 20:03, 14 October 2012 (edit) Simcha (Talk | contribs) ← Older edit		Revision as of 19:32, 27 October 2012 (edit) (undo) Dun (Talk | contribs) Newer edit →
Line 1:		Line 1:
	{{Infobox		{{Infobox
−	|title = Tzfat History	+	|title = Tzfat 1837 Earthquake
−	|image        = [[File:Space holder.jpg|215px|alt=Tzfat History]]	+	|image        = [[File:00000376 safed ruins.jpg|215px|alt=Tzfat 1837 Earthquake]]
	|header1 = Hebrew:		|header1 = Hebrew:
−	|data2  = ההיסטוריה של צפת	+	|data2  = רעידת האדמה בצפת של שנת 1837
	|header7 = Description:		|header7 = Description:
−	|data8  = History of the city of Safed, Israel.}}	+	|data8  = Destruction and after-effects of the 1837 earthquake in Tzfat.}}
−	[[Safed|Tzfat]] is a northern Israeli city who's history dates back thousands of years, though its Golden Age it came together with the Jews who, fleeing the Spanish Inquisition, developed the town into an important center of Jewish life.	+	The Jewish community of [[Safed|Tzfat]] was devastated by the 1837 earthquake and a resulting landslide which killed thousands of residents and destroyed most of the city.
−	== Early History ==	+	== History of the Era ==
−		+	In the years following the [[Safed 1759 Earthquake|1759 earthquake]], the population of Tzfat had, once again, begun to increase. A new group of immigrants, Ashkanazi “Hassidim” and “Mitnagdim” began to arrive in 1764 from Eastern European countries including Poland, Hungry, Russia, Romania and Lithuania.
−	There are limited references to pre-Crusader Safed history. Early writings note that during the time that the Temple stood in Jerusalem, citizens would light huge bonfires on Tzfat’s Citadel mountain, one in a line of stations, to announce each New Month. Some scholars believe that Tzfat was one of the Levite cities that served as Biblical “Cities of Refuge”. Safed also served as a sanctuary for priestly families which fled Jerusalem during Roman rule in the 3rd and 4th centuries. Josephus, in his “War of the Jews” mentioned stationing a battalion of soldier in “Sepeph” which many scholars believe referred to Safad.	+
−		+
−	[[File:more.jpg|link=]] '''Read full Zissil article on [[Early Safed History]]'''	+
−		+
−	=== Crusader Period ===	+
−		+
−	The Crusaders arrived in Tzfat in the 11th century and built a huge fortress on Tzfat’s “[[Metzuda of Safed|Metzuda]]”, the Citadel. This is the largest Crusader fortress built in the Middle East. A Jewish community existed in Zefat during this time and some Arabs began to move into the town and establish an Arab Quarter. With the fall of the Crusaders and the rise of the Mameluke rule in the 13th century, the existing Jewish and Arab populations began to grow slowly.	+
−		+
−	[[File:more.jpg|link=]] '''Read full Zissil article on the [[Crusaders in Safed]]'''	+
−		+
−	=== Mamluke Era ===	+
−		+
−	In 1266 the Mamluke Sultan al-Zahir Baybars defeated the crusader and took over Safed.	+
−		+
−	[[File:more.jpg|link=]] '''Read full Zissil article on the [[Mamluke Era of Safed 1266 to 1517|Mamluke Era of Safed]]'''	+
−		+
−	== Golden Era ==	+
−		+
−	=== Refugees from the Inquisition ===	+
−		+
−	Many Jews who fled the Inquisition in Spain and Portugal made their way to Israel in the 15th and 16th centuries. Most settled in Jerusalem but some were drawn to Tzfat, especially the Kabbalists. The study of Kabbalah was partly developed in the 2nd century A.D. in northern Israel. Many Kabbalists who moved to the Land of Israel after the upheavals of the Inquisition wanted to live and study in the area where the sage, Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, author of the Kabbalistic “Zohar” had lived and taught.	+
−		+
−	===  City of Kabbalah ===	+
−		+
−	Rabbi Isaac Luria, the ARI was one of the great Kabbalists who came to live in Zefat during the 16th century. The ARI only lived in Tzfat for under three years but during this period he learned, taught and refined the study of Jewish mysticism. Lurianic Kabbalah emphasizes how a Jew’s understanding of the secrets of the Torah can enhance his relationships with God and with his fellow man. Lurianic Kabbalah played a strong influence on the development of the Hassidic movement and most Kabbalah scholars, even today, study the ARI’s teachings. Due to the ARI’s influence in Tsfat, the Jewish World began to regard Tzfat as the City of Kabbalah.	+
−		+
−	Other great scholars who lived in Tzfat included Rabbi Moshe Cordovero, Rabbi Ya’akov Beirav, Rabbi Shlomo Alkabetz and [[Rabbi Yosef Karo|Rabbi Yosef Caro]]. Rabbi Caro’s scholarly work “Shulhan Aruch” played a major role in guiding post-Inquisition far-flung Jewish communities maintain proper Jewish observances and laws.	+
−		+
−	[[File:more.jpg|link=]] '''Read full Zissil article on the [[Ottoman Rule of Safed 1517 to 1759|Golden Era of Safed]]'''	+
−		+
−	[[File:more.jpg|link=]] '''Read full Zissil article on [[Kabbalah in Safed|Tzfat Kabbalah]]'''	+
−		+
−	== Post-Middle Ages ==	+
−		+
−	=== Immigrants from Eastern Europe ===	+
−		+
−	Tzfat’s Jewish “Golden Age” ended with a [[Safed 1759 Earthquake|1759 earthquake]] which toppled much of the local economy as well as the physical structure of the city. Ashkanazi Jews, beginning with the Lithuanian students of the Vilna Gaon and supplemented by Hassidic followers of the Ba’al Shem Tov augmented the existing community of Sephradi (Mediterranean and North African) Jews but famines, epidemics, a [[Safed 1837 Earthquake|1837 earthquake]] and Druze and Arab pogroms once again decimated the Jewish population. The Jewish and Arab population numbers remained fairly equal until World War I when European donations dried up. Many Jews left Tzfat at this time. Some moved to other areas in Israel but others emigrated to America, Australia and South America. When the British routed the Turks during World War I and imposed the British Mandate in Israel, the Jews of Tzfat welcomed them, believing that they would support the Jews’ dream of self-rule. British policy turned decidedly pro-Arab, however, and contributed to the deterioration of Jewish-Arab relations in Tzfat.	+
	[[File:more.jpg|link=]] '''Read full Zissil article on the [[Ottoman Rule of Safed 1760 to 1918|Later Ottoman Era of Safed]]'''		[[File:more.jpg|link=]] '''Read full Zissil article on the [[Ottoman Rule of Safed 1760 to 1918|Later Ottoman Era of Safed]]'''
−	[[File:more.jpg|link=]] '''Read full Zissil article on the [[British Rule of Safed 1918 to 1948|British Rule of Safed]]'''	+	== Earthquake ==
−		+	On January 1st, 1837 Tzfat experienced a tremendous earthquake, later estimated to have been a  magnitude of approximately 6.8. The epicenter of the quake was the Jordan Rift Valley, east of Safed. The ground in the city was wet and unstable because of the winter rains and the earthquake created a landslide on the mountainside city, which caused most of the deaths and damage. Estimates of the dead range from 2000 to 4000 people. Most of the damage occurred in the [[Old City Safed|Jewish quarter]] because the style of building was not as sturdy as that of the Arabs. The entire Jewish quarter was destroyed.
−	=== Arab Riots ===	+
−		+
−	A watershed event in Jewish-Arab relations occurred in 1929. Arabs throughout the country rioted, convinced that the growing Jewish population was intent on removing them from their lands. In Safed, the Arabs rioted for three days, killing 18 people, wounding many more and burning down a large part of the [[Old City Safed|Jewish Quarter]]. Witness reported that the British soldiers looked on impassively, only protecting Jewish lives after the initial rioting subsided. These riots occurred during the same period as the riots in Hebron. Unlike the survivors of the Hebron massacre who escaped to Jerusalem, the Jews of Tsfat had nowhere to go. They rebuilt their homes and began to drill in self-defense skills.	+
−		+
−	[[File:more.jpg|link=]] '''Read full Zissil article on the [[Tarpat 1929 Arab Riots in Safed|1929 Arab Massacre in Safed]]'''	+
−		+
−	=== War of Independence ===	+
−		+
−	Both Jews and Arabs focused on Tzfat as the “Capitol of the North” during the War of Independence. The British turned over the high lookouts of the city to Arab forces and left in April 1948. The Jewish Haganah and Irgun, quasi-military organizations, fought side by side against the Arab forces which included troops from Syria and Jordan. Jewish forces successfully held off numerous Arab assaults until they were able to capture the city’s strategic police station and Citadel and end the battle.	+
−	[[File:more.jpg|link=]] '''Read full Zissil article on the [[Safed War of Independence|Safed During the War of Independence]]'''	+	=== Synagogues ===
		+	[[File:00000156 earthquake ruins abuhov synagogue.jpg|thumb|150px|right|Ruins from original Abuhav.]]The [[Alsheich Synagogue Safed|Alsheich synagogue]], which had also withstood the 1759 earthquake, did not collapse in the earthquake of 1837. Eyewitnesses noted that, aside from the Alsheich synagogue, only one wall was left standing in the Jewish quarter of Tzfat following the earthquake -- the southern wall of the [[Abuhav Synagogue]]. This was the wall that held the Torah scrolls, including a scroll written by Rabbi Abuhav in the 15th century which had also survived the 1759 earthquake. The southern wall of the Abuhav synagogue still stands today and the rest of the synagogue was rebuilt around the original wall.
−	== Tzfat Today ==	+	=== Avritch Bat Ayin ===
		+	At the time that the earthquake occurred many men were in synagogue saying the afternoon “Mincha” prayers. Tzfat legend relates that a few moments before the earthquake struck, Rabbi Avraham Dov of Avritch, the rabbi of the [[Avritch Bat Ayin Synagogue|Avritch - Bat Ayin synagogue]], called to his followers “whoever wants to live, come and stand next to the Torah.”. The men ran to the Ark of the Torah and the entire synagogue collapsed around them, but the area where they stood remained untouched. The synagogue was rebuilt around the original area surrounding the Ark.
−	In the years following the establishment of the State of Israel, Tzfat absorbed thousands of immigrants, most of whom were refugees from their native countries. Many Hungarian, Polish and Romanian Jews from Eastern Europe settled in Tzfat, among them a sizeable number of Holocaust survivors. The immigrant waves also included  large numbers of Moroccan and Tunisian Jewish refugees. In the 1980s Safed became a [[Ethiopian Absorption Safed|center of absorption]] for Ethiopian immigrants. In 1990 thousands of Russian Jews arrived in Safed to make their home	+	== Rebuilding ==
−	in the area.	+	Jewish communities throughout the world were urged to assist the rebuilding efforts. Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Shklov was extremely active in raising money to assist the earthquake’s survivors rebuild the city. Sir Moses and Lady Judith Montefiore arrived in Tzfat in 1840 and donated considerable sums of money towards rebuilding efforts.
−	=== Safed During the Second Lebanon War ===	+	=== Rebuilding the Synagogues  ===
−	Hizbollah shot katyusha rockets and many of the city's residents evacuated.	+	An Italian Jew, Yitzhak Gueta, donated funds for the rebuilding and refurbishment of four [[Tzfat-Synagogues|Safed synagogues]] following the 1837 earthquake. Thanks to the funds that he donated, the [[Ari Ashkenazi Synagogue|ARI Ashkanazi synagogue]], the [[Ari Sephardi Synagogue|ARI Sepharadi synagogue]], the [[Abuhav Synagogue|Abuhav synagogue]] and the [[Yosef Caro Synagogue Safed|Yosef Caro synagogue]] were reconstructed in the years after the earthquake.
−	[[File:more.jpg|link=]] '''Read full Zissil article on the [[Safed Second Lebanon War|Safed During the Second Lebanon War]]'''

---

Revision as of 19:32, 27 October 2012

Tzfat 1837 Earthquake

Hebrew:
רעידת האדמה בצפת של שנת 1837
Description:
Destruction and after-effects of the 1837 earthquake in Tzfat.

The Jewish community of Tzfat was devastated by the 1837 earthquake and a resulting landslide which killed thousands of residents and destroyed most of the city.

Contents 1 History of the Era 2 Earthquake 2.1 Synagogues 2.2 Avritch Bat Ayin 3 Rebuilding 3.1 Rebuilding the Synagogues

History of the Era

In the years following the 1759 earthquake, the population of Tzfat had, once again, begun to increase. A new group of immigrants, Ashkanazi “Hassidim” and “Mitnagdim” began to arrive in 1764 from Eastern European countries including Poland, Hungry, Russia, Romania and Lithuania.

Read full Zissil article on the Later Ottoman Era of Safed

Earthquake

On January 1st, 1837 Tzfat experienced a tremendous earthquake, later estimated to have been a magnitude of approximately 6.8. The epicenter of the quake was the Jordan Rift Valley, east of Safed. The ground in the city was wet and unstable because of the winter rains and the earthquake created a landslide on the mountainside city, which caused most of the deaths and damage. Estimates of the dead range from 2000 to 4000 people. Most of the damage occurred in the Jewish quarter because the style of building was not as sturdy as that of the Arabs. The entire Jewish quarter was destroyed.

Synagogues

The Alsheich synagogue, which had also withstood the 1759 earthquake, did not collapse in the earthquake of 1837. Eyewitnesses noted that, aside from the Alsheich synagogue, only one wall was left standing in the Jewish quarter of Tzfat following the earthquake -- the southern wall of the Abuhav Synagogue. This was the wall that held the Torah scrolls, including a scroll written by Rabbi Abuhav in the 15th century which had also survived the 1759 earthquake. The southern wall of the Abuhav synagogue still stands today and the rest of the synagogue was rebuilt around the original wall.

Avritch Bat Ayin

At the time that the earthquake occurred many men were in synagogue saying the afternoon “Mincha” prayers. Tzfat legend relates that a few moments before the earthquake struck, Rabbi Avraham Dov of Avritch, the rabbi of the Avritch - Bat Ayin synagogue, called to his followers “whoever wants to live, come and stand next to the Torah.”. The men ran to the Ark of the Torah and the entire synagogue collapsed around them, but the area where they stood remained untouched. The synagogue was rebuilt around the original area surrounding the Ark.

Rebuilding

Jewish communities throughout the world were urged to assist the rebuilding efforts. Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Shklov was extremely active in raising money to assist the earthquake’s survivors rebuild the city. Sir Moses and Lady Judith Montefiore arrived in Tzfat in 1840 and donated considerable sums of money towards rebuilding efforts.

Rebuilding the Synagogues

An Italian Jew, Yitzhak Gueta, donated funds for the rebuilding and refurbishment of four Safed synagogues following the 1837 earthquake. Thanks to the funds that he donated, the ARI Ashkanazi synagogue, the ARI Sepharadi synagogue, the Abuhav synagogue and the Yosef Caro synagogue were reconstructed in the years after the earthquake.

v d e [hide] Safed-History Eras Early History · Crusader Rule · Mamluke Era · Early Ottoman Rule · Later Ottoman Rule · British Rule Events 1660 Destruction · 1759 Earthquake · 1834 Pogrom · 1837 Earthquake · 1838 Plunder · 1929 Arab Riots · War of Independence · Maalot Massacre · Ethiopian Absorption · Second Lebanon War Personalities The Ari · Rabbi Moshe Alshich · Rabbi Peretz Colombo · Rabbi Yosef Karo Places Abuhav Synagogue · Alsheich Synagogue · Ari Ashkenazi · Ari-Sephardi · Artists Quarter · Ashtam Building · Avritch Synagogue · Cave of Shem and Ever · Davidka · HaMeiri Museum · Kahal of Safed · Kikar HaMeginim · Maalot HaGardom · The Metzuda · Old City · Saraya · Tzfat Synagogues · Yosef Caro Synagogue · Yossi Banaah Synagogue