Early in the second century A.D., the Emperor Hadrian prohibited the Jews from entering Jerusalem. From that period dates the dispersion of Jews throughout the world. Since then, until the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, no Jewish Government has existed in Palestine. Although some Jews have always lived in Palestine, their numbers have fluctuated depending on the tolerance of the successive rulers.
After the partition of the Roman Empire in 400 A.D., Palestine was under Byzantium’s rule until the Arab conquest in 637 A.D. On the then deserted site of Solomon’s Temple, the Mosque of Al-Aqsa and the Dome of the Rock were constructed and called Haram-el Sharif. Second only to Mecca and Medina, Haram-el Sharif became a place of great sanctity for the Moslems.
After the interlude of the Crusades, from 1099 to 1190, Saladin, the Arab ruler, invited the Jews to return to Palestine.
In 1517, the Turks conquered the country and ruled it until the end of the First World War. Throughout this period, the Wailing Wall continued to be a place of devotion for the Jews.
In late 1917, British forces occupied Palestine.
Thus it can be seen that, except for the Crusader interregnum, Palestine was ruled by Arabs and then by Turks for over 1,300 years following the Byzantine era. The population of Palestine was mostly Semitic Arab, both Moslem and Christian. There were also small numbers of Semitic Jews. Both the Arabs and the Ottoman Turks accorded the Jews the right to continue to worship and to keep alive the Jewish spiritual link with Palestine. During the nineteenth century, the Ottomans authorised small settlements of Jewish immigrants from European countries where anti-Jewish discrimination was increasing. At the time of the British occupation in 1917, Jews formed less than a tenth of the population of Palestine. Nine-tenths were Arab, both Moslem (80 per cent) and Christian (10 per cent). The traditions, customs and language of the Arab Palestinians constituted the predominant culture of Palestine.
After the partition of the Roman Empire in 400 A.D., Palestine was under Byzantium’s rule until the Arab conquest in 637 A.D. On the then deserted site of Solomon’s Temple, the Mosque of Al-Aqsa and the Dome of the Rock were constructed and called Haram-el Sharif. Second only to Mecca and Medina, Haram-el Sharif became a place of great sanctity for the Moslems.
After the interlude of the Crusades, from 1099 to 1190, Saladin, the Arab ruler, invited the Jews to return to Palestine.
In 1517, the Turks conquered the country and ruled it until the end of the First World War. Throughout this period, the Wailing Wall continued to be a place of devotion for the Jews.
In late 1917, British forces occupied Palestine.
Thus it can be seen that, except for the Crusader interregnum, Palestine was ruled by Arabs and then by Turks for over 1,300 years following the Byzantine era. The population of Palestine was mostly Semitic Arab, both Moslem and Christian. There were also small numbers of Semitic Jews. Both the Arabs and the Ottoman Turks accorded the Jews the right to continue to worship and to keep alive the Jewish spiritual link with Palestine. During the nineteenth century, the Ottomans authorised small settlements of Jewish immigrants from European countries where anti-Jewish discrimination was increasing. At the time of the British occupation in 1917, Jews formed less than a tenth of the population of Palestine. Nine-tenths were Arab, both Moslem (80 per cent) and Christian (10 per cent). The traditions, customs and language of the Arab Palestinians constituted the predominant culture of Palestine.
