The Hebrew Bible mentions Jerusalem, when King Melchizedek of Salem brought out bread and whine. He was priest of God most high and he blessed Abraham saying “Blessed be Abraham by God most high creator of Heaven and Earth and praise to be God most high, who delivered you enemies into your hands”. Then Abraham gave him a tenth of everything. (Genesis 14:18-20)

 

This marks Jerusalem's initial steps into the religious consciousness of jewish people. But is was David, the King, who truly brought Jerusalem to prominence in a daring move: David captured the city from the jebusites (Jebus was by then Jerusalem) establishing it as the capital of the United Kingdom of Israel, around 1000 BC. By then, The City of David became the political and spiritual nucleus of the jewish people. It’s sacredness was further enhanced by David’s son, Solomon, who built the first Temple - a magnificent structure that marked a symbol of divine presence. Under Solomon, Jerusalem enters one of its most celebrated periods. The first Temple stand as a beacon of jewish faith, a physical manifestation of their connection to God. 

 

But this golden age was not to last forever because of the Babylonian Empire, a rising power in the East, casting soon a shadow over Jerusalem. In 586 BC, The Babylonian Empire conquers the city after a prolonged and devastating struggle. During the fight, Solomon’s Temple, the heart of jewish worship, burns to ground. The destruction of the Temple marks a turning point when the jewish people were exiled and carried to Babylon. Jerusalem falls silent. In 539 BC, the Persian conquerer Cyrus the Great defeats Babylon and allows the jewish people exiles to return home. This return sparks a new chapter in the city’s history. Under Persian auspices, the jewish embark on a grand task: to built the second Temple. Though lacking the grandeur of Solomon’s original one, the new Temple becomes a new centre for jewish worship and community life. 

 

As history unfolds, in 332 BC, Alexander the Great conquers Jerusalem and a new era for the city begins marked by Hellenistic influences. This period witnesses a fusion between jewish and greek cultures, setting the stage for significant religious and political upheavals.  The Maccabean Revolt, in 167 BC, of jewish people was a crucial moment, showcasing a strong resistance to hellenisation. Following it, there was a period of jewish self-rule and cultural revival under the lead of figures from the Maccabean family. This was a time of autonomy and cultural flourish for the jewish community.

 

As the wheel of time turns, Jerusalem finds itself under a new dominion - the mighty Roman Empire. In 63 BC, Romans under general Pompeu took control over the city, effectively ending the hellenistic period. The Roman times significantly reshaped Jerusalem’s political, cultural and architectural landscape, bringing both monumental development and profound turmoil. However, beneath the surface of architectural grandeur and cosmopolitan life, tensions simmer between jewish and romans. The cultural and religious rifts deepen setting the stage for one of history’s most pivotal moments: the crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth, then a jewish preacher and religious leader, marking a point in both Jerusalem’s and entire world’s history. His teachings and death on the cross and the belief in his resurrection in Jerusalem became a cornerstone in Christianity. Jerusalem became the spiritual epicentre of this emerging faith adding another layer to its complex religious tapestry. 

 

As the Roman Era unfolds, Jerusalem endures a tumultuous sequence of events, revolts, suppressions and among them, a jewish revolt against the Roman occupation in 70 AD. This led to a brutal massacre by Titus and its Roman Legions, resulting ultimately in the destruction of the second Temple and, yet, another pivotal moment in jewish history. In 132 AD, Roman Emperor Hadrian began to establish in Jerusalem what he called Aelia Capitolia (the name being a combination of his own name and that of a roman god - Jupiter Capitolius) and the jews witnessed the rise of a Temple for Jupiter, tragically on the very grounds where their sacred two Temples once stood. 

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Following the Christianisation of the Roman Empire, Jerusalem enters the Byzantine period (around 313 AD), when there are constructed significant Christian holy sites, including the initiation of The Church of the Holy Sepulchre (~326 AD). The city emerges as a major pilgrimage destination for yet another layer of faith, through Christianity.

 

As the Roman Empire fades, a new chapter in Jerusalem’s history begins: the advent of Islam in the 7th Century. This period marks a significant religious and cultural shift in the city’s long narrative. In 637 AD, Caliph Umar takes control of Jerusalem following a peaceful surrender. This change ushers in islamic stewardship of the city, introducing new religions and cultural dynamics. One of the most profound legacies of this period is the construction of the Dome of Rock and Al-Aqsa Mosque on the site of Temple Mount (where the previous two jewish temples and roman Aelia Capitolia stood). Their construction was completed in 691 AD and constitute in islamic tradition the site of prophet Mohamed’s night journey into the Heaven. Jerusalem becomes a venerated city in islam, being the third in sanctity after Mecca and Medina. Under various islamic dynasties, Jerusalem experiences periods of prosperity and scholarly prominence, though not without challenges and conflicts. 

 

As Jerusalem navigates through the tides of islamic rule, it remains a symbol of faith and co-existence mirroring the broader historical and religious currents of the region. It was the era that marked the lifting of Roman ban to jews entering Jerusalem. Almost 500 years later, jews were once again permitted to enter the city.

 

But the story continues into its next tumultuous era: the Crusades. The coming period is marked by religious fever and military campaigns, seizing the city at the heart of a colossal struggle between christian and muslim powers. In 1099, after a brutal siege, Jerusalem falls in the hands of Crusaders. The conquerers ruthless and merciless slaughtered muslim and jews without distinction including vulnerable women and children, being kept in the records as a massive blood bath. The city, now ruled by Christian Kings becomes a major pilgrimage destination for European Christians. Churches and Monasteries are built, altering the city’s landscape, once more. The Crusader’s rule was met with resistance and hostility from the muslim world, with the city being an intense ground for both religious zeal and conflicting ideologies and world views. 

 

The iconic figure of Saladin, the muslim leader recaptures Jerusalem in 1187 after the Battle of Hattin, bringing it back under islamic control. After a period of constant struggles, the city enters a new époque under the Ottoman Empire, beginning in 1517. Jerusalem experiences a period of relative stability. Though not a central hub of the Empire, the city benefits from various administrative and architectural developments. However, by 19th century, The Ottoman Empire is in decline and the city reflects this, facing economic challenges and a shifting demographic landscape. 

 

The aftermath of World War I saw the collapse of Ottoman Empire, leading to the British taking administrative control of Palestine under The League of Nations Mandate System (British Mandate of Palestine, 1919). This period was marked by increased jewish immigration and growing tensions between jewish and arab population, as well as with the British authorities. 

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At the heart of Israel’s modern history lies the Zionist story, a movement birth in the 19th century, amids rising antisemitism in Europe. The movement’s name is inspired by a hill in Jerusalem called Zion and its origins can be traced back in 1860, when Theodor Herzl, a jewish journalist proposed that jews should leave Europe to escape anti-semitism and the threat of cultural assimilation. After publishing his book, Der Judenstaat, the idea grew strong into the jewish community, even though, at first, he was met with reserve by the outsiders. ​

 

After several efforts, the movement gained momentum in the early 20th century particularly after the Balfour Declaration in 1917 which supported the establishment of a national home for the jewish people in Palestine, then still an Ottoman region with a small minority of jewish population. But Arthur Balfour was know for his antisemitic views. In 1905 he supported The Aliens Act designed to curb the immigration of Russian jews to Britain, citing them as undesirable. Balfour’s advocacy for a jewish homeland in Palestine was partly influenced by his political preference to not have jewish individuals in British Society. He regarded Zionism as a means to ease the historical discomfort that the jewish presence had extensibly caused in the Western civilisation - a presence which he felt Europe could neither expel, not assimilate. 

 

1936 saw the Arab Revolt, being a response to both British governance and jewish immigration in Palestine. The revolt led to the British White Paper in 1939 which proposed the establishment of a joint Arab-Jewish state, attempting to address the conflicting aspirations in the region. Following the revolt, there were numerous attacks by jewish paramilitary groups, with the Irgun being one of the most active. Irgun carried out 60 attacks against Palestinian and British targets, being described as a terrorist organisation. They issued several assaults on British police stations, assassinations, bombings of transport and infrastructure, as well against strikes against British military and administrative targets. 

 

The horrific events of the Holocaust during World War II intensified the urgency of the Zionist quest for a sovereign jewish state. The genocide of 6 million jews by Nazi Germany galvanised international attention and suport for the jewish cause. The United Nations formed a special committee that recommended a partition plan for the Palestine territory: 56,47% for the Jewish State and 44,53% for the Arab state. While jewish leaders accepted the proposal, the Palestinian representatives firmly rejected it. 

 

In 1948, David Ben-Gurion, the first prime minister of Israel publicly announced the proclamation of independence, which meant also the ending of The British Mandate in Palestine and the emergence of Israel as sovereign state. For jewish people, this was an enormous momentum, but it also meant a profound loss for Palestinians, leading to a wide spread displacement and countless dispossessions. The power balance shifted, since then, towards the jewish state and population, leading to countless fights over territories, limited access to holy sites and to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, today.