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Israel History

Biblical / Second Temple / Roman / Arab-Crusader / Ottoman / Modern / Time Line

BIBLICAL PERIOD

Period of the Patriarchs and enslavement (1800-1200 BCE)
God calls Abraham to leave his home in Ur (Mesopotamia- Iraq today) and settle in Canaan.  Bearing a faith in one god and the will to set off on a divine mission, God promises to make Abraham the father of a nation through which the world would come to know about justice, love, compassion, the holiness of life, and the divine spark implanted in every individual. The Patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob dwell in the area of Beersheba until famine forces them to migrate to Egypt. Joseph, viceroy of Egypt, helps them settle in the land of Goshen- a grazing area in the eastern Nile delta.

Exodus (1200 BCE)
Exodus from Egypt: After 400 years of slavery in Egypt, God appoints Moses to lead the Israelites out of Egypt and back to the Promised Land.  The Israelites receive the Torah, including the Ten Commandments at Mt. Sinai and over a 40 year period of wandering in the desert wilderness are forged into a people.  The Torah, including the Ten Commandments are given at Mount Sinai. The three Jewish pilgrimage festivals of Pessach (Passover), Shavuot (Pentecost - the giving of the Torah), and Sukkot (Tabernacles- Feast of Booths) commemorate the events of this period.

Joshua & Judges (1200-1000 BCE)
After 40 years of wandering, the Israelites reach Moab (central Jordan today) and the Jordan River.  Moses looks out over the Promised Land from Mt. Nebo and dies.  Joshua, the newly appointed leader leads the Israelites in conquest of Jericho and Canaan, renews the covenant, and portions out land to each tribe with the exception of Levi who were to live among the people as teachers.  In transition from a nomadic way of life to a sedentary one as farmers and craftsmen, the Israelites are ruled by councils of elders- wise men.  Judges- charismatic leader such as Gideon and Deborah- would unite and lead the people in times of national crisis.

Monarchy & Exile (1020-586 BCE)
Due to the warring Philistines, the people clamor for a king to unite them. In the year 1020 BCE the Jewish monarch is established when the prophet Samuel anoints Saul, from the tribe of Benjamin, as the first king over Israel. Saul dies in battle against the Philistines on Mount Gilboa in the north of Israel. David then becomes king of Israel (c.1004-965 BCE). Ruling from Hebron for seven years, he moves the capital to Jerusalem after defeating the Jebusites, brings security to Israel and expands the borders to their maximum.

King David is succeeded by Solomon through Bathsheba as king over a united Israel (965-930 BCE). In 960 BCE Solomon builds the First Temple which becomes the national and spiritual center of the Jewish people and develops international political and trade relations. According to biblical tradition, King Solomon wrote the Book of Proverbs and Song of Songs. After Solomon's death in c.930 BCE, the kingdom is divided into the northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah. In 720 BCE the Assyrians destroy the northern kingdom of Israel and the 10 tribes are exiled (Ten Lost Tribes). 

Judah, which continued to be ruled by the Davidic line survives for another 150 years, is then conquered by the Babylonians in 586 BCE. The Temple is destroyed and the Jews are exiled to Babylonia as reflected in Psalms 137:5-6, "By the rivers of Babylon there we wept for thee Zion". This is also the period of the classic Prophets such as Isaiah and Jeremiah who as spiritual leaders struggled to uphold the universal Torah values of love, justice, compassion and console the people in times of national difficulty.  In Isaiah 1:17 we read, "Learn to do good, devote yourselves to justice, relieve the oppressed, uphold the rights of the orphan; defend the cause of the widow".

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SECOND TEMPLE

Return to Zion (Persian and Hellenistic periods (536-166 BCE)
Cyrus the Persian defeats the Babylonian empire and in a special royal edict encourages the Jews to return to Judea and rebuild the Temple:  "This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. Anyone of his people among you-may his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem in Judah and build the temple of the LORD , the God of Israel, the God who is in Jerusalem"  (Ezra 1:2-3).  The response is overwhelming and in 538 BCE the first wave set out:  "The whole company numbered 42,360: The priests, the Levites, the singers, the gatekeepers and the temple servants settled in their own towns, along with some of the other people, and the rest of the Israelites settled in their towns." (Ezra 2:64,70). 

At the head of the Return to Zion was Sheshbazzar, a descendant of the kings of Judah (son of Jehoiakim), to whom Cyrus returned the holy vessels of the Temple (Ezra1:7-8).  At a later stage Zerubabel, the grandson of Jehoiakim, was also involved.  Jehoiakim, one of the last kings of Judah (609-598 BCE), had led a revolt against the Babylonians and according to IIChronicles 36:6ff, Nebuchadnezzar bound him in fetters in order to carry him to Babylon. It was in the year 515 BCE, the 6th year of the reign of Darius that the rebuilding of the Temple was completed. 

It was however during the reign of Artaxerxes that two great Jewish leaders come to Jerusalem from Babylon carrying official authority from the king to introduce widespread religious and social reforms.  The first to come was the great religious leader Ezra the Scribe.  He arrives in Jerusalem in 458 BCE at the head of 1746 Jews and with official authority to introduce religious reforms (Ez.7:21).  One of the first things Ezra does is to outlaw intermarriage which was very widespread and threatening the future of the Jewish people (Ez. 10). 

13 years later, in 445 BCE Nehemiah, a high minister in the Persian government, also receives permission from Artaxerxes to come to Jerusalem and is given wide administrative authority as governor.  He immediately takes on the task of completing the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem and introducing social and economic reforms:  Nehemiah frees those who had become indentured servants due to personal debt and returns them the land they had lost (Neh. 5:11).  He even forbade trade on the Sabbath (Neh. 10:31), assuring a day of rest. The combined efforts of Ezra and Nehemiah strengthened the foundations Judaism and would influence the whole of Jewish society throughout the 2nd Temple period. 

Their activities are reflected in the historic gathering of the people in the streets of Jerusalem and the public renewal of commitment to the Torah and commandments: "All the people assembled as one man in the square before the Water Gate. They told Ezra the scribe to bring out the Book of the Torah of Moses: He read it aloud: and as he opened it, the people all stood up:  And Ezra blessed the LORD, the great God.  And all the people lifted their hands and responded, Amen! Amen!... Then Nehemiah the governor, Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who were instructing the people said to them all, This day is sacred to the LORD your God. Do not mourn or weep. For all the people wept as they listened to the words of the Torah." (Neh. 8:1-9)

Maccabees & Hasmonean Dynasty (166-63 BCE)
The Persian empire fell with the rise of Alexander the Great in 332 BCE and the spread of Hellenistic culture throughout eastern Mediterranean and into Asia.  In the year 166 BCE the Seleucid ruler Antiochas IV Epiphanes desecrated the Temple, prohibited the practice of Jewish tradition, and tried to impose Greek pagan rituals.  Mattathias the priest from the village of Modi'in and his sons led the Jewish people in an uprising (the story of Hannukah). In the year 164 BCE the Temple was recaptured, cleansed, and rededicated (Hannukah festival) by Judah Maccabee, a military genius and successor to his father Mattathias. Jewish independence was regained and under Alexander Jannaeus (Yannai) the Jewish kingdom reached its greatest extent. 

Alexander died in 76 BCE and was succeeded by his wife Salome.  When John Hyrcanus, Salome's eldest son, succeeded to the throne in 67 BCE, his brother, Aristobolus, backed by the Sadducees, immediately led a revolt against him.  Both sought the help of Pompey, the greatest Roman general of his day, who had advanced into Syria.  The Roman sided with Hyrcanus, the weaker of the two brothers, and the easier to control. Pompey advanced on Jerusalem and Aristobolus retreated to the Temple.  It fell after a siege of three month in 63 BCE.  Judea became puppet of Rome and John Hyrcanus was allowed to rule a much reduced realm.  His chief minister was Antipater II, Herod's father, who was raised as a Jew after the forced conversion of the Edomites under Hyrcanus.

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ROMAN-BYZANTINE PERIOD (63 BCE-313 CE)

Roman Civil War
The Jews never fully accepted Roman domination and in 57 BCE Gabinius the Governor of Syria had to help Hyrcanus suppress a revolt. By 55 BCE the Roman empire was controlled by three men:  Pompey, Crassus, and Julius Caesar. Caesar had acquired the provinces north of Italy and had already set out on the conquest of Gaul.  Pompey had been given Spain.  Crassus became governor of Syria and stole the treasure of the Temple in Jerusalem but he and his army were subsequently crushed by the Parthians.  In the ensuing civil war Pompey fled to Egypt where he was assassinated.  Caesar recognized John Hyrcanus as ruler of the Jews and Antipater, his chief minister, gave important positions to his two eldest sons: Phasael was made governor of Jerusalem and Herod, now about 25 years old, was given command over Galilee. 

In 44 BCE Julius Caesar was murdered by Brutus and Cassius.  The ensuing instability of the Roman Empire led to Hyrcanus' rivals to make another bid for power.  Antipater, Herod's father, was assassinated (43 BCE) and Antigonus, the son of Aristobulus, invaded the country with Parthian support.  Herod was called in by Hyrcanus to help repel the invaders and in return betrothed to Herod his beautiful granddaughter Miriam the Hasmonean.  Herod divorced his wife Doris and expelled her and her son from Jerusalem.  Shortly after, Brutus and Cassius were defeated by Mark Anthony and Julius Caesar's nephew- Octavian.  Hyrcanus, accompanied by Herod and his brother Phasael, went to their new master and received recognition. 

Anthony spent the winter of 41/40 BCE in Cleopatra's arms. In the spring the Parthians along with Antigonus (son of Aristobolus and nephew of Hyrcanus) reached Jerusalem. Phasael committed suicide and John Hyrcanus survived, though his nephew Antigonus cut off his ears so that he could never be high priest again because he was physically deformed. Herod, along with his wife Miriam and her mother Alexandra, escaped from Jerusalem and settled his family in Masada.  Antigonus was now designated by the Parthians as king over Judea.

King Herod
Herod arrived in Egypt and then followed Anthony who had left for Asia Minor and Italy with news of the Parthian invasion. In Rome, Herod convinced Anthony and Octavian to nominate him as king of Judea.  Flanked by Octavian and Anthony, Herod mounted the Capitol where he offered sacrifice to Jupiter.  Although he observed Jewish law in Judea he was only half Jewish and a gentile at heart.  Herod felt no particular allegiance to the Jewish people. Upon being appointed as king of Judea, Herod returns at the head of a Roman army and campaigns against Antigonus (39-37 BCE). 

In 37 BCE Herod captures Jerusalem after a 5 month siege. Antigonus was sent to Anthony in Antioch and beheaded.  In the meantime, Mark Anthony while in Antioch sent his pregnant wife Octavia (sister of Octavian) back to Rome and then summoned Cleopatra to Antioch in Syria and married her.  Herod knew that Cleopatra wished to rebuild the empire of her fathers and that the empire had included Judea so he fortified Masada as a retreat for himself and his family in the event of an Egyptian invasion.  Only with the suicide of Anthony and his "eastern harlot" after defeat to Octavian at the battle of Actium (31 BCE) was the threat of Cleopatra lifted. 

Herod then traveled to Rhodes to meet Octavian and gain recognition.  Upon his return he faced many family problems due to rivalries between his various wives and their children.  Herod's sister Salome and mother - Cyprus- devised a plot of adultery against Herod's favorite- Miriam the Hasmonean.  Miriam was found guilty and executed after which Herod was filled with remorse.  An astute ruler with visions of grandeur King Herod undertook grandiose building projects- both Jewish and pagan - spreading his fame far and wide. These include the Temple of Baalbek (Lebanon), Samaria, Masada, the enlargement of the Temple (including the Western Wall), and numerous palaces. The most famous of Herod's new towns was Caesaria which was begun in 22 BCE and took 12 years to build. 

Herod's kingdom divided among his descendants
Herod died in his palace in Jericho the year 4 BCE, just after the birth of Jesus of Nazareth.  Augustus Caesar abolished the monarchy and Herod's kingdom was divided three of his sons:

Archelaus, son of Herod by his Samaritan wife Malthace, ruled the center of the country (Judea) and Jerusalem (4 BCE - 6 ACE).  He ruled with a strong hand and on one occasion on Passover 3000 people were killed when they protested the putting to death by Herod of scholars that tore down the Roman eagle from the Temple gates. In 6 AC a delegation of the people complained to Augustus and Archelaus was exiled to Vienne in Gaul where he died in c. 16 AC.  Judea was then placed under direct Roman rule of procurators. 

Herod Antipas (b. 20 BCE), son of Herod by his Samaritan wife Malthace, was educated in Rome with his older brother Archelaus.  He ruled over Galilee and the Peraea (the Jewish portion of Transjordan).  Antipas rebuilt Sepphoris which had been burnt in the troubles following his father's death (war of Varus) in 4 BCE and made it his chief capital.  After Augustus' death in 14 ACE he named his new capital of Tiberias in honor of the emperor Tiberius. After 31 ACE Herod Antipas married Herodias- the ex-wife of his half-brother Philip.   The forbidden marriage (Lev. 18:16) stirred the resentment of the people against him. When John the Baptist dared to denounce this marriage publicly he was executed in Machaerus at the command of Antipas (Mat. 14:8).  With the accession of the emperor Caligula after Tiberias, Agrippa I accused Antipas of preparing for a war against Rome with Parthian assistance.  Antipas came to Rome and was exiled with his wife Herodias to Lugdunum in Gaul.  His domain was attached to Agrippa's kingdom. 

Herod Philip, son of Herod the Great and Cleopatra of Jerusalem was educated in Rome with his half brother Archelaus.  He ruled the area of Golanitus and the east shore of the Sea of Galilee (4 BCE-34 ACE) and founded the city of Caesarea Philippi near Paneas (today's Banias), the sources of the Jordan.  Another city founded by him was Julias, named after Augustus' daughter Julia, on the site of the village of Bethsaida on the north shore of the Sea of Galilee.  After his death, his territory was eventually given to Agrippa 1 (37 ACE), the grandson of Herod the Great.

Judea under the Procurators
The procuratorship over Judea was instituted in 6 ACE when Herod's son Archelaus was deposed for failing to competently rule.  There were a total of 14 procurators.  As a rule, the procurators maintained supervision over the country from their official residence at Caesaria.  On Jewish festivals, their seat was temporarily transferred to Jerusalem in order to control the thousands who flocked to the Temple on these occasions. It is fair to assert that the procurators were either openly hostile or, at best, indifferent to the needs of the Jewish populace.  Their relatively short tenure, coupled with hostility towards Jews as a whole, may have impelled them to amass quick profits. The first procurator was Coponius (6-9 ACE).

Pontius Pilate (26-36 ACE):  While Herod Antipas and Philip ruled the northern districts of Herod's former kingdom the Roman procurator Pontius Pilate arrived in Judea and ruled over the center of the country for 10 years (26-36 ACE).  Pilate is most well known for the trial and condemnation of Jesus but he seems to have also offended religious sensibilities:  He brought Roman standards into Jerusalem bearing the imperial image. Angry Jews descended on Caesaria and besieged the prefect in his palace for five days.  Later on he expropriated Temple funds to build an aqueduct and attacked the Samaritans who had gathered on Mt. Gerizim for a religious ceremony (35 ACE).  In both cases demonstrators were killed. The Roman governor of Syria had to recall Pilate to Rome to answer before Tiberias on account of his irresponsible conduct (36 ACE) and appointed Marcellus in his place.  Tiberias died however before Pilate reached Rome and he never returned to Judea.

After Pontius Pilate, Marcellus governed (36-37) followed by Marullus (37-41). Then follows a 3 year of interlude without procurators during which king Agrippas I ruled all of Judea like his grandfather Herod the Great.

Agrippa I (19 BCE - 44 ACE)
The grandson of Herod and Miriam the Hasmonean was educated in Rome with other prices at court.  In 23 ACE he returned home to Judea and was subsequently appointed agoranomos ("market overseer") in Tiberias by his brother-in-law Herod Antipas.  After the death of Philip (37 ACE) Caligula, successor to Tiberias, gave him Golanitus, and in 39 ACE added the territory of Herod Antipas who had been exiled to Gaul. Agrippa used his connections in Rome to intercede with Caligula on behalf of the Jews.  For example, to retract an order to erect the emperor's statue in the Temple in Jerusalem.  Shortly afterwards, Caligula was murdered and Agrippa, who was in Rome and supported the succession of Claudia, was awarded Samaria and Judea (41 ACE).  Agrippa I now reigned as king over the whole area of Herod's kingdom and the procuratorship of Judea was temporarily suspended. 

The 3 years of Agrippa's reign were a period of relief and benefit for the Jewish people of Judea.  Agrippa also made an attempt to fortify the walls of Jerusalem. Josephus states that "his permanent residence was Jerusalem, where he enjoyed living, and he scrupulously observed the ancestral laws."  Apparently, it is Agrippa I who is referred to in the Mishnah which points out that when celebrating the festival of the first fruits (Shavuot), "even King Agrippa carried the basked [of fruits] on his shoulder (Bikurim 3:4).  He is also apparently mentioned in Sotah 7:8 which states that contemporary rabbinical sages accorded him particular regard when he made a special point of standing up to read the Torah, even though it was permissible for king to do so while seated.  Agrippa died suddenly when in Caesarea, possibly as a result of poisoning by the Romans who feared his popularity with the population.  After his death, Judea reverted to the status of Roman procuratorship. 

Simon Peter
It was under Agrippa I (41-44 ACE) that Simon Peter was imprisoned but miraculously escaped the night before he was due to be executed.  He was the disciple of Jesus who had a vision to launch the mission to take the gospel to the Gentiles and converted the Cornelius, the Roman centurion in Caesaria. Peter's later career is obscure. He may have worked in Asia Minor, perhaps visited Corinth, but ultimately settled in Rome .  He is believed to have been martyred in Rome during Nero's persecution of Christians, around 64 ACE. 

Procuratorship reinstituted
After the interlude of semi-independence under Herod Agrippa I, the second series of procurators were deprived of their power of appointing the Jewish high priest.  The very first of them, Cuspius Fadus (44-4 ACE) gained custody of the priestly vestments. His successor Ventidius Cumanus (48-52 ACE) let his troops cause a panic in the overcrowded Temple area on Passover, resulting in the death of 20,000 Jews (Jos., Ant., 20:105-12).

Antonius Felix was next in line (52-60 ACE), followed by Porcius Festus (60-62 ACE) who made vain attempts to improve conditions, and then Albinus (62-64). 

The last of the Judean procurators, Gessius Florus (64-66 ACE) is reported by Josephus to have sparked off the Jewish War with his demand for 17 talents of gold from the Temple funds, which caused rioting that led to the outbreak of hostilities.

Agrippa II (28-92 ACE)
Last king of the Herodian line and son of Agrippa I.  Like his father, he was educated in Rome and he was there when he learned of his father's death. The emperor Claudius refused to let him succeed on account of his youth.  The coins of Agrippa II indicate that he reckoned his reign from the year 50 and he was accorded the title "king" but at no time was he king of Judea as his father had been.  Claudius entrusted to him the supervision of the Temple and the right to appoint the high priest. In 54 he received the area of Golanitus.  In this same year Claudius died of poison and Nero was proclaimed emperor (54-68 ACE).  During Nero's reign his border were extended.  In 61 ACE he received parts of Galilee including Tiberias.  At the time of the Jewish revolt against Rome in 66, Agrippa was in Alexandria.  He hurried back to Jerusalem to try to convince people of their helplessness against the power of Rome.  His mission failed and he fought in Vespasian's campaign was slightly wounded near Gamla. In 68, on receiving news of Nero's suicide, he set sail with Titus for Rome.  Vespasian gave him estates in the north - areas populated primarily by non-Jews.  According to the New Testament he showed an indifferent attitude toward the spread of Christianity (Acts 25-26).      

Paul of Tarsus (died 64 ACE)
Paul was kept in custody at Caesarea for two years by Felix.  His successor, Festus, suggested that Paul be tried at Jerusalem. Paul however appealed to the Roman emperor (Nero).  Paul was taken under escort to Rome.  After two yeas in Rome (at which point the account in Acts ends) Paul was probably released and spent further time in missionary work before being martyred on a second visit to Rome during Nero's persecution of 64 ACE. 
 
The Great Jewish Revolt (66-73 ACE)
The growing conflict between the Jewish way of life and growing Roman inroads into local social and religious life led to the Great Jewish Revolt.  It broke out in the year 66 ACE in the Roman port city of Caesaria (between Haifa and Tel Aviv today) and spread like wildfire.  The Romans respond by destroying Jerusalem and burning the Second Temple.  The revolt ended In the year 73 ACE with the fall of Masada, where less than 1000 Jewish men, women, and children stood up to a full Roman legion and took their lives rather than be sold into slavery. 

Bar Kochba Revolt (130-135 ACE)
The last attempt at reestablishing Jewish independence was during the Bar Kochba revolt (130-135 ACE) at the time of the Roman emperor Hadrian.  Severe measures were taken by the Romans to prevent further insurrection and erase any Jewish connections to the Land:  Jerusalem was renamed Aelia Capitolina, Judea became Palestina, and Jews were forbidden from living in and around Jerusalem.  As a result, the center of Jewish life and the rabbinic leadership moves to Galilee.   

Byzantine period (313-636 ACE)
In 313, under Constantine the Great, Christianity became the official religion of the eastern Roman or Byzantine Empire.  In the west, the Roman Empire was collapsing to the barbarians, but in the east it was to thrive for many more centuries - up until the end of the 15th century and the fall of Constantinople (Istanbul) to the Turks.  The Land of Israel became predominantly Christian and many large imperial churches were built around the country over important New Testament sites.  Jews were forbidden from holding public office and frequently not allowed to enter Jerusalem- except on Tisha B'av, to mourn the destruction of the Temple. 

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ARABS - CRUSADERS - MAMELUKS

Arab Rule (636-1099 CE)
Four years after the death of Muhammad (632 CE) the Arab armies conquer the Land of Israel from the Byzantines.  Shortly after, in the 8th century the Damascus based Ummayah caliphs, begin building the El Aksa mosques and the golden Dome of the Clock, commemorating the place where according to Moslem tradition the prophet Muhammad ascended to heaven to receive the holy Koran and bring down to mankind.  The status and well-being of the Jews depended heavily on the Moslem ruler in power.

Crusaders (1099-1291)
In 1099 the Crusaders conquered the Holy Land from the Infidels and captured Jerusalem, converting it to the capital of the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem.  Jews, Moslems, and Eastern Orthodox Christians fled.  An intense period of Catholic construction begins with churches and hostels being built to accommodate the waves of pilgrims that began making their way across Europe to the Holy Land.  After Saladin's defeat of the crusaders at the battle of Hattin (near Tiberias) and the recapture of Jerusalem, Jews could return and began settling in the area of today's Jewish Quarter in the Old City.  The crusaders regained a foothold under the leadership of Richard the Lion Hearted and Akko became the capital throughout the 13th century, until their final defeat by Baibars (1290). During the 13th century many Jews and rabbis came to the Holy Land, among them Rambam (Maimonides) the great Jewish physician, philosopher, and rabbi. In the meantime the Mameluks took over in Egypt (1250).  They were descendants of peoples from the steppes of Central Asia who had been brought in by the early Arab rulers and trained as a professional class of soldiers, servants, and government functionaries. After the defeat of the Mongols at the battle of Ein Jalut (Ein Harod) in 1260, the Mameluks, under the leadership of Baibars, extended their rule over the Land of Israel.  The fall of Akko in 1291 ended the Crusader period.     

Mameluk Period (1291-1516)
For the next two hundred and fifty years the country was ruled by Mameluks.  They destroyed all of the coastal port cities to prevent a return of the Crusaders.  The Land of Israel becomes a backwater of Egypt with little development. Natural disasters- plagues, locust, earthquakes - took their toll.  The Mameluk sultans did establish madrasas (religious Moslem schools) of which 43 out of 50 were in Jerusalem.  A number of them were magnificent buildings and fine examples of Muslim architecture.  These include the White Mosque in Ramleh, the Bab al-Qattanim ("cotton workers' gate") in Jerusalem's Olc City, the Qait-Bay fountain on the Temple Mount, and the Tankiziyya madrasa near the Western Wall.  After the wave of bloodshed perpetrated by the crusaders, it was a period of gradual recovery.  By the end of the 15th century it appears that the Jewish population of Jerusalem reached several thousand.  There were also small communities of Jews scattered in the main towns and villages.

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OTTOMAN TURKISH PERIOD

Ottoman Rule (1517-1917)
The fall of Constantinople to the Turks signaled the end to the eastern Roman (Byzantine) empire and they extend their rule over the Land of Israel.  Suleiman the Great (1520-66) rebuilds the walls of Jerusalem and encourages Jewish settlement. The Jewish population of the country rises from about 1000 families at the beginning of the Ottoman conquest to 5000 Jewish families.  Many who had been expelled from Spain under the Inquisition come to the Land of Israel, often motivated by messianic fervor and a sense of imminent fulfillment of the prophetic "Return to Zion".  Many Sephardic Spanish Jews settle in Jerusalem. 

The Kabbalist mystics however, preferred Safed - close to where the founder of the movement- Shimon Bar Yochai, a 2nd century disciple of Rabbi Akiva- was buried. Indeed, in 1481, even before the influx of Jewish refugees from Spain, there were 300 Jewish families in Safed- more than four times the size of Jerusalem. According to R. David de Rossi who settled in Safed in 1535: "Whoever saw Safed ten years ago and sees it again now is amazed, for the Jews are constantly coming in and the clothing industry is expanding daily:.  There is no galut here like in our country [Italy] and the Turks respect the important Jews". By the middle of the 16th century, the Jews of Safed and the environs numbered about 10,000, comprising the largest concentration in the country. 

The yearning for redemption and messianic hopes continued to grow, especially among Spanish refugees and found expression in the bold attempts by Dona Gracia Mendes Nasi and her nephew Don Joseph Nasi to finance Jewish aliya from Italy, rebuild Tiberias, and to introduce the silk industry as a source of work and income for the refugees (mid 1500s).    

In 1798 Napolean invaded and conquered Egypt and by 1799 was advancing towards the Land of Israel.  However, he was defeated shortly therefore at Akko due to plague and British naval intervention on the side of the Turks.  At this time most of the Jews of the country lived in four holy cities:  Jerusalem, Safed, Tiberias, and Hebron.  The 19th century sees growing European interest in the Middle East and Palestine:  The introduction of international postal service, telegraph, railways, the Suez Canal, and the building of churches and missions by western powers. Steamship travel helped open the doors to tourism and the first roads were paved from Jaffa to Jerusalem.  By 1860 the Jewish population had grown to the point where the first neighborhoods were built outside the Old City in Jerusalem.  The Zionist movement - calling for the reestablishment of a Jewish homeland - opened the way for "chalutzim" (pioneers) to come and rebuild the land. In 1897, Theodore Herzl convened the First Zionist Congress in Basel, Switzerland and established the World Zionist Organization.  By WWI, the Jewish population of Palestine had grown from about 5000 to 85,000.

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BRITISH MANDATE & STATE OF ISRAEL

British Rule (1918-1948)
WWI brought about the downfall of the Ottoman Empire and the dividing up of the vast Middle East.  In 1922, the League of Nations gave Britain the mandate over Palestine - all of Israel, West Bank, and Jordan today. A few months later the British gave eastern Palestine- Transjordan- to the Abdallah, the son of the Hashemite Sharif of Mecca in return for their role in helping to defeat the Turks.  This territory would eventually become the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.  The Jewish community however received nothing- in spite of the Balfour Declaration of 1917 - an official document declaring Britain's support in favor of establishing a Jewish homeland in Palestine.  Jewish immigrant continued to arrive however, and from WWI to 1948 grew from 85,000 to 650,000.  Arabs opposed the influx from the beginning and resentment erupted into intense waves of violence in the 1920's and 1930's- killing, looting, burning of fields opposition to the growing Jewish national movement.  Jewish self-defense and underground movements were set up:  The Haganah (self-defense) in 1920, the Etzel, and Lehi (to oppose British occupation and anti-immigration policies).  All were united into Tzahal- the Israel Defense Forces- with the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948. 

The State of Israel is born (1948)
On May 14, 1948, Israel proclaimed its independence. Less than 24 hours later, the regular armies of Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq invaded the country, forcing Israel to defend the sovereignty it had regained in its ancestral homeland.

In what became known as Israel's War of Independence, the newly formed, poorly equipped Israel Defense Forces (IDF) repulsed the invaders in fierce intermittent fighting, which lasted some 15 months and claimed over 6,000 Israeli lives (nearly one percent of the country's Jewish population at the time).

During the first months of 1949, direct negotiations were conducted under UN auspices between Israel and each of the invading countries (except Iraq, which refused to negotiate with Israel), resulting in armistice agreements which reflected the situation at the end of the fighting.
Accordingly, the Coastal Plain, Galilee and the entire Negev were within Israel's sovereignty, Judea and Samaria (the West Bank) came under Jordanian rule, the Gaza Strip came under Egyptian administration, and the city of Jerusalem was divided, with Jordan controlling the eastern part, including the Old City, and Israel the western sector.

State-Building
The war over, Israel focused on building the state which the people had struggled so long and so hard to regain. The first 120-seat Knesset (parliament) went into session following national elections (Jan. 25, 1949) in which nearly 85 percent of all eligible voters cast their ballots.
Two of the people who had led Israel to statehood became the country's leaders: David Ben-Gurion, head of the Jewish Agency, was chosen as the first prime minister; and Chaim Weizmann, head of the World Zionist Organization, was elected by the Knesset as the first president. On 11 May 1949, Israel took its seat as the 59th member of the United Nations.
In accordance with the concept of the 'ingathering of the exiles' which lies at the heart of Israel's raison d'etre, the gates of the country were thrown open, affirming the right of every Jew to come to the country and, upon entry, to acquire citizenship.

In the first four months of independence, some 50,000 newcomers, mainly Holocaust survivors, reached Israel's shores. By the end of 1951, a total of 687,000 men, women, and children had arrived, over 300,000 of them refugees from Arab lands, thus doubling the Jewish population.

The economic strain caused by the War of Independence and the need to provide for a rapidly growing population required austerity at home and financial aid from abroad.  Assistance extended by the United States government, loans from American banks, contributions of Diaspora Jews and post-war German reparations were used to build housing, mechanize agriculture, establish a merchant fleet and a national airline, exploit available minerals, develop industries and expand roads, telecommunications, and electricity networks.

Towards the end of the first decade, the output of industry doubled, as did the number of employed persons, with industrial exports increasing four-fold. Vast expansion of areas under cultivation had brought about self-sufficiency in the supply of all basic food products except meat and grains, while some 50,000 acres of mostly barren land were afforested and trees were planted along almost 500 miles (800 km.) of highways.

The educational system, which had been developed by the Jewish community in the pre-state period and now included the Arab sector, was greatly expanded. School attendance became free and compulsory for all children aged 5-14 (since 1978 it has been mandatory to age 16 and free to age 18). Cultural and artistic activity flourished, blending Middle Eastern, North African, and Western elements, as Jews arriving from all parts of the world brought with them the unique traditions of their own communities as well as aspects of the culture prevailing in the countries where they had lived for generations. When Israel celebrated its 10th anniversary (1958), the population numbered over two million.

Sinai Campaign (1956)
The years of state-building were overshadowed by serious security problems. The 1949 armistice agreements had not only failed to pave the way to permanent peace, but were also constantly violated.

In contradiction to the UN Security Council Resolution of 1 September 1951, Israeli and Israel-bound shipping was prevented from passing through the Suez Canal; the blockade of the Straits of Tiran was tightened; incursions into Israel of terrorist squads from neighboring Arab countries for murder and sabotage occurred with increasing frequency; and the Sinai peninsula was gradually converted into a huge Egyptian military base.

Upon the signing of a tripartite military alliance by Egypt, Syria and Jordan (October, 1956), the imminent threat to Israel's existence was intensified. In the course of an eight-day campaign, the IDF captured the Gaza Strip and the entire Sinai Peninsula, halting 10 miles (16 km.) east of the Suez Canal.

A United Nations decision to station a UN Emergency Force (UNEF) along the Egypt-Israel border and Egyptian assurances of free navigation in the Gulf of Eilat led Israel to agree to withdraw in stages (November, 1956 - March, 1957) from the areas taken a few weeks earlier. Consequently, the Straits of Tiran were opened, enabling the development of trade with Asian and East African countries, as well as oil imports from the Persian Gulf.

Years of Consolidation
During Israel's second decade (1958-68), exports doubled, and the GNP increased some 10 percent annually. While some previously imported items such as paper, tires, radios, and refrigerators were now being manufactured locally, the most rapid growth took place in the newly established branches of metals, machinery, chemicals, and electronics. Since the domestic market for home-grown food was fast approaching the saturation point, the agricultural sector began to grow a larger variety of crops for the food processing industry as well as fresh produce for export. A second deep-water port was built on the Mediterranean coast at Ashdod, in addition to the existing one at Haifa, to handle the increased volume of trade.

In Jerusalem, a permanent home for the Knesset was built, and facilities for the Hebrew University and the Hadassah Medical Center were constructed on alternative sites to replace the original buildings on Mount Scopus, which had to be abandoned after the War of Independence. At the same time, the Israel Museum was established with the aim of collecting, conserving, studying, and exhibiting the cultural and artistic treasures of the Jewish people.

Israel's foreign relations expanded steadily, as close ties were developed with the United States, British Commonwealth countries, most western European states, nearly all the countries of Latin America and Africa, and some in Asia. Extensive programs of international cooperation were initiated, as hundreds of Israeli physicians, engineers, teachers, agronomists, irrigation experts, and youth organizers shared their know-how and experience with people in other developing countries. In 1965 ambassadors were exchanged with the Federal Republic of Germany, a move which had been delayed until then because of the Jewish people's bitter memories of the crimes committed against them during the Nazi regime (1933-45). Vehement opposition and public debate preceded normalization of relations between the two countries.

The Eichmann Trial
In May, 1960, Adolf Eichmann, the chief of operations of the Nazi murder program during World War II, was brought to the country to stand trial under Israel's Nazis and Nazi Collaborators (Punishment) Law (1950).  In the trial, which opened in April, 1961, Eichmann was found guilty of crimes against humanity and the Jewish people and sentenced to death. His appeal to the Supreme Court was rejected and he was hanged on May 30, 1962. This was the only time that the death penalty has been carried out under Israeli law.

Six-Day War (1967)
Hopes for another decade of relative tranquility were dashed with the escalation of Arab terrorist raids across the Egyptian and Jordanian borders, persistent Syrian artillery bombardment of agricultural settlements in northern Galilee, and massive military build-ups by the neighboring Arab states. The Syrians also persisted in their efforts to divert the headwaters of the Jordan River- Israel's main source of water.  When Egypt again moved large numbers of troops into the Sinai desert (May, 1967), ordered the UN peacekeeping forces (deployed since 1957) out of the area, re-imposed the blockade of the Straits of Tiran, and entered into a military alliance with Jordan, Israel found itself faced by hostile Arab armies on all fronts.

As Israel's neighbors prepared to destroy the Jewish state, Israel invoked its inherent right of self-defense, launching a preemptive strike (June 5, 1967) against Egypt in the South, followed by a counterattack against Jordan in the East and the routing of Syrian forces entrenched on the Golan Heights in the North.

At the end of six days of fighting, previous cease-fire lines were replaced by new ones, with Judea, Samaria, Gaza, the Sinai peninsula, and the Golan Heights under Israel's control. As a result, the northern villages were freed from 19 years of recurrent Syrian shelling; the passage of Israeli and Israel-bound shipping through the Straits of Tiran was ensured; and Jerusalem, which had been divided under Israeli and Jordanian rule since 1949, was reunified under Israel's authority.

After the war, Israel's diplomatic challenge was to translate its military gains into a permanent peace based on UN Security Council Resolution 242, which called for acknowledgment of the sovereignty, territorial integrity, and political independence of every state in the area and their right to live in peace within secure and recognized boundaries free from threats or acts of force.

However, the Arab position, as formulated at the Khartoum Summit (August, 1967) called for no peace with Israel, no negotiations with Israel, and no recognition of Israel. In September, 1968, Egypt initiated a 'war of attrition,' with sporadic, static actions along the banks of the Suez Canal, which escalated into full-scale, localized fighting, causing heavy casualties on both sides. Hostilities ended in 1970, when Egypt and Israel accepted a renewed cease-fire along the Suez Canal.

Yom Kippur War (1973)
Three years of relative calm along the borders were shattered on Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement), the holiest day of the Jewish year, when Egypt and Syria launched a coordinated surprise assault against Israel (Oct. 6, 1973), with the Egyptian Army crossing the Suez Canal and Syrian troops penetrating the Golan Heights.

During the next three weeks, the Israel Defense Forces turned the tide of battle and repulsed the attackers, crossing the Suez Canal into Egypt and advancing to within 20 miles (32 km.) of the Syrian capital, Damascus. Two years of difficult negotiations between Israel and Egypt and between Israel and Syria resulted in disengagement agreements, according to which Israel withdrew from parts of the territories captured during the war.

Operation Peace for Galilee (1982)
Israel has never wanted a conflict with its northern neighbor, Lebanon. However, when the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) redeployed itself in southern Lebanon after being expelled from Jordan (1970) and perpetrated repeated terrorist actions against the towns and villages of northern Israel (Galilee), which caused many casualties and much damage, the Israel Defense Forces crossed the border into Lebanon (1982).

"Operation Peace for Galilee" resulted in removing the bulk of the PLO's organizational and military infrastructure from the area. For the next 18 years, Israel maintained a security zone in southern Lebanon adjacent to its northern border to safeguard its population in Galilee against attacks by hostile elements.

Terrorism
Arab and Palestinian terrorism against Israel existed for decades prior to the establishment of the State of Israel and since then. Thousands of terrorist attacks which resulted in the death and injury of Israeli civilians occurred during the two decades preceding the 1967 Six Day War (which led to Israel's presence in the territories). The establishment of the PLO in 1964 put it at the forefront of this terrorist campaign.

During the 1970s and 1980s, the various terrorist organizations under the PLO launched numerous attacks inside Israel and abroad. One of the most notorious attacks was the murder of 11 Israeli athletes at the Munich Olympics in 1972.

In spite of the Palestinian commitment made in 1993 to renounce terrorism, thus providing the basis for the Palestinian-Israeli peace process, terrorist attacks nonetheless continued, and strongly intensified since September 2000, resulting in the death of more than a thousand Israeli civilians and the wounding of many thousands more.

Peace with Egypt  (1979)
The 1977 Knesset elections brought the Likud bloc (a coalition of right-wing and centrist parties) to power, ending almost 30 years of Labor Party dominance. The new prime minister, Menachem Begin, reiterated the commitment of all previous prime ministers to strive for permanent peace in the region and called upon the Arab leaders to come to the negotiating table.

The cycle of Arab rejections of Israel's appeals for peace was broken with the visit of Egyptian President Anwar Sadat to Jerusalem (November, 1977), followed by negotiations between Egypt and Israel under American auspices. The resulting Camp David Accords (September, 1978) contained a framework for a comprehensive peace in the Middle East, including a detailed proposal for self- government for the Palestinians.

On March 26, 1979, Israel and Egypt signed a peace treaty in Washington, DC, bringing the 30-year state of war between them to an end. In accordance with the terms of the treaty, Israel withdrew from the Sinai peninsula, exchanging former cease-fire lines and armistice agreements for mutually recognized international boundaries.

Peace with Jordan (1994)
Three years of talks between Jordan and Israel, following the 1991 Madrid Peace Conference, culminated in a declaration by King Hussein of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin (July, 1994), which ended the 46-year state of war between their two countries. The Jordan-Israel peace treaty was signed at the Arava border crossing (near Eilat in Israel and Akaba in Jordan) on Oct. 26, 1994, in the presence of American President Bill Clinton.

Domestic Challenges
During the 1980s and 1990s, Israel absorbed over one million new immigrants, mainly from the former Soviet Union, Eastern Europe, and Ethiopia. The influx of so many new consumers, as well as a large number of skilled and unskilled workers, boosted the economy into a period of accelerated expansion.

The government that came into power after the 1984 Knesset elections was made up of the two major political blocs - Labor (left/center) and Likud (right/center). It was replaced in 1988 by a Likud-led coalition, which was followed in 1992 by a coalition of Labor and smaller left-of-center parties.

After the assassination of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in 1995, new elections were called in 1996. In direct elections for Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu came to power, and formed a Likud-led coalition. Less than three years later, his government was defeated.

Every year, Israel holds a special commemoration to mark the anniversary of the assassination of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. His murder on 4 November 1995 by a Jewish extremist plunged the country into deep mourning for the soldier-statesman, who had traveled from the battleground to lead the nation on the road to peace.

In 1999, Ehud Barak, leader of the One Israel party (left/center), was elected Prime Minister, and formed a coalition government; he resigned in December 2000. Ariel Sharon, leader of the Likud, was prime minister from early 2001 until he suffered a stroke in early 2006. Ehud Olmert, head of the Kadima Party formed by Sharon in November 2005, succeeded him as prime minister.

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State of Israel:  Milestones
1882 First Aliya farming villages founded
1897 First Zionit Conference convened by Theodore Herzl in Basel, Switzerland
1904 Death of Herzl
1909 First kibbutz, Degania, and first modern all-Jewish city of Tel Aviv founded
1917 British conquer Palestine from Ottomans, Balfour Declaration
1920 Histadrut (Jewish Labor Federation) and Haganah (Jewish defense organization) founded.
1922 British receive mandate over Palestine from the League of Nations
1925 Hebrew University opened on Mt. Scopus
1929 Hebron Jews massacred by Arabs
1933-39 Fifth Aliya wave- mainly from Germany
1936-39 Arab anti-Jewish riots and violence
1939 British White Paper- severely limiting Jewish immigration
1939-45 WWII and the Holocaust
1947 UN partition plan creates a Jewish state alongside of a Palestinian state
1948 British withdrawal, Israel invaded by Arab armies. War of Independence
1949 Armistice agreements signed with Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon.  Jordan retains control of the West Bank, Egypt controls the Gaza Strip.
1948-1950's Mass immigration of Jewish refugees from Europe and Arab countries
1956 Sinai Campaign
1967 Six Day War, Jerusalem reunited. Israel controls Golan Heights, West Bank, and Sinai
1968-70 War of Attrition along the Suez Canal
1973 Yom Kippur War
1977 Likud, under Menahem Begin, defeats Labor.  Sadat comes to Jerusalem
1979 Israel-Egypt peace treaty signed
1981 Israeli airforce destroys Iraqi nuclear reactor
1983 Operaton Peace for Galilee- PLO driven out of Lebanon
1987 First Intifada- widespread violence in the West Bank
1989 Beginning of mass Jewish immigration from Russia
1991 Gulf war, Scud missiles hit Israel, Madrid peace conference, Ethiopian Jews airlifted
1992 Yitzhak Rabin becomes Prime Minister
1993 Self-government agreement signed with PLO
1994 Israel-Jordan peace treaty
1995 Prime Minister Yitzchak Rabin assassinated
1996 Escalation of Palestinian terror against Israel, Likud under Netanyahu forms government
1999 Ehud Barak elected Prime Minister under Labor Party
2000 Visit of Pope Paul II, El-Aksa intifada breaks out
2001 Ariel Sharon elected Prime Minister under the Likud Party
2006 Sharon suffers a stroke, Ehud Olmert, head of the Kadima party formed by Sharon in November 2005, succeeds him as prime minister.

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GENERAL TIME LINE

B.C.E. (Before the Common Era)
1800 BCE  Abraham
1200 BCE  Exodus
1000 BCE  King David conquers Jerusalem
950 BCE  King Solomon builds the Temple
701 BCE  Hezekiah fortifies Jerusalem; Isaiah
586 BCE  Nebuchanezzar destroys Jerusalem; Babylonian exile
516 BCE  Return to Zion- building of the 2nd Temple
167 BCE  Maccabee Revolt and purification of the Temple (Hannukah)
37 BCE  Herod rules Judea
4-6 BCE Birth of Jesus of Nazareth

A.C.E. (After the Common Era)
70 Destruction of the 2nd Temple
132 Bar Kochba Revolt
324 Byzantine rule
638 Muslim rule 
1099 Crusader conquest
1187 Muslim return
1250 Mameluks 
1516 Turks rule
1917 British Mandate
1948 Israel Independence

Credits:  Zack Shavin; Israel Foreign Ministry

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