Jerusalem

Jerusalem (Hebrew Yerushalayim or Yerushalem, signifying probably "abode of peace," the capital of Judea, and the central point of Hebrew worship and Christian tradition; was founded by the ancient Canaanite inhabitants upon a spur of the limestone ridge that forms the watershed of this part of Syria. Standing at an elevation of 2,600 feet upon a plateau about half a mile square, and cut off by the deep valleys of Gihon W., Hinnon S., and Jehoshaphat E., the city held an almost impregnable position, and was only wrested from the Jebusites by David, who made it the base of his military and political enterprises. The area above indicated included four distinct elevations, now scarcely perceptible, viz., Mount Zion to the extreme S.W., Mount Moriah to the S.E., Acra to the N.W., and Bezetha to the N.E. It is probable that David's city lay between the first two, where now the Jewish quarter exists, his palace being on the slope leading to the pool of Siloam. On Mount Moriah Solomon built his famous temple, where a rectangular walled space called the Haram at present encloses the Mosque of Omar and the El Aksa Mosque, once, perhaps, a Christian church. Recent explorers believe that they have found traces of Solomon's masonry here, and the foundations of the existing walls are more safely identified with those of the sacred building as reconstructed by Hadrian. A valley with a depth of 100 to 150 feet, called the Tyropoeon. divided Mount Moriah from Acra, and was spanned by a bridge. On the brow of this latter hill is the striking Byzantine church of the Holy Sepulchre, built in the 4th century by the Empress Helena to distinguish the grave in which Christ lay, and to indicate the scene of His crucifixion and resurrection. There can be little doubt that her identification of these sacred spots rests upon no conclusive evidence, but the claims of other localities present difficulties which it is impossible to discuss within the limits of this article. North of the Haram is a huge rocky platform, where the Seraiyak, or residence of the Turkish governor, marks the site of the Antonia Tower, and the Court of Pontius Pilate. Hence across a deep fosse the height of Bezetha is seen, beyond which lay the caves of the kings, and the place of stoning. Though Mount Zion and Jerusalem are used in the Scriptures as bearing the same signification, this hill appears in early times to have merely been the seat of an outlying fortress, nor was it until the Hasmonean dynasty that the royal residence, afterwards so enlarged and adorned by Herod, was established here. The palace of Solomon, of stone and wood, probably occupied a position somewhat north of that of David, in the space between Mount Moriah and Zion, known as Ophel. Of the more ancient walls and fortifications, little is known for certain. The eastern limit of the Haram enclosure contains traces of early work. At the date of the siege by Titus there were two older bulwarks, one running west from the West Gate of the Temple to the Tower of Hippicus, and a second starting from the north-west corner of the Temple enclosure and ending with a semicircular sweep at a point near the other. A third wall, begun by Agrippa I., embraced the whole districts of Bezetha and Acra in its extensive circuit. Jerusalem, like Rome, was the object of much exaggeration on the part of patriotic chroniclers, but Solomon, without doubt, left the city in a state of some splendour, much of which was swept away by the invasion of Shishak, and later on Jehoash levelled the walls in part. The fall of Samaria brought prosperity to her rival, and in the time of the later kings Jerusalem had extended its suburbs a good way from the Temple hill. Nehemiah, describing the fortifications as restored by himself about 445 B.C., does not clearly define the circumscribed area, but his circumvallation from the Fountain Gate opposite Siloam to the Valley Gate (now Jaffa Gate) on the west most likely followed the valley of the Tyropoeon. After the return from the captivity no great increase ensued for some years. Indeed, Ptolemy I. rased the fortifications in 320 B.C., nor were they restored by the high priest Simon until 200 B.C. Thirty years later Antiochus Epiphanes again swept them away, but they were rebuilt by Judas Maccabaeus, and again destroyed by the Greeks to be renewed by Jonathan. Then the siege by Pompey (65 B.C.) caused havoc which was repaired by Antipater, and at the time of Christ the city had attained its extreme dimensions, including the vast structures of Herod on Mount Zion and its flanks, with the suburb of Bezetha to the N.E.; but in spite of the full details given by Josephus, we have no accurate knowledge of the state of the Acra or N.W. height, to which tradition assigns the position of Golgotha. The assaults of Titus brought about the final destruction of the Temple, and of the most ancient quarter as far as the Pool of Siloam. Hadrian apparently purposed to restore the Temple and make the city a Jewish capital, but after the revolution he was content with making AElia Capitolina a mere pagan centre. The next important period of revival was on the discovery of the Holy Sepulchre, under Constantine (336), when the magnificent church of the Anastasis was erected. Thirty years later, in Julian's reign, another vain attempt was made to renew the glory of the Temple. Eudocia, who ended her life here, founded the church of St. Stephen, and Justinian that of St. Mary. Chosroes took the city in 614, and in 637 it fell into the hands of the Caliph Omar, who began the Mosque of El Aksa, completed about 691 by Abd-El-Malik, the site having been identified with the spot visited by Mahomet in his miraculous journey from Mecca. Saladin (1192) fortified the place, but the modern walls were the creation of Soliman the Magnificent. They enclose about 210 acres, and are pierced by eight gates corresponding in the main with the older ones. The division of the city into four quarters, Christian, Armenian, Jewish, and Moslem, is not very strictly observed. Churches and monasteries with schools and charitable institutions are very numerous; the Greek Orthodox sect predominates over all other Christian settlers. but the Jewish population, yearly increasing, is larger than all the remaining elements put together. Interesting modern establishments are the Rothschild Hospital and the Almshouses founded by Sir Moses Montefiore. Jerusalem is the Turkish capital of Southern Palestine, being included in the Vilayet of Syria. Municipal affairs are conducted by a mixed council under the Governor, and all foreign states are represented by consuls, who exercise considerable power. The climate is fairly good, though liable to extreme changes; but the water supply, though improved, is far from satisfactory.