Palestinian Civilization
modern times
With the beginning of this period, in which the Mamluk rule ended and Palestine and all of the Levant fell into the framework of the Ottoman Empire, whose rule lasted for nearly four centuries. The dominion of the Ottoman Empire, centered in Istanbul, spanned the Balkans and Anatolia through two centuries of war and expansion.
In light of this central and prominent force in the region, the struggle for influence began to increase between three powers: the Ottoman Empire, the Safavid State emerging in Tabriz, and the Mamluks on a third hand. And the Safavid state led by “Shah Ismail” in (Caldiran) near (Tabriz), and the Ottomans won in it thanks to the effectiveness of the firearm, which they excelled in using. Two years later, the Ottomans defeated the Mamluks in a decisive battle in (Marj Dabiq) near Aleppo on (23 August 1516 AD), and that was the end of the Mamluk authority with the Ottomans’ occupation of Egypt.
In the same year, Selim I entered the Levant without the slightest resistance, due to the Levantines’ hatred of the Mamluks at that time on the one hand, and their fear of the Ottomans on the other. After Selim’s death, his son, Suleiman (1520 -1566 AD), took power, who was called Suleiman the Magnificent due to the large number of laws he issued in the affairs of state organization. During his reign, the Ottoman Empire reached its extent in expansion and prosperity, and it spanned over three continents. It also inherited the Abbasid Caliphate and the Byzantine Empire, and Istanbul became the center of the Islamic world and the revival of Islamic civilization. But after the discovery of America and the Cape of Good Hope and the beginning of the European Renaissance, the center of power began to shift to the West.
The Ottomans left a great impact on the prosperity of Palestine, as its ports increased in importance during their days, and they established schools, mosques, churches, baths, markets, Saraya and other government and private buildings, especially in the cities of Jerusalem, Acre, Jaffa, Nablus, Jenin, and Bethlehem.
Napoleon’s campaign against Egypt and the Levant is the beginning of the European colonial struggle to occupy the countries of the Arab world in the wake of the Industrial Revolution in Europe. Napoleon Bonaparte headed his campaign to the Levant after his victory over the Mamluks and his entry into Cairo on (July 21, 1798).
The Arab-Islamic era: 636-1918AD
The Battle of Yarmouk on 20/8/636 AD marked the end of the Byzantine rule in Palestine. It was not two years before the Muslims captured Jerusalem without a fight, during the time of the second Muslim caliph, Omar Ibn Al-Khattab. The spread of Islam in Palestine and the region was peaceful and rapid, but the Arabic language slowly replaced the Greek and Aramaic languages. After this conquest, the Arab-Islamic culture dominated the entire Middle East for fourteen centuries.
Palestine was subject to the rule of the first Arab dynasty, the Umayyads, which resided in Damascus, and ruled a huge empire that extended from southern France to the borders of China. In addition to the religious importance of Jerusalem for Muslims, the Umayyads did not control the Two Holy Mosques in the Arabian Peninsula at that time. Because of the revolution of Ibn al-Zubayr from the year 750-969, Palestine was subject to the rule of the Abbasids, who did not pay much attention to Palestine because of their full control over the reins of affairs in the Arabian Peninsula and the holy places in it, but Palestine during their reign witnessed a long relative peace. Remnants of this period can be seen in the cities of Jerusalem, Jericho, and others.
The hands of many Islamic dynasties, Arab and non-Arab, changed hands over Palestine between the years 975-1516 AD, and among these dynasties: the Fatimids: 975-1171, the Seljuk Turks: 1171/1186 AD, the Ayyubids: 1187/1250 AD, and then the Mamluks: 1250/1517 AD.
The Crusaders occupied Palestine for a short period from 1099/1187 AD, that is, until the advent of Saladin and the liberation of Jerusalem from them after the Battle of Hattin. Then came the Mamluks who finally eliminated the Crusader presence, and their rule was relatively long, and it had a clear impact on Palestine from the political and architectural aspects. They built many schools, mosques, fountains, castles, and even cities, many of these buildings can be seen in many Palestinian cities in particular. Jerusalem, Gaza, Khali…etc.
In the year 1516 AD, the Ottoman Sultan Selim subjected Palestine, which was under the rule of the Mamluks, to his rule, but the Mamluks remained the actual rulers of the country, even if they were appointed by the Ottoman sultans starting from this period, and the rule of the Ottoman Turks on Palestine continued until 1917 AD, this late period of the history Palestine is represented everywhere in Palestine, especially in Jerusalem, Hebron, Gaza, Nablus, Jenin and Jericho.
Modern Times 1918 – Present
The Allied forces occupied Palestine in the First World War, the country was subjected to the British Mandate in 1923 AD and in 1948 AD, and after the Arab defeat at the hands of Zionist gangs, the establishment of the State of Israel was announced on 78% of the lands of historic Palestine. As for the rest of the country, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, it was under Jordanian and Egyptian rule, which continued until June of the year 1967 AD when Israel occupied this area, as well as the Syrian Golan Heights and the Egyptian Sinai desert. The West Bank and Gaza Strip areas remained under Israeli military rule until the signing of the Oslo Accords in 1993, when small and isolated areas of the West Bank, and about 60% of the Gaza Strip, were handed over to the Palestinian Authority.