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ID: 090118

Churches at war: the impact of the first World War on the Christian institutions of Jerusalem, 1914-20 / Mazza, Roberto

Mazza, Roberto	Journal Article
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2009.

Summary/Abstract

The purpose of this article is to discuss the role and status of the Christian churches in Jerusalem from the beginning of the twentieth century until 1920 when British Military Administration of Palestine came to an end, with a particular focus on the First World War period. The first part of the article provides some historical background on a number of crucial issues: the history of the Christian churches in Jerusalem, the relationship between the churches and the Ottoman authorities, competition with the European powers for the control of the Holy Places, the Status Quo and the capitulations which were the most important political features of Christian Jerusalem until 1914. The case study of the Custody of the Holy Land explains the impact of the war on Christian institutions during and after the conflict, particularly in 1918 when the Custody rebuilt its influence in the city and on the international stage. The second part of the article focuses on the war period and the creation of the Christian-Muslim associations which, to an extent united the Arab population of the city providing a different example of the impact of the war on the Christian institutions of Palestine and Jerusalem.

Key Words

Churches ; Jerusalem - History ; Christian Institutions - 1914 ; World War I

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ID: 180020

Deal of the century? The attempted sale of the Western Wall by Cemal Pasha in 1916 / Mazza, Roberto

Mazza, Roberto	Journal Article
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Summary/Abstract

This article discusses the offer made by Cemal Pasha in 1915 to Albert Antébi to sell the area in front of the Western Wall in Jerusalem in order to dismantle the nearly thirty houses owned by the Moroccan inhabitants of the Maghrebi Quarter and create a space ‘reserved for the prayers of the Jewish people’. European Jews had already sought to purchase the same area from the Ottomans for several decades but had been denied, a situation that did not change under British rule despite the support given to the Jews with the Balfour Declaration. After the 1929 riots in Palestine, any possibility of acquiring the Western Wall or converting the Maghrebi Quarter into a plaza was postponed. This article will address relevant correspondence available at the Zionist Archives that chronicles this decades-long effort and discuss the questions relating to failure and secrecy. The individuals involved took an oath promising never to discuss this business out of concerns about revealing divisions among Zionists in relation to holy places and symbols.

Key Words

Jerusalem ; Zionism ; First World War ; Western Wall ; Cemal Pasha

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