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From Empire to Empire Jerusalem Between Ottoman and British Rule Abigail Jacobson Syracuse University Press Copyright © 2011 by Syracuse University Press Syracuse, New York 13244-5290 All Rights Reserved First Edition 2011 11 12 13 14 15 16 6 5 4 3 2 1 ∞ Th e paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of the American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI Z39.48-1992. For a listing of books published and distributed by Syracuse University Press, visit our Web site at SyracuseUniversityPress.syr.edu. ISBN: 978-0-8156-3255-9 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Jacobson, Abigail, 1973– From empire to empire : Jerusalem between Ottoman and British rule / Abigail Jacobson. — 1st ed. p. cm. — (Space, place, and society) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978–0-8156–3255–9 (cloth : alk. paper) 1. Jerusalem—History—20th century. 2. Jerusalem—Social conditions— 20th century. 3. World War, 1914–1918—Campaigns—Palestine. 4. Jerusalem— Ethnic relations. I. Title. DS109.925.J33 2011 956.94'4204—dc23 2011016176 Manufactured in the United States of America To Avner and Yehonatan Abigail Jacobson completed her PhD at the Univer- sity of Chicago in 2006. Her current research focuses on social and urban history of mixed urban communities in Palestine in the late Ottoman period and the British mandate. Contents List of Illustrations • ix Acknowledgments • xi Note on Transliteration • xv Introduction • 1 1. Jerusalem During World War I A Multiethnic City in Time of an Acute Crisis • 22 2. Identities in Transition Contested Space and Identities in Jerusalem • 53 3. Between Ottomanism and Zionism Th e Case of the Sephardi Community • 82 4. When a City Changes Hands Jerusalem Between Ottoman and British Rule • 117 5. Between the Muslim-Christian Associations and the Muslim National Associations Th e Rise of Intercommunal Tension • 148 Concluding Remarks • 178 Notes • 185 Bibliography • 219 Index • 249 Illustrations Photographs 1. Bazaar in aid of the Red Crescent at Notre Dame • 36 2. Department of Turkish military works transports a boat to the Dead Sea • 39 3. Soup kitchen in Jerusalem during World War I • 40 4. Scene inside the Jaff a Gate looking east • 61 5. Th e surrender of Jerusalem, December 9, 1917 • 131 6. General Allenby prepares to enter the Jaff a Gate, accompanied by Hussein al-Husayni • 133 7. Th e ceremony inside the Jaff a Gate, December 11, 1917 • 134 Maps 1. Jerusalem and Environs, ca. 1925 • 6 2. Jerusalem: Old City, City Center, and Jaff a Road, ca. 1917 • 57 ix Acknowledgments Upon completion of this book there are many friends, scholars, and institutions to whom I feel indebted; I would like to recognize them here. First and foremost, my deepest gratitude and appreciation goes to the mem- bers of my dissertation committee at the University of Chicago, Rashid Khalidi, Holly Shissler, and Leora Auslander. All three have contributed in so many dif- ferent ways to my intellectual growth and my love of historical research. Rashid Khalidi was and continues to be a shining model on how to be a leading and inspiring scholar, but also one who ventures out of the academic ivory tower into the public domain, in the truest intellectual tradition. Our discussions about history and politics, taking place in Chicago, New York, and Jerusalem, were always eye-opening, even in times of turmoil and tension in the Middle East. Our joint fascination with Jerusalem resulted in many interesting conversations and exchanges of ideas. I am indebted to Holly Shissler for being much more than an excellent advisor; she is also a devoted mentor, educator, and friend. I will always remember how she was a source of warmth and personal support in diffi cult times during the fi rst few years of graduate school. Her excellent advice and intellectual insights were invaluable to me. Holly’s dedication to her students is truly remarkable, and for me she serves as a perfect example of what an advisor and a teacher should be. Leora Auslander widened my horizons and introduced me to the fi eld of urban history. She kept challenging me, and encouraged me to ask unexpected questions on my project. During my fi rst two years of graduate school at the University of Chicago, I enjoyed the privilege of a generous Fulbright doctoral award from the United States-Israel Educational Foundation. In the course of my studies, I benefi ted from the Kunstadter and McNeill Pre-Dissertation research travel grants, the Doolittle-Harrison fellowships, the Turkish Studies grant, and the Overseas xi xii | Acknowledgments Dissertation Research Grants, which all enabled me to carry out my research in Jerusalem, Istanbul, London, and the United States. A research fellowship from the Palestinian-American Research Council (PARC) facilitated my research year in Jerusalem, and a Mellon write-up grant enabled me to focus on writing during the last year of dissertation work. While working on the completion of this book, during the academic year 2007-2008, I was a postdoctoral fellow at the Depart- ment of Middle Eastern and African History at Tel Aviv University. I deeply thank Ami Ayalon and Eyal Zisser for their assistance during this research year. I would also like to thank the archivists and librarians of all the archives and libraries I worked in throughout my research, and especially those in the Central Zionist Archive and the National Library in Jerusalem. I have had the good fortune to benefi t from a group of devoted scholars and teachers who were involved in my project in diff erent stages and ways. Ami Ayalon became a close personal and professional companion in the journey into the history of Palestine and the Palestinians. I cannot thank him enough for his support, involvement, and constant interest in my work. I am thankful to Dror Wahrman, for his friendship and deep interest in my project, as well as for many inspiring conversations and email exchanges. Dror introduced me to his late father, Jacob Wahrman, and to his phenomenal private collection on the his- tory of Palestine and Jerusalem, and I deeply thank him for allowing me to use parts of the collection. Amy Singer was a source of inspiration in many ways, and was always available with good advice and a smile. Asher Susser served as my MA advisor, and was the fi rst in a group of excellent and dedicated mentors. David de-Vries and Yigal Elam have always been good friends and sources of new ideas and insights. I would like to thank Eyal Ginio, Butrus Abu Manneh, and Ehud Toledano for their special interest and contribution to my thinking about the Sephardi community in Jerusalem, as well as Th omas Philipp, Iris Agmon, Israel Gershoni, and Miri Shefer for their good advice in various stages of this work. Khader Salameh assisted me in diff erent stages throughout my research and facilitated my work in East Jerusalem. Finally, I would like to extend deep gratitude to Salim Tamari, who has been following my work from its very fi rst stages. I am indebted to Salim for his ongoing interest in my research, for his enthusiasm and optimism, for our many conversations in and about Jerusalem, and, lastly, for sharing the search for the identity of the mysterious diary writer. Our exchange of ideas and thoughts was an important and delightful part of Acknowledgments | xiii my research and writing. I am also grateful to my editors at Syracuse University Press, Mary Selden Evans, Kay Steinmetz, and Marcia Hough. I feel fortunate to have a group of close friends who have always been a source of unconditional love and support. Special thanks go to Naomi Davidson, Orli Fridman, Gal Kober, Liat Kozma, Pinar Emiralioğlu, Ela Greenberg, Michelle Campos, Tsameret Levi-Daphny, Mira Tzoreff , Elena D. Corbett, and Tracey Lovejoy for being not only dear friends, but also critical readers who always gave me meaningful feedback on my work. Noya Regev, Hadas Shintel, Varda and Uzi Halabi-Senerman, Eli Ben-Haim, Tami Katzir, Phil Hammack, Michal Segal, Tamar Groves and Tally Gur have always been interested in my work, encour- aging, and loving, wherever I was. Michelle Campos, Louis Fishman, Roberto Mazza, and Rena Barakat share my fascination with Palestinian history, and I thank them for their comments on diff erent parts of my work and for many inter- esting discussions. Words cannot express my love to my parents, Cheli and Dani, and my sister Noa, who have always been with me and for me wherever I was in the world. Finally, Avner and Yehonatan make my life enjoyable, loving, and meaningful, in so many ways. Th is book is dedicated to them. Note on Transliteration In order to make the reading for the nonspecialists easier, I used a simpli- fi ed version of the IJMES transliteration system to transliterate Arabic and Otto- man-Turkish words.