Tower of David

The Tower of David is the northeast tower of the Citadel of Jerusalem. It has been identified as either the Phasael Tower or the Hippicus Tower described by Josephus.The towers named Phasael, Hippicus and Mariamne were situated in the northwest corner of the so-called First Wall, the Hasmonean and Herodian city wall protecting the Western Hill of Jerusalem. They were situated close to where the Jaffa Gate is today and were built by Herod the Great at the same time he built his immediately adjacent royal palace. These towers protected the main entrance to the city, as well as the palace, constituting a potential last refuge for the king. All three towers have vanished except for the base of the Hippicus (or Phasael) Tower, upon which the present "Tower of David" rests. The towers were named by Herod after his brother Phasael, his friend and general Hippicus who had fallen in battle, and his favourite wife, Mariamne. When the city was razed in 70 AD, all three towers were left standing, in order to show off the strength of the fortifications the Roman army had to overcome. With time though, only one of Herod's towers survived - either Phasael, or according to some, including archaeologist Hillel Geva who excavated the Citadel, Hippicus. However, during the Byzantine period, the remaining tower, and by extension the Citadel as a whole, acquired its alternative name - the Tower of David - after the Byzantines, mistakenly identifying the hill as Mount Zion, presumed it to be David's palace mentioned in 2 Samuel 5:11, 11:1-27, 16:22. The Citadel was gradually built up under Muslim and Crusader rule and acquired the basis of its present shape in 1310, under the Mamluk sultan Malik al-Nasir. Suleiman the Magnificent later constructed the monumental gateway in the east that you enter through today. The minaret, a prominent Jerusalem landmark, was added between 1635 and 1655, and took over the title of "Tower of David" in the nineteenth century, so that the name can now refer to either the whole Citadel or the minaret alone. On the site itself, from the top of the Hippicus (or Phasael) Tower, there are good views over the excavations inside the Citadel and out to the Old City, as well as into the distance south and west. Of the original tower itself, some sixteen courses of the original stone ashlars can still be seen rising from ground level, upon which were added smaller stones in a later period, which added significantly to its height. On the way up, a terrace overlooking the diggings has plaques identifying the different periods of all the remains. These include part of the Hasmonean city wall, a Roman cistern, and the ramparts of the Umayyad citadel, which held out for five weeks before falling to the Crusaders in 1099. ...Caesar gave orders that they should now demolish the entire city and temple, but should leave as many of the towers standing as were of the greatest eminence; that is, Phasael, and Hippicus, and Mariamme, and so much of the wall as enclosed the city on the west side. This wall was spared, in order to afford a camp for such as were to lie in garrison; as were the towers also spared, in order to demonstrate to posterity what kind of city it was, and how well fortified, which the Roman valour had subdued.

Herod's Palace at Jerusalem was built in the last quarter of the 1st century BC by Herod I the Great, King of Judea from 37 BC to 4 BC. It was the second most important building in Jerusalem, after the Temple itself, in Herod's day and was situated at the northwestern wall of the Upper City of Jerusalem (the Western Hill abandoned after the Babylonian sacking of Jerusalem). Herod lived in it as a principal residence, but not permanently, as he owned other palace-fortresses, notably at Masada, Herodium and Caesarea Maritima. Nothing remains of the Jerusalem Palace today except for portions of the surrounding wall-and-tower complex, much altered and generally known as "the Citadel" (see Tower of David). The site of the former palace is now occupied by the Tower of David Museum, a police station, and a former Turkish barracks/prison known as the Kishle.

The Battle of Jerusalem occurred during the British Empire's "Jerusalem Operations" against the Ottoman Empire, in World War I, when fighting for the city developed from 17 November, continuing after the surrender until 30 December 1917, to secure the final objective of the Southern Palestine Offensive during the Sinai and Palestine Campaign of World War I. Before Jerusalem could be secured, two battles were recognised by the British as being fought in the Judean Hills to the north and east of the Hebron–Junction Station line. These were the Battle of Nebi Samwill from 17 to 24 November and the Defence of Jerusalem from 26 to 30 December 1917. They also recognised within these Jerusalem Operations, the successful second attempt on 21 and 22 December 1917 to advance across the Nahr el Auja, as the Battle of Jaffa, although Jaffa had been occupied as a consequence of the Battle of Mughar Ridge on 16 November.This series of battles was successfully fought by the British Empire's XX Corps, XXI Corps, and the Desert Mounted Corps against strong opposition from the Yildirim Army Group's Seventh Army in the Judean Hills and the Eighth Army north of Jaffa on the Mediterranean coast. The loss of Jaffa and Jerusalem, together with the loss of 50 mi (80 km) of territory during the Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF) advance from Gaza, after the capture of Beersheba, Gaza, Hareira and Sheria, Tel el Khuweilfe and the Battle of Mughar Ridge, constituted a grave setback for the Ottoman Army and the Ottoman Empire.As a result of these victories, British Empire forces captured Jerusalem and established a new strategically strong fortified line. This line ran from well to the north of Jaffa on the maritime plain, across the Judean Hills to Bireh north of Jerusalem, and continued eastwards of the Mount of Olives. With the capture of the road from Beersheba to Jerusalem via Hebron and Bethlehem, together with substantial Ottoman territory south of Jerusalem, the city was secured. On 11 December, General Edmund Allenby entered the Old City on foot through the Jaffa Gate instead of horse or vehicles to show respect for the holy city. He was the first Christian in many centuries to control Jerusalem, a city held holy by three great religions. The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, David Lloyd George, described the capture as "a Christmas present for the British people". The battle was a great morale boost for the British Empire.

Jaffa Gate (Hebrew: שער יפו, romanized: Sha'ar Yafo; Arabic: باب الخليل, romanized: Bāb al-Khalīl, "Hebron Gate") is one of the seven main open gates of the Old City of Jerusalem. The name Jaffa Gate is currently used for both the historical Ottoman gate from 1538, and for the wide gap in the city wall adjacent to it to the south. The old gate has the shape of a medieval gate tower with an L-shaped entryway, which was secured at both ends (north and east) with heavy doors. The breach in the wall was created in 1898 by the Ottoman authorities in order to allow German emperor Wilhelm II to enter the city triumphally. The breach and the ramp leading up to it now allow cars to access the Old City from the west. The L-shape of the historical gateway was a classical defensive measure designed to slow down oncoming attackers, with its outer gate oriented in the direction of Jaffa Road, from which travellers including pilgrims arrived at the end of their journey from the port of Jaffa.

The Architects' Tombs at Jaffa Gate, Jerusalem, also known as the Engineers' Tomb, are two Turkish graves located adjacent to the Jaffa Gate on the inner side of the city wall. These graves are attributed to the engineers of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, who, according to Jerusalem legend, built the city's wall.

The Cathedral of the Annunciation of the Virgin, also called Greek Catholic Melkite Cathedral of the Annunciation of the Virgin or simply Church of Our Lady of the Annunciation, is a Melkite Greek Catholic cathedral located in the Christian Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem. It is dedicated to the Annunciation. It serves as the headquarters of the Melkite Greek Catholic Patriarchal Dependent Territory of Jerusalem (Archieparchia Hierosolymitana Melchitarum), whose patriarch since 1772 is responsible for the Jerusalem Melkites by the encyclical Orientalium dignitas of Pope Leo XIII. As part of the Old City of Jerusalem, it is categorised as a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1981.

Conrad Schick Library is a small research library located at the Christ Church, in Jerusalem.

Teddy Park, also known as Teddy Kollek Park, is a public park situated opposite Jerusalem's Old City and David's Citadel, and integrated with the Hutzot HaYotzer Artists complex in the Mitchell Parks & Gardens. The park was developed by the Jerusalem Foundation in memory of Jerusalem's long serving mayor, Teddy Kollek, and opened to the public in 2013.

Christ Church, Jerusalem (Hebrew: כנסיית המשיח), is an Anglican church located inside the Old City of Jerusalem, established in 1849 by the London Society for Promoting Christianity Amongst the Jews. It was the original seat of the Anglican Bishop in Jerusalem until the opening of St. George's Cathedral, Jerusalem in 1899; the compound also included the 19th century British Consulate. From its inception, Christ Church has been supporting a form of Christianity focused on Jesus' Jewishness, offering Christian texts translated into Hebrew by its own leaders.The building itself is part of a small compound just inside the Jaffa Gate opposite King David's citadel. Consecrated by Bishop Samuel Gobat in 21 January 1849, it is the oldest Protestant church building in the Middle East. Its congregation is mainly composed of English-speaking Jewish Christians, with both Christian and Jewish festivals being celebrated.

Church of Saint Toros (Armenian: Սուրբ Աստվածածին եկեղեցի) is an Armenian Orthodox church in the Armenian Quarter of Jerusalem.

Hezekiah's Pool (Hebrew: בריכת חזקיהו, Brikhat Hizkiyahu), or the Patriarch's Pool, located in the Christian Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem, was once a reservoir forming part of the city's ancient water system.

The Co-Cathedral of the Most Holy Name of Jesus, also known as the Holy Name of Jesus Co-Cathedral, is the co-cathedral, or technical cathedra of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem. It is located in the Christian Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem, about halfway between the New Gate and the Jaffa Gate, within the Old City walls.