| Mutasarrifate of Jerusalem قُدس شَرِيف مُتَصَرِّفلغى (Ottoman Turkish) Kudüs-i Şerif Mutasarrıflığı متصرفية القدس الشريف (Arabic) Mutaṣarrifiyyat al-Quds aš-Šarīf | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mutasarrifate of theOttoman Empire | |||||||||
| 1872–1917 | |||||||||
.svg) | |||||||||
_LA_SYRIE.jpg) Vital Cuinet's 1896 map ofSyria, including the "Mutessariflik de Jerusalem" | |||||||||
| Capital | Jerusalem | ||||||||
| Area | |||||||||
• 1862[2] | 12,486 km2 (4,821 sq mi) | ||||||||
| Population | |||||||||
• 1897[1] | 298,653 | ||||||||
| History | |||||||||
• Established | 1872 | ||||||||
| 1917 | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Today part of |  Egypt Israel Jordan Palestine | ||||||||
TheMutasarrifate of Jerusalem (Ottoman Turkish:قُدس شَرِيف مُتَصَرِّفلغى,Kudüs-i Şerif Mutasarrıflığı;Arabic:متصرفية القدس الشريف,Mutaṣarrifiyyat al-quds aš-šarīf,French:Moutassarifat de Jérusalem), also known as theSanjak of Jerusalem, was a district inOttoman Syria with special administrative status established in 1872.[3][4][5] The district encompassedJerusalem as well asHebron,Jaffa,Gaza andBeersheba.[6] Many documents during theLate Ottoman period refer to the Mutasarrifate of Jerusalem as Palestine;[3] one such describes Palestine as including theSanjak of Nablus andSanjak of Akka (Acre) as well, more in line with European usage.[nb 1] It was the seventh mostheavily populated region of theOttoman Empire's 36 provinces.[7]
The district was separated from theDamascus Eyalet and placed directly under the supervision of theOttoman central government inConstantinople (nowIstanbul) in 1841, and formally created as an independent province in 1872 byGrand VizierMahmud Nedim Pasha.[8] Scholars provide a variety of reasons for the separation, including increased European interest in the region, and strengthening of the southern border of the Empire against theKhedivate of Egypt.[8][4] Initially, theMutasarrifate of Acre andMutasarrifate of Nablus were combined with the province of Jerusalem, with the combined province being referred to in the register of the court of Jerusalem as the "JerusalemEyalet", and referred to by the British consul as the creation of "Palestine into a separate eyalet".[4] After less than two months,[4] the sanjaks of Nablus and Acre were separated and added to theVilayet of Beirut, leaving just the Mutasarrifate of Jerusalem.[9] In 1906, theKaza of Nazareth was added to the Jerusalem Mutasarrifate as anexclave,[10] primarily in order to allow the issuance of a single tourist permit toChristian travellers.[11]
The area was conquered by theAllied Forces in 1917 duringWorld War I[12] and a militaryOccupied Enemy Territory Administration, OETA South, was set up to replace the Ottoman administration.[13] OETA South consisted of the Ottoman sanjaks of Jerusalem, Nablus and Acre. The military administration was replaced by a British civilian administration in 1920 and the area of OETA South was incorporated into theBritish Mandate of Palestine in 1923.
The political status of the Mutasarrifate of Jerusalem was unique from other Ottoman provinces as it was under the direct authority of the Ottoman government in Constantinople.[5] The inhabitants identified themselves primarily on religious terms, 84% being Muslim Arabs.[14] The district's villages were normally inhabited by farmers while its towns were populated by merchants, artisans, landowners and money-lenders. The elite consisted of the religious leadership, wealthy landlords and high-ranking civil servants.[14]
In 1841, the district was separated fromDamascus Eyalet and placed directly under Constantinople[8] and formally created as an independent Mutasarrifate in 1872. Before 1872, the Mutasarrifate of Jerusalem was officially asanjak within theSyria Vilayet (created in 1864, following theTanzimat reforms).
The southern border of the Mutasarrifate of Jerusalem was redrawn in 1906, at the instigation of the British, who were interested in safeguarding their imperial interests and in making the border as short and patrollable as possible.[15]
In the mid-19th century the inhabitants of Palestine identified themselves primarily in terms of religious affiliation. The population was more than 80% Muslim Arab, 10% Christian (mostly Arab), 5% Jewish, and 1%Druze.[16] Towards the end of the 19th century, the idea that the region of Palestine or the Mutasarrifate of Jerusalem formed a separate political entity became widespread among the district's educated Arab classes. In 1904, former Jerusalem official Najib Azuri formed inParis, France theLigue de la Patrie Arabe ("Arab Fatherland League") whose goal was to freeOttoman Syria and Iraq from Turkish domination. In 1908, Azuri proposed the elevation of themutasarrifate to the status ofvilayet to theOttoman Parliament[5] after the 1908Young Turk Revolution. Asection of the 1914 Ottoman census[nb 2] listed its population figures.[17]
The area was conquered by theAllied Forces in 1917 during thePalestine campaign ofWorld War I[12] and a militaryOccupied Enemy Territory Administration (OETA South) set up to replace the Ottoman administration.[13] OETA South consisted of the Ottoman sanjaks of Jerusalem, Nablus and Acre. The military administration was replaced by a British civilian administration in 1920 and the area of OETA South became the territory of theBritish Mandate of Palestine in 1923, with some border adjustments with Lebanon and Syria.
The division was bounded on the west by the Mediterranean, on the east by theRiver Jordan and theDead Sea, on the north by a line from the mouth of theriver Auja to thebridge over the Jordan near Jericho, and on the south by a line from midway betweenGaza andArish toAqaba.[18]
Below are a series of contemporary Ottoman maps showing the "Quds Al-Sharif Sancağı" or "Quds Al-Sharif Mutasarrıflığı". The 1907 maps show the 1860 borders between Ottoman Syria and theKhedivate of Egypt, although the border was moved to the current Israel-Egypt border in 1906, and the area north of theNegev Desert is labelled "Filastin" (Palestine).
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C.R. Condor described the administrative duties which he saw performed inPalestine in 1874:
The whole of Syria is under theWâly of Damascus, and Palestine is under theMutaserifs of Acre and Jerusalem, who are appointed by thatWâly. These provinces are again subdivided, andKaimakâms or lieutenant-governors, are placed in such towns as Jaffa, Ramleh, Jenin, etc. ... The system of government is simple. The only duties are to collect the taxes, and to put down riots, which constantly occur. The crown-lands are farmed to the highest bidder... Soldiers are sent to collect the money, and the crop is assessed before reaping... The tax in theMulk-lands has been definitely fixed, without regard to the difference of the harvests in good and bad years.
— C.R. Condor,Tent Work in Palestine[19]
Administrative divisions of the Mutasarrifate (1872–1909):
The Mutasarrıfs of Jerusalem were appointed by theSublime Porte to govern the district. They were usually experienced civil servants who spoke little or no Arabic, but knew a European language - most commonly French - in addition toOttoman Turkish.[21]
List of mutasarrıfs after the 1908Young Turk Revolution:
Table IV.2 Population Density per km2, and Density Rank, 1894/95 (R. 1310), "Qudūs": Rank 7, with population of 247,000 and density of 26.33 per km2; underlying source IUKTY 9075
