WALK IN OLD AKKO
Walking through the quarters of Old Acre, you feel the romantic breath of centuries. The city has preserved numerous monuments of antiquity of the West and bright exotics of the colorful East. Here you can see traces of long gone civilizations, cultures and peoples.
Akko had a beautiful natural harbor on the seashore, which from time immemorial was considered one of the most convenient harbors in the Mediterranean and was used as a port. The city was located at the crossroads of the most important international trade routes, located on the ancient seaside route Via Maris, as well as on the road that connected the cities of inner Syria and Transjordan with the sea coast.
All this has made Acre since ancient times a meeting point for many different cultures, as well as an important historical, geographical, economic and strategic center.
The history of Akko has been going on for more than 4000 years without interruption. For the first time the name of the city (pronounced as "Aku") is found on the shards of Egyptian clay vessels (about 1800 BC).
Over the entire period of its historical existence, Akko changed not only its owners, but also its names.
In 1478 BC. e. the Egyptian pharaoh Thutmose III names Akko among other cities he occupied.
With the advent of the Israelites, Akko nominally belonged to the tribe of Asher, but in fact remained an independent Canaanite-Phoenician city. The Bible testifies to this: "Esir did not expel the inhabitants of Akko... and lived among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of that land" (The Book of Judges, ch. 1:31-32).
In 701 BC. e. The city was captured by the Assyrians.
In 333 B. C. e. Akko was not only conquered by Alexander the Great and turned into a Hellenistic city, but also renamed in honor of the ruler of Egypt, Ptolemy II, into Ptolemaida. Under this name Akko is mentioned in the Bible, in the letters of the Apostle Paul. During this period, Jews settled in the city.
In 614 a. d. e. Akko was captured by the Persians, who held it for about 15 years.
After the Arab conquest, the original name of the city, Akko, was restored.
In 1140 the city was conquered by the Crusaders and renamed again, this time Saint-Jean-d'Acre. The city became the capital of the Jerusalem Kingdom of the Crusaders, who considered it useful to peacefully coexist with Muslims and Jews. Therefore, mosques and synagogues on the streets of the city met almost as often as Christian churches.
In 1291, the troops of the Egyptian Mamluk sultan Baybars captured and destroyed the city, and massacred most of the population. Medieval buildings were used as foundations for the construction of mosques, caravanserais, bazaars and dwellings.
The city was restored only in the middle of the XIV century. At the same time, the Jewish community was revived here again.
In 1750, the Bedouin sheikh Zahir al-Omar came to power in Akko, who built new walls around the city. The city began to flourish.
In 1775, the Turkish army attacked Acre. The new ruler of the city - the Ottoman pasha Ahmad al-Jazara (nicknamed "the butcher" for his cruelty) surrounded the city with a third row of walls, which were so strong that during the Egyptian campaign in 1799, Napoleon's troops could not capture Acre.
During the reign of al-Jazar in 1785, a city citadel was built in the city, which in the last decade of Turkish rule was turned into a prison.
Inns - khans, Turkish baths - hamams, mosques, markets grew in Akko, the port expanded and trade flourished.
After the end of the First World War, power in the city passed to the British. During the British mandate, many members of the Jewish underground were imprisoned in the citadel of Acre, including the organizers of the Haganah. Here, several Jewish fighters for independence were hanged, accused by the British authorities of armed terror. From the citadel was committed in 1947, a massive daring escape of the Jewish underground.
After the War of Independence, Acre became an ordinary Israeli city. It began a new building, which was planned in a modern style.
In 2001, Acre was included in the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage List, as the Old City is a uniquely preserved city of the Crusader era.
Therefore, it is not surprising that all tourist routes lead to the Old City. Everything here is exotic, even the names of the streets, among which are, for example, the streets of Saladin, Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, Francis of Assisi, Baldwin III, Richard the Lionheart.
On Ben Ami Street is the so-called White Mosque of al-Jazar, which was built in 1781 on the remains of the former Church of the Holy Cross by order of Governor Ahmad el-Jazar. Near the mosque is his tomb, in which he was buried with great honors.
This mosque is the third largest in Israel after the Mosques of Omar and Al-Aqsa on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.
In the spacious courtyard of the mosque there is a marble fountain, where Muslims perform ablution before prayer. The courtyard is surrounded by a covered colonnade, under which rooms for ministers are built. Inside the mosque is decorated with wall paintings, the floor is covered with Persian carpets.
Literally opposite the White Mosque is the gate of the former administrative building of the Ottoman period, which is the entrance to the territory of the monument of the XII century called the "City of the Crusaders". This massive complex was once occupied by the Knights of the Crusaders of Saint John, who lived, ate, slept and performed ceremonies here. Later, this city was buried under a huge earthen mound on which Ahmad al-Jazar built his citadel.
Already in our time, archaeologists have unearthed this historical monument, which for several centuries was underground. Suites of vaulted halls and an extensive network of underground tunnels were discovered.
Not far from the exit to the surface of one of the crusader tunnels is the building of the Turkish baths (Hamam el-Basha), which was built in 1795. Here you can see a beautiful lobby with a marble fountain, a hot room, a cold room, a relaxation room and a massage room. The builders used the best marble and wall ceramics to finish the luxurious rooms of the bath, and the columns, floor and part of the seats of the former steam room were lined with marble, which was brought from Caesarea and Tyre. Now in the building of the former Turkish baths there is an exposition of the Akko City Museum.
Passing along the massive fortress walls, you should pay attention to the Burj el-Commander - the place where the premises that served as an arsenal were located.
Near the eastern wall you can see the cannons of the 19th century, which were used in the defense of the city from Napoleon, and 33 years later - from the Egyptians.
It is simply impossible not to notice the huge medieval city gates, as well as the watchtower of the Crusader fortress, which is called the Burj el-Sultan. It is the only one of the towers of that time that has been preserved along its entire height.
In the Old City, several inns, which were called "khans", have been preserved. They differ from each other and make a great impression.
The main and best-preserved caravanserai is Khan el-Umdan (khan of columns), which was built in 1785. Not only the building itself is striking in its beauty, but also the courtyard, which is decorated with 40 granite columns brought from Caesarea. On these columns are the most beautiful arches in Israel.
Near the main entrance of the inn, in 1906, a tower was built with a beautiful clock, which is now considered the main symbol of the city of Akko ("Clock Tower"). The watch is not only beautiful, but also unusual. And the watch is unusual in that it has four dials, each of which uses Arabic, Roman and Indian numerals, as well as Hebrew letters that replace numbers.
On the same square you can also see the monastery of St. Francis, which was founded in the 17th century.
Another inn deserves our attention. This is Khan el-Faranj (Khan of the Franks), which was built at the end of the 16th century. Who are the Franks? So the Arabs called all those who arrived from Europe. Therefore, the Franks are Europeans. Once upon a time, this place housed the Venetian quarter, where the famous traveler Marco Polo stopped on his way to China. As a reminder of this, a coat of arms in the form of a Venetian lion flaunts above the entrance gate of the inn Khan el-Faranj.
One of the main attractions of Akko is undoubtedly the city's Citadel, built in 1785. The height of this fortress, which dominates the entire city, is 40 meters.
Erected as the government residence of the rulers of Acre, the Citadel was turned into a prison during the Ottoman Empire. She performed this function until 1948, that is, until the proclamation of the State of Israel. The list of famous prisoners includes such as the legendary founder of the Baha'i religion Baha'u'llah, the Jewish writer Ze'ev Jabotinsky, as well as prominent representatives of the Jewish militant organization Haganah.
Currently, the building of the Citadel houses the Museum of the Heroism of the Jewish Fighters for the Freedom and Independence of Israel. Here, on death row, you can see the red clothes worn by those sentenced to death, as well as the gallows with a worn rope loop and an open hatch in the floor.
In the citadel, an underground tunnel was discovered stretching across the entire territory to the port, which was originally intended for sewage, and was later expanded by the crusaders and used as a secret escape route from the fortress to the port.
Speaking of sewers. In the Citadel, such an innovation was applied for those times as a public toilet, which was one of the first in the world. And this was most valuable against the backdrop of the medieval unsanitary conditions that flourished in Akko, when sewage was poured directly onto the street at any time of the year. And if in winter the rains somehow cleansed the city, then in the summer, in the absence of rains, the street air was filled with the corresponding "aroma".
It should also not be forgotten that the crusaders, who were expelled from Jerusalem, moved to Akko with all their monasteries, hospitals, inns, and other integral attributes of city life. Therefore, even today, in the narrow streets of the Old Town, old houses of 5 floors with flat roofs have been preserved, the lower floors of which were equipped with stables, chicken coops and pigsties.
However, it's time to move on to a more pleasant topic. Akko is home to the Tomb of Baha'u'llah, which is surrounded by a unique work of park art - the luxurious gardens of Al-Bahai. This place is sacred to the Bahá 'í s and is part of their World Center.
Walking along the city walls, you can go to the Fisherman's Harbor, which was built in the Middle Ages as a large seaport, the capacity of which at the time of the Crusaders was up to 80 ships.
Talking about Akko and its sights seems endless. But it is best to come to Akko and see everything with your own eyes, and touch everything with your own hands, and with your own feet go through all the streets and back streets of the Old City, absorbing all the historical, architectural, archaeological and cultural flavor of ancient Akko.
