Tiberias British Rule and Independence
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| Hebrew: | |
|---|---|
| טבריה בתקופת הבריטים | |
| Pronunciation: | |
| T’ver-ia | |
| Other Names | |
| Tiberias of the early 20th century | |
| Description: | |
| New immigration swelled the ranks of Tiberias’s Jewish community during the British rule of Israel. |
Tiberias was viewed as a congenial place for Jews to live during the British rule of Israel.
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[edit] Growth
The commercial life of Tiberias continued to grow throughout the British rule. Tiberias became a commercial and economic center for the Jewish farms and collective settlements which were being established in the region. The population of Tiberias during the British era continued to be divided, with approximately a third of the population Jewish, a third Muslim and a third Christian. The Russian Orthodox Christians dominated the Christian community. The Jews were closer to the Muslims, both geographically and socially, than they were to the Christians.
[edit] Events
During the 1920s the entire population of Tiberias suffered from epidemics. During the British era several serious events impacted the residents of Tiberias.
[edit] Earthquake of 1927
Tiberias was seriously impacted by the earthquake of July 1927 although Nabulus and Jerusalem suffered more serious damage. Following the earthquake the Slonim Hassidim in Poland collected money to help rebuild the city including the Slonim institutions which existed in Tiberias.
[edit] Flood of 1934
Until 1934 most of Tiberias was centered along the banks of the Kinneret. In 1934 torrential rains caused a massive flood that killed dozens of people and transformed the city center into a huge pool of water. The waters cascaded down the mountains which surround Tiberias carrying tons of earth and boulders. Almost all of the buildings in the city center collapsed and the residents were overcome so quickly by the waters that they had no chance to escape.
[edit] Aftermath of the Flood
The British planted trees on the slopes of the mountains that surround Tiberias to prevent future flooding. They also constructed a dam to hold back the waves of the Kinneret in event of a future rainstorm. This dam later became the central Tiberias promanade.
[edit] Massacre of 1938
Relations between the Jews of Tiberias and their Arab neighbors had always been cordial but Arabs of the surrounding towns were caught up in the anti-Jewish sentiment which prevailed among radical Arabs of the times. They led the attack on the Jews of Tiberias in October 1938. Some Arabs in Tiberias joined the attack.
In a well-coordinated attack the Arabs broke into the Jewish quarter after having blocked exit routes and cut telephone lines to prevent calls for assistance. The attackers broke into several homes in the Kiryat Shmuel neighborhood and slaughtered four families including women and children. They burned a synagogue, homes, the British District Office and the magistrate courts. Nineteen Jews were murdered including eleven children. The British mandate government spokesman reported that the massacre was “methodical and organised and was carried out with extreme cruelty”.
[edit] Independence
In April 1948 the Haganah, led by the Palmach and Golani units, took control of Tiberias as their first victory in the Galilee. There were approximately 7,000 Jews and 5,000 Arabs living in Tiberias in 1948. Arab residents of Tiberias evacuated under British auspices. Following the War of Independence the government of Israel opened several refugee camps in the Tiberias region to house European Holocaust survivors and refugees from Arab and North African countries including refugees from Iraq, Libya, Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt and Yemen. Many of these refugees settled in Tiberias and by 1950 the population of Tiberias had grown to 12,500.