A different Israel-My first TL

[Zealot]

Chapter I: The Exodus of Jose Nasi


In 1560s, Don Jose Nasi, a jewish magnate and statesman, personal friend of the Sultan’s heir Selim, was a rising star in the Ottoman’s Court . Taking advantage of his influential position, he obtained a grant giving ruling authority over an area in Eretz israel around Safed and Tiberias , enlarging the enclave previously leased to his aunt Doña Gracia Mendes. Aided by Joseph ben Adrut, he sought to resettle the region with marranos (crypto-Jews persecuted by the Inquisition) from Portugal and the Papal States. Despite some initial difficulties, the scheme proved to be a great success (1), and the Jews soon regained control of part of their ancient homeland.

The Jewish settlement didn’t restrict itself to the major towns; Because its hilly terrain, most of the settlements in the Galilee were small villages connected by relatively few roads. Placed in a main junction on the important trade route connecting the large commercial centre of Damascus with the eastern Mediterranean coast and Egypt, the newly arrived benefitted from their connections abroad for developing all branches of economic activity. Walls were erected around major towns, and the new inhabitants, with Nasi’s financial support, engaged in cultivation of cash-crops and cloth weaving, making Safed and his hinterland a global center for Jewish learning and a regional center for trade throughout 15th and 16th centuries. Thus, the topography and the Syrian wali’s interest in securing safe trade routes along Huleh and the rest of the region allowed the newcomers to expand in a relatively vast and safe area . (2)


View attachment Palestineya PDF.pdf

Area of Jewish settlement


The Sanjak of Safed, which became in few years one of the most prosperous regions of Ottoman Levant, wasn’t at first subordinated to the authorities of Damascus or Sidon, it remained independent of the province system with their leaders reporting directly to the Porte. During the years of Don Jose Nasi, and for a brief period after his death under Ben Adruth, Jews were governed by Jews in Eretz Israel (though with limited autonomy) for the first time in centuries.
(1) This is the main POD. In OTL, the plan for installing Sephardic émigrés in Safed and Tiberias had mixed results, Arrangements had been made for Jews to move from the Papal States, but, when the Ottomans and the Republic of Venice went to war, the plan was abandoned. Nasi soon looked for alternative colonies for them, such as Cyrus, etc., and later he would become Prince of Naxos.

(2) Despite being only a mere chunk of Northern Israel with a moderate population, the existence of a stable and economically active Jewish stronghold will have lasting consequences in this TL.


Next chapter: The rise and fall of the Maans

 

[Keenir]

Chapter I: The Exodus of Jose Nasi


In 1560s, Don Jose Nasi, a jewish magnate and statesman, personal friend of the Sultan’s heir Selim, was a rising star in the Ottoman’s Court . Taking advantage of his influential position, he obtained a grant giving ruling authority over an area in Eretz israel around Safed and Tiberias

an intesteresting ATL, and a great start in this post.

Despite some initial difficulties, the scheme proved to be a great success (1), and the Jews soon regained control of part of their ancient homeland.

as a millet, right?

making Safed and his hinterland a global center for Jewish learning and a regional center for trade throughout 15th and 16th centuries.

you mean 16th and 17th, right? (as the Divergence is the 16th century)

Next chapter: The rise and fall of the Maans

 

[Zealot]

Chapter II: Rise and fall of the Maans.



After the death of Ben Adruth, the Sanjak of Safed fell under the influence of the lebanese walis of Tripoli, who began with the custom of appointing Muslim rulers for the province. From then on, the Jewish communal leaders had to do their best for protect their flock against an hostile environment wherealliances shifted rapidly and unpredictably. Fortunately, the Jews could rely upon a strong and bold leadership, which often resorted to its connections both at regional level and even at the Sultan’s Court.


Lebanon was at the beginning of the Seventeenth century ruled by the powerful Maan dynasty, a Druze clan which sought to transform their country into a major power strong enough to dominate the Levant and defy the Ottomans. His greatest prince was Fakhr-al-Din Beg ibn Maan, who almost accomplished his dreams for a short period, but ended up being crushed by the Sultan ..


Fakhr ad Din II 's wished to gain complete independence for Lebanon; Consequently, he greatly enhanced Lebanon's military and economic development. The amir also tried to forge alliances with European Powers against the Ottomans, but the Sultan reacted violently and ordered the governor of Damascus to attack him. Realizing his inability to cope with the Damascene army, the Lebanese ruler went to Italy in exile in 1613. Fakhr ad Din returned to Lebanon in 1618, after a close ally of his was appointed governor of Damascus.


Following his return, Fakhr ad Din, realizing the need for a strong and disciplined armed force, channeled his financial resources into building a regular army. This army proved itself in 1623, when the new governor of Damascus, underestimating the capabilities of the Lebanese army, attacked the region and was decisively defeated .Impressed by the victory of the Lebanese ruler, the sultan of Constantinople gave him the title of Sultan al Barr (Sultan of the Mountain). Then Fakhr ad Din expanded its territory, building forts as far away as Palmyra in Syria, and gaining control of Palestine (1).


The fate of the Galilean Jews during this period was very uncertain: they were afraid of such risky situation, and tried to protect their interests. While the Lebanese were in power, they didn’t oppose them and showed their support, benefitting from a benign and tolerant rule. But when the balance of power showed signs of change, the Jews, fearing reprisals, were the first to change sides and support the Sultan. Those were hard days, and there wasn’t any chance other than Realpolitik.


Finally, the Ottoman sultan Murad IV of Constantinople, wanting to thwart Lebanon's progress toward complete independence, ordered Kutshuk, then governor of Damascus, to attack the Lebanese ruler. This time Fakhr ad Din was defeated, and he was executed in Constantinople in 1635. No significant Maan rulers succeeded Fakhr ad Din II. The Jewish support for the Sultan’s forces at the crucial point of the struggle , both financial and logistical, would report them some substantial benefits.




(1) As in OTL.

 

[RyuDrago]

However, if later the Hebrews started their quest of indipendence, the support of the Druzes could be useful i guess...

 

[Zealot]

Chapter III: The Loyal People


The Lebanon Crisis entailed some realignments in the region: the Porte tried to divide the power as much as possible and rule without opposition. Consequently, the Ottoman Government regarded the Galilean Jews as a potential counterbalance to any insurgency. After all, the loyalty to the Sultan displayed during the conflict against Fakhr ad Din II was well remembered (and their initial support for him duly forgotten after intense lobbying), and the Jews were believed to have little chances of forging alliances with any Christian prince in Europe.(1)

That’s why the Ottomans decided to enlarge the territory of the Safed province, merging Western and Eastern Galilee and giving the Jews a seaport, Acre, then in a state of total decay. But this reward gave in turn the Sultan some guarantees: by merging both provinces, the Jews had to share power and influence with the rest of non-jewish population (Druze, Arab Christians and Sunni Muslims). The Otomans also stated that the provincial governors should always be Sunni (then a minority in the region), thus preventing them from trying to build up a solid power base and staging new revolts.

Despite these constraints, the Jews benefitted greatly from the new scenario. The port of Acre, now a Jewish port, was rebuilt and soon became one of the main gateways for trade between with Europe, bypassing Sidon and Tyre, and ensuring the province greater economic independence(2). The development of commercial activity enabled the Jewish to establish stronger ties with the European Diaspora, opening this corner of the Mediterranean to new ideas coming from the West, and in the opposite direction, enhanced the prestige of the leading rabbis of Galilee among the Jewish scholars. This economic expansion also allowed the Jews to remain the most influential faction at the Governor's court now installed in Acre. In fact, the wealth amassed by some Jewish merchants was often invested in bribes for securing the appointment of the most favorable candidate for the post of governor in every election. This post would sometimes become hereditary, thus started a smooth relationship between the political and economical elites.

All these gains arrived in the very just moment: In the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, where the majority of the European Jewry lived, entered in the mid-17th century in a very troubled period. Cossack uprisings, foreign invasions and political turmoil ravaged Polish lands, and the Jewish population was on several occasion victim of massacres. In Ukraine several communities were devastated, and the general position of the Jews worsened dramatically. This slaughter precipitated a wave of refugees seeking a safe place to live, and one of the choices was, obviously, the Province of Acre. The Ashkenazi refugees from Poland were allowed to settle in big numbers among their Sephardic brethren thanks to the mediation and persuasion of the local notables (3). Although at first they were regarded with suspicion by the old timers, the need for mutual support against the non-Jewish population urged them to put aside their differences. Towards the end of 17th century the Jews accounted for almost two-thirds of the total population of northern Palestine.

Despite all these gains, the situation of the Jews in “their” province was far to be idyllic: As non-Muslims they were considered second-class citizens, subjected to elevated taxation and forbidden to bear arms or even to ride a horse. The heaviest burden was placed on the Jewish peasants inhabiting the interior highlands, who were often victims of violence from their Muslim neighbors. Only the frequent intercession from the most prominent Jews in Acre before the Governor granted them a minimal protection.


(1) This approach would be right for a long time, but not forever…

(2) In OTL, Acre only began to recover at the end of the 18th century, when the local Arab chieftains at last realized that it was better to protect trade than exploiting the peasantry.

(3) There was an influx of Polish Jews to Palestine in OTL too, but the conditions they found there didn’t permit them to settle so successfully. TTL the immigrants are welcomed by a strong pre-existing community firmly rooted to the Land


Next chapter: The suppression of the Sabbatean heresy

 

[Zealot]

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an intesteresting ATL, and a great start in this post.




as a millet, right?

Well, the millet system wasn't exactly this; It involved a sort of autonomy for a non-Muslim community, but not necessarily a territorial one. in fact, the Ottoman Jews formed OTL a millet, but they were dispersed along the Empire and lacked a region where they constituted the majority of the population. The biggest concentration of Jews with demographic predomince was in Thessaloniki, but it was only a city surrounded by Greeks and Slavs.

TTL the situation of the Jews will mirror that of Greeks and Armenians, i.e a millet with communities all over the empire but also possessing their own territorial stonghold.



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you mean 16th and 17th, right? (as the Divergence is the 16th century)


You're right, thanks for your correction.

 

[Zealot]

However, if later the Hebrews started their quest of indipendence, the support of the Druzes could be useful i guess...

The quest for the Jewish independence will last for a long time, longer than the duration of the allegiances in the Near East. In fact, you must consider that the Maronites and the Duze were intermitent allies in Lebanon for several centuries and they have ended up massacring each other.

 

[Zealot]

Chapter IV: The supression of the Sabbatean heresy




By middle of 17th century, it became clear that the rabbinical élite of Jewish Galilee had risen to prominence in world Jewry; Not only because they inhabited (some parts of) Eretz Yisrael, but also because this Land hosted the highest density of Talmudic scholars all over the world, both Ashkenazic and Sephardic. Headed by a council of Sages, the Vaad, made up of representatives of the main communities, the local Rabbis ran a network of yeshivot wich attracted Jewish students from Europe and the Ottoman Empire. Consequently, they expected to assume a sort of primacy among the Diaspora Jews , something that they often almost accomplished. Not surprisingly, the post of Hacham Bashi, the Ottoman Chief Rabbi, was always selected among the Galiean sages.

Outside Northern Palestine things were quite different: the best example was Jerusalem, where the Jewish presence was made very difficult, if not openly discouraged. The Jews who dared to dwell the Holiest City had to face enormous hardships and were burdened with exorbitant taxes. To alleviate the consequences of the capricious local rule, some of the Court Jews from Acre began to intercede for their Jerusalemite brethren. This wealthy merchant class took the community under his wing, and thanks to their financial support the Jewish population of Jerusalem experienced a slow but steady growth. However, the community remained only of a handful of Rabbis and students residing in the few Yeshivot which were allowed to be built. Despite being quantitatively insignificant compared with the Northern population, Jerusalem was the very center of Jewish life, so the role of benefactors of Jerusalem elevated even more the hierarchy of the Acreans.
That’s why when the first news of a self-proclaimed Messiah arrived to N Palestine, the Rabbis reacted vehemently condemning any form of Heresy; they considered themselves the Defenders of Orthodoxy, and they were unwilling to tolerate any challenge to the recently gained status. The threat had a name: Sabbatai Zevi

Sabbatai Zevi


Sabbatai Zevi was born in Smyrna from a wealthy merchant family. He attended a yeshiva and son became fascinated with Kabbalah mysticism. He found the practical kabbalah, with its asceticism through which its devotees claimed to be able to communicate with God , to predict the future and to perform all sorts of miracles, especially appealing.

During the first half of the 17th century, millenarian ideas of the approach of the Messianic time were popular. They included ideas of the redemption of the Jews and their return to theland of Israel, with independentsovereignty. But these dreams were strongly opposed by the rabbinical leadership in Eretz Israel and several other communities where their authority was respected: in Northern Palestine and Jerusalem the Vaad took a very conservative stance regarding political aspirations, since their position was already very favorable and they didn’t want to alter the status quo with the Muslims.

At age 22 in 1648, Sabbatai started declaring to his followers in Smyrna that he was the true Messianic redeemer. Soon the rabbis banished Sabbatai and his disciples from Smyrna. After many stays in many different communities, where he found mixed results, Sabbatai moved on to Jerusalem, where some of his followers had convinced him that he would be welcomed as the Messianic King of Israel. Obviously, they were wrong: The Rabbis from Jerusalem and Galilee plotted against him and persuaded the Ottoman authorities to “get rid of him”(1). The wali of Damascus seized Sabbatai, and sentenced him to life imprisonment while their followers were given the choice of converting to Islam or facing the same fate of their Messiah. Thus, the Sabbatean heresy was abruptly suppressed, probably long before it had developed a real threat against the Religious Establishment(2), who would thereafter keep a watchful eye on any further theological heterodoxy.



(1) After finishing this chapter, I’ve realized that this story where the Rabbinical hierarchy persuades the foreign ruler to seize and eliminate a so-called False Messiah reminds that of ….


(2) In OTL, the Sabbatean heresy became so widespread, with no one capable of seriously opposing it, that it actually became a problem for the Ottomans and for the Jews of the Empire, specially those residing in Eretz Israel In fact, in the 1660s, the events surrounding the arrival of Sabbatai caused the massacre of the Jews in Safed and Jerusalem.

 

[Arrix85]

Love the TL! good work.

 

[Lysandros Aikiedes]

Interesting TL, Zealot. Are the Jews of Safed governed by a hereditary statesman or do the Rabbis lead them?

 

[Zealot]

Interesting TL, Zealot. Are the Jews of Safed governed by a hereditary statesman or do the Rabbis lead them?

The Rabbis are the communal leaders, and hold both spiritual and political authority on the Jewish population, but the wealthy merchants of Acre, who contribute with generous donations to the funding of yeshivot and synagogues, enjoy a great degree of influence on them. On the other hand, the Province of Acre is actually ruled by a Muslim Governor appointed by the Ottomans, but again the Jewish most prominent magnates are able to support the most favourable candidate for their interests at every appointment, often turning the post hereditary. Thus, there is a balance of power, but the Jews, especialy the wealthiest ones, always expect to obtain gains.

 

[Lysandros Aikiedes]

After reading the beginning again, there is no explanation for how the conflict between the Ottomans was averted or delayed, allowing a significant movement of Sephardim into Safed. How did TTL's Nasi and Ben Adruth persuade Selim II to delay his plans for the invasion of Cyprus?

Truth is, I'm just eager for your next update, but I thought I'd just put this question out there.

 

[MerryPrankster]

Very interesting. I will keep an eye on it.

 

[Zealot]

After reading the beginning again, there is no explanation for how the conflict between the Ottomans was averted or delayed, allowing a significant movement of Sephardim into Safed. How did TTL's Nasi and Ben Adruth persuade Selim II to delay his plans for the invasion of Cyprus?

Truth is, I'm just eager for your next update, but I thought I'd just put this question out there.

Well, it seems that it´s just a matter of dates:

http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/JosephNasi.html

Joseph Nasi is best known for his attempts with his aunt to establish an independent Jewish community in Tiberius. As early as 1558 or 1559, Gracia Mendes had obtained from the sultan various concessions in Tiberius. The city onLake Kinneret was mostly ruins. She planned to found a yeshivah there. In 1561 Joseph obtained confirmation and extension of this grant, giving him ruling authority in Tiberias and seven nearby villages in consideration of an annual payment.

In the winter of 1564–65 the rebuilding of the ruined walls of Tiberius was completed, ensuring a certain degree of physical security. This was the only practical attempt to establish some sort of Jewish political center in Palestine between the fourth and 19th centuries.

Joseph Nasi then tried to give Tiberius an economic foundation by investing there in both the wool and silk industries. Several hundred families settled there. He then sent a circular letter to the Jewish communities of Italy inviting them to move to Tiberius, offering them stipends. Numerous families excitedly prepared to move.
Unfortunately, Turkey and Venice went to war. The Tiberias Plan failed.


The (Fourth) Ottoman-Venetian war broke out in 1570, while the status of the Italian Jews had began to deteriorate seriously with the accesion to the Papacy of Paul IV in 1555, leading to their definitive expulsion from the Papal States by the Pius V bull Hebraeorum gens in 1569....

Let´s suppose that this papal bull was issued earlier, two years for example (Pius V was elected to the Pontificate in 1566)…. I’m not an expert of mass migrations in 16th century, but IMHO this extra time would make a much larger transfer possible..

 

[MNP]

Ah, Zevi. He was such a ridiculous figure. Also what gains do they get from their candidates? If they get too good a deal someone would complain to the higher authority and their personalized influence with the Ottoman government can't last forever...

 

[Orko]

How do you subscribe to a thread?

 

[Joshua Ben Ari]

There's a button that allows you to get email notifications when the thread is updated.

Also, subscribed.

 

[Jester]

Thread tools.

 

[Shevek23]

Thread tools.

Yes. Also, you don't have to get e-mails; you can just go to your Subscribed Threads page, under Miscellaneous under QuickLinks, and they'll all be listed in order of most recently posted-to thread. That's the way I do it; if you don't have a page for that thread already open somewhere to refresh you can just open one from the appropriate page link for the thread.

 

[Zealot]

Ah, Zevi. He was such a ridiculous figure. Also what gains do they get from their candidates? If they get too good a deal someone would complain to the higher authority and their personalized influence with the Ottoman government can't last forever...

About Sabbatai , I agree that this colorful character did not cause any irreparable damage to the Jewish faith, in fact the entire story was a very bizarre one: he ended up converting to Islam when the Sultan got fed up of him, leaving most of his followers lost and in a state of total confusion in OTL… but in TTL the earlier crackdown on the Sabbateans will, on the one hand, reassert the authority of the Galilean Rabbis (who have begun to claim a role akin to that of the Christian Patriarchs), and on the other hand will have great consequences on several other deviations of Judaism in the future, for example on Hasidism, who will develop a more messianic and antagonistic nature.

On the other hand, the Jews certainly cannot be the eternal winners in the power struggles in TTL Ottoman Galilee… but they can try to maximize their gains and minimize their loss. They will suffer many setbacks, as I wrote in the third chapter, but they will almost always recover. The difference with OTL is that their position is stronger both demographically and economically, as it was the case of some other minorities inhabiting the Levant during that period, such as the Maronites, and if they occasionally fall from grace, this won’t necessarily mean their total extermination.

.