Who Controlled Jerusalem the Longest?

Jerusalem occupies a strategic position at the crossroads of three continents and is sacred to Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Its geographical and religious importance has made control of the city a recurring source of conflict throughout history.

Jerusalem has experienced an extraordinary number of military conflicts. Citing historian Eric Cline, Matt Baker reports that the city has been besieged 23 times, attacked 52 times, and captured or recaptured 44 times.

The earliest archaeological evidence of permanent settlement near Jerusalem dates to approximately 4000 BCE. This establishes human habitation in the area thousands of years before the emergence of Judaism, Christianity, or Islam.

The earliest possible written reference to Jerusalem dates to approximately 2000 BCE. Egyptian Middle Kingdom records mention a place that may be Jerusalem, although the identification is not completely certain.

Jerusalem's ancient name may be connected to words meaning peace. Its three-letter root, S-L-M, is related to the Arabic salam and Hebrew shalom. However, the name may originally have referred to Shalim, a Canaanite deity.

The period from approximately 2000 to 1000 BCE is generally classified as Jerusalem's Canaanite period. Written evidence is limited, making it difficult to establish exactly who governed the city throughout these centuries.

Jerusalem was probably under Egyptian influence or control between approximately 1550 and 1200 BCE. During the Egyptian New Kingdom, Egypt controlled much of the Levant, making Jerusalem's inclusion within its sphere of power likely.

Egyptian control of Canaan complicates a literal interpretation of the biblical Exodus. If the Israelites left Egypt during this period, they would have traveled from one Egyptian-controlled territory into another. Baker considers this inconsistent with a straightforward reading of the Exodus story but suggests the tradition could preserve a historical memory of escaping Egyptian domination.

The Bronze Age Collapse around 1200 BCE fundamentally changed the political landscape of the eastern Mediterranean. Egypt and several other established civilizations declined, followed by a period of reduced written documentation that lasted until approximately 850 BCE.

The Israelites emerged as a recognizable population during the centuries following the Bronze Age Collapse. Baker presents the scholarly view that they probably developed from existing Canaanite populations rather than arriving as an entirely separate people.

Early Israelites may have originated among Canaanite hill-country communities or particular social groups. As larger coastal Canaanite cities declined or were destroyed, these populations may have expanded into the resulting political vacuum and gradually developed a distinct Israelite identity.

According to the Bible, King David captured Jerusalem from the Jebusites around 1000 BCE. The Jebusites were a Canaanite population, and the biblical account describes David establishing Jerusalem as an Israelite political center.

Jerusalem subsequently became the capital of the southern Israelite kingdom of Judah. The names Jew and Judaism ultimately derive from Judah, connecting later Jewish identity to this ancient kingdom.

Baker assigns the Kingdom of Judah 414 years of control over Jerusalem, from approximately 1000 to 586 BCE. He acknowledges that historical evidence for the earlier centuries is uncertain, meaning the starting date is partly based on traditional chronology.

The religious character of early Judah differed significantly from modern Judaism. Baker counts the entire Judahite period as Jewish religious dominance while acknowledging that fully developed monotheism may not have emerged until near the end of that period.

Babylon conquered and destroyed Jerusalem in 586 BCE. King Nebuchadnezzar's forces destroyed the city and its original Jewish temple, ending Judahite independence and beginning Babylonian rule.

Babylonian control lasted approximately 47 years. In 539 BCE, the Achaemenid Persian Empire conquered Babylon and inherited control of Jerusalem.

Persian rule over Jerusalem lasted 207 years, from 539 to 332 BCE. During this period, many Jews returned to Jerusalem, the city was rebuilt, and the Jewish temple was reconstructed.

The Persians administered the Jerusalem region as a province called Yehud. Although the Persian rulers practiced Zoroastrianism, they generally permitted local populations to maintain their religious traditions.

Baker classifies the Persian period as Jewish religious dominance despite Persian political control. His reasoning is that Judaism remained the local religion and received considerable freedom under Persian administration.

Much of the Jewish Bible was compiled in Jerusalem during the Persian period. This makes Persian rule important not only for the restoration of Jewish religious institutions but also for the development of Judaism's written traditions.

Alexander the Great captured Jerusalem in 332 BCE, beginning the Hellenistic period. Greek political dominance lasted approximately 168 years, although control shifted between competing dynasties.

The Ptolemaic and Seleucid dynasties were the principal Greek powers controlling Jerusalem. Baker credits the Ptolemies with 107 years and the Seleucids with 33 years, with other Greek rulers accounting for the remaining portions of the Hellenistic period.

Judaism remained Jerusalem's recognized religion during most of Greek rule. The major exception came during the final three years of the Hellenistic period, when a statue of Zeus was placed inside the Jewish temple.

The installation of the statue of Zeus helped provoke the Maccabean Revolt. The revolt challenged Seleucid religious interference and eventually restored Jewish political control over Jerusalem.

The Hasmonean dynasty established a largely independent Jewish kingdom. Hasmonean control of Jerusalem lasted approximately 101 years, ending in 63 BCE.

The Roman general Pompey captured Jerusalem in 63 BCE. His siege ended Hasmonean independence and brought Judea into Rome's political system as a client state.

Roman political control continued for approximately 676 years, making Rome Jerusalem's longest-lasting ruling state in Baker's classification. He treats the Roman Republic, Roman Empire, and eastern Roman or Byzantine Empire as successive forms of essentially the same political state.

Roman political continuity did not mean religious continuity. Jerusalem experienced periods of Jewish, Roman pagan, and Christian religious dominance while remaining under Roman authority.

Rome initially allowed Jerusalem's Jewish population to practice Judaism and maintain its temple. Baker credits Judaism with another 132 years, covering the period from 63 BCE until 70 CE.

A major Jewish rebellion against Rome began in 66 CE. The revolt ultimately failed, resulting in a devastating Roman military campaign against Jerusalem.

Roman forces destroyed Jerusalem and the Second Temple in 70 CE. Baker identifies this as the second major destruction of the city, following the Babylonian conquest in 586 BCE.

No Jewish temple has been rebuilt in Jerusalem since the destruction of the Second Temple. The absence of a reconstructed temple marks a fundamental distinction between ancient Jewish religious life and subsequent Jewish history.

Jerusalem remained largely ruined for approximately 60 years after the Roman destruction. Major reconstruction did not begin until the reign of Emperor Hadrian.

Emperor Hadrian rebuilt Jerusalem around 130 CE under the name Aelia Capitolina. The new name referenced Jupiter, reflecting the city's transformation into a Roman pagan religious center.

Hadrian established a temple to Jupiter on the former site of the Jewish temple. He also built a temple dedicated to Venus and prohibited Jews from entering the rebuilt city.

Hadrian's policies helped provoke the Bar Kokhba Revolt. Jewish rebels temporarily regained control of Jerusalem for approximately three years, but the rebellion was eventually defeated by Rome.

Baker adds three years to the Jewish-control total for the Bar Kokhba Revolt. This recognizes the brief period of restored Jewish control without treating it as a lasting return to independence.

Jerusalem functioned primarily as a Roman pagan city for approximately 193 years. Baker assigns this period to the interval between Hadrian's reconstruction and the Christian transformation of the city around 326 CE.

The total assigned to pagan religious dominance reaches 196 years. This combines approximately 193 years of Roman pagan dominance with the three years of Greek religious dominance associated with the installation of Zeus in the temple.

Jerusalem underwent a major Christian transformation around 326 CE. As Christianity gained prominence within the Roman Empire, the city's pagan temples were demolished or replaced by Christian religious buildings.

The Church of the Holy Sepulchre was built on the former site of the Roman temple to Venus. The church marks the traditional Christian location of Jesus's crucifixion and burial.

The city's ancient name, Jerusalem, was restored around the time of its Christian transformation. This reversed Hadrian's earlier renaming of the city as Aelia Capitolina.

Jerusalem remained predominantly Christian from 326 to 614 CE, a period of 288 years. Baker counts these years toward Christianity's total while maintaining Roman political control in his separate state-based calculation.

The Sasanian Persian Empire captured Jerusalem in 614 CE. Its conquest caused another major destruction of the city and interrupted centuries of Roman Christian dominance.

Jewish forces assisted the Sasanians in their conquest of Jerusalem. Baker describes considerable Jewish optimism that Persian victory might permit the restoration of Jewish control over the city.

An attempt was made to establish a Third Temple during the Sasanian period. The effort failed, and the anticipated lasting restoration of Jewish religious authority did not occur.

Sasanian control lasted approximately 15 years. In 629 CE, the Byzantine Romans recaptured Jerusalem.

The Byzantine restoration lasted only seven years, from 629 to 636 CE. This brief return marked the final stage of the long Roman period before the Islamic conquest.

Caliph Umar conquered Jerusalem in 636 CE, four years after Muhammad's death. Baker identifies this conquest as one of the most important turning points in Jerusalem's history because it introduced sustained Muslim political and religious dominance.

The Islamic conquest did not eliminate Jewish or Christian religious practice. Baker states that Jews and Christians were permitted to maintain their religions under the new Muslim administration.

The Dome of the Rock was constructed in 691 CE. It occupies the sacred area associated with the earlier Jewish temples and remains one of Jerusalem's most recognizable landmarks.

The Dome of the Rock is a shrine, not a mosque. Baker distinguishes it from the nearby Al-Aqsa Mosque, emphasizing that the two structures have different religious functions despite their proximity.

The Dome of the Rock covers the Foundation Stone, traditionally associated with the Jewish temple's Holy of Holies. The Holy of Holies was the temple's innermost sacred chamber, traditionally understood as the place of God's presence.

The Jewish high priest was permitted to enter the Holy of Holies only once each year. This restriction illustrates the exceptional sacred status of the chamber within ancient Jewish worship.

The Foundation Stone contains an opening leading to a chamber known as the Well of Souls. According to a legend described by Baker, the chamber may have been used to conceal the Ark of the Covenant, although this is presented as tradition rather than established historical fact.

The Ark of the Covenant's possible connection to the Well of Souls remains speculative. Baker describes the object as long missing and does not claim that its location beneath the Dome of the Rock has been established.

Jerusalem's first major period of Islamic rule passed through the Rashidun, Umayyad, and Abbasid caliphates. Although historians distinguish these political phases, Baker groups them together as one continuous Arab Empire for his comparison.

The Arab Empire controlled Jerusalem from 636 until 969 CE, apart from one significant interruption. Baker assigns the combined Arab Empire 307 years of control.

The Tulunids controlled Jerusalem for 26 years, from 878 to 904 CE. They were a breakaway dynasty based in Egypt whose rule interrupted the broader Arab imperial timeline.

The Fatimids captured Jerusalem in 969 CE. They established a rival Shia caliphate, representing an important political and religious distinction from the earlier caliphal dynasties.

Fatimid control lasted approximately 104 years. Their conquest introduced a new ruling dynasty while maintaining Jerusalem's broader Islamic political character.

An independent emir identified as Atsiz Uwaq controlled Jerusalem for approximately four years after the initial Fatimid period. This brief independent rule preceded the city's transfer to the Seljuk Turks.

The Seljuk Turks subsequently controlled Jerusalem for approximately 21 years. Their rule formed part of the changing balance of power between competing Muslim states before the Crusades.

The Fatimids briefly recovered Jerusalem for one year immediately before the First Crusade's conquest. Their return was short-lived, ending when Christian crusaders captured the city in 1099.

Jerusalem had been predominantly Muslim for approximately 488 years before the Crusader conquest of 1099. Baker uses this figure to illustrate the long-established Islamic character of the city before European Christian forces arrived.

Christian crusaders captured Jerusalem in 1099 and massacred much of its Muslim and Jewish population. The conquest violently transformed the city's political and religious leadership.

The crusaders converted the Dome of the Rock into a Christian church. This was a major change in the religious use of one of Jerusalem's most important sacred buildings.

The crusaders established the Kingdom of Jerusalem under European Christian nobles. Jerusalem served as the kingdom's capital, and Christian control of the city lasted approximately 88 years.

Saladin captured Jerusalem in 1187. He was the founder of the Ayyubid Sultanate, based in Egypt, and his victory restored Muslim control over the city.

The Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem continued after Saladin's conquest but no longer controlled Jerusalem itself. This distinction matters because the political entity retained its name even after losing the city from which that name derived.

The Ayyubids remained Jerusalem's principal rulers from 1187 until 1260, with several interruptions. Their control was not continuous, and Baker distinguishes temporary Christian and Khwarazmian occupations.

Christians regained control of Jerusalem between 1229 and 1244 through a negotiated agreement. The arrangement resulted from a treaty during the Sixth Crusade, demonstrating that control of Jerusalem sometimes changed through diplomacy rather than direct military conquest.

The Khwarazmians controlled Jerusalem for approximately two years, from 1244 to 1246. Their occupation interrupted the sequence of Ayyubid and Christian control before the city returned to the broader Muslim political sphere.

The Mamluk Sultanate took control of Jerusalem in 1260. The Mamluks had replaced the Ayyubids as the ruling power in Egypt and subsequently inherited control of Jerusalem.

The Mamluks initially faced military challenges from the Mongols. Baker describes Mongol forces reaching the Jerusalem area and cooperating with European crusaders in efforts to challenge Muslim control.

The Mamluks ultimately defeated the challenges to their position and retained Jerusalem until 1516. Their rule lasted approximately 256 years, making them one of the city's longest-lasting governing powers.

The Ottoman Empire conquered Jerusalem in 1516. Ottoman control lasted until 1917, an uninterrupted period of approximately 401 years in Baker's timeline.

Ottoman rule was Jerusalem's third-longest period under a single state in Baker's comparison. Its 401 years were exceeded only by the 414 years attributed to Judah and the 676 years attributed to Rome.

Jerusalem's Jewish population began increasing substantially during the 1830s. This demographic development occurred under Ottoman rule and gradually altered the city's religious composition.

By approximately 1850, Jerusalem's Jewish and Muslim populations were roughly equal, with a sizable Christian minority. Baker treats this demographic balance as an important departure from the city's earlier predominantly Muslim character.

Baker counts the entire 401-year Ottoman period toward Islam's historical total. However, he also credits Judaism with 67 years for the period from 1850 to 1917, reflecting the city's substantial Jewish population during those decades.

From 1850 onward, Baker credits both Judaism and Islam with religious presence in Jerusalem simultaneously. This introduces overlapping religious totals rather than assigning every year exclusively to one religion.

British forces captured Jerusalem in 1917 during the First World War. The Ottoman period ended, and Jerusalem entered a new era under British administration.

British control lasted approximately 31 years, ending in 1948. Baker identifies this period as the British Mandate era in his timeline of governing powers.

Jerusalem came under divided Israeli and Jordanian control following the end of British rule. Baker assigns approximately 19 years to this arrangement, covering the period from 1948 to 1967.

Israel gained effective control over the entire city in 1967. Baker describes Israeli control as de facto, distinguishing practical authority from the unresolved dispute over sovereignty.

The video credits Israel with 55 years of de facto control following 1967. This places the presentation's historical reference point around 2022; the figure reflects the video's original timeline rather than an updated count through 2026.

Palestinian claims to Jerusalem remain unresolved despite Israel's practical control. Baker emphasizes that effective political authority does not eliminate the competing claims concerning the city's future.

Rome ranks first among the states that controlled Jerusalem for the longest period. Baker credits the combined Roman and Byzantine state with approximately 676 years of control.

The ancient Kingdom of Judah ranks second, with approximately 414 years. This figure depends partly on accepting the traditional starting date of David's conquest around 1000 BCE, which Baker acknowledges is historically uncertain.

The Ottoman Empire ranks third, with approximately 401 years. The closeness of the Judahite and Ottoman totals illustrates how substantial both periods were within Jerusalem's political history.

Islam has the highest total of religious dominance in Baker's calculation, with approximately 1,283 years. This includes successive Muslim dynasties and the long Ottoman period, as well as the later years that he counts jointly with Judaism.

Judaism ranks second, with approximately 1,197 years. Its total includes ancient Judahite rule, religious continuity under foreign rulers, periods of restored Jewish control, and overlapping credit for the city's substantial Jewish presence from 1850 onward.

Christianity receives approximately 410 years of religious dominance. The total reflects Jerusalem's Christian Byzantine period, the Crusader kingdom, and shorter periods of Christian control.

Paganism receives approximately 196 years in Baker's religious tally. This consists primarily of the Roman pagan period, with a smaller contribution from the final years of Greek rule.

Political control and religious dominance are measured separately throughout the presentation. A foreign empire could govern Jerusalem while the city's local religious life remained predominantly Jewish, Christian, or Muslim.

Baker's state-based calculations sometimes combine governments that historians normally distinguish. He treats the Roman and Byzantine periods as one continuous state and combines the Rashidun, Umayyad, and Abbasid caliphates into a broader Arab Empire.

The religious totals do not represent exclusive possession of Jerusalem. Baker deliberately credits multiple religions with the same years in some periods, particularly after 1850, and classifies earlier periods according to their prevailing religious character rather than simply the faith of their rulers.

The calculations depend on historical classifications and assumptions, not just uncontested dates. Baker acknowledges uncertainty surrounding early Judahite history, the development of ancient Judaism, and the distinction between religious dominance and political authority.

Jerusalem's history contains repeated examples of foreign governments preserving or changing local religious institutions. Persian rulers allowed Jewish religious reconstruction, early Muslim rulers permitted Jewish and Christian worship, Roman authorities established pagan temples, and Christian rulers converted or replaced earlier religious structures.

Several of Jerusalem's most important sacred sites have been used or reinterpreted by successive religions. The former Jewish temple site became associated with Roman Jupiter worship and later the Islamic Dome of the Rock, while the site of a Roman temple to Venus became the location of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

Jerusalem's historical identity cannot be reduced to the religion of whichever state governed it. Its long periods of foreign rule, changing religious majorities, surviving sacred traditions, and overlapping communities complicate any simple description of the city as belonging historically to only one group.

Baker concludes that no single culture or religion can establish an exclusive historical right to Jerusalem based solely on the length of its control. His calculations show extensive Jewish, Christian, and Muslim connections to the city across different periods.

Baker personally favors some form of shared control over Jerusalem within a two-state solution. He presents this as his political preference rather than an inevitable conclusion of the historical evidence, arguing that Jerusalem's diverse past should inform decisions about its future.