The Roman-Byzantine Period (135-638 CE)

In 135 CE the Emperor Hadrian declared a new city on the site of Jerusalem, called Colonia Aelia Capitolina. A new municipal plan was introduced which bore hardly any resemblance to the former city. Indeed the Roman influence is felt to this day: the main streets of the Old City still follow the Roman grid. The Forum,established in the city center, consisted of public buildings including a temple of Aphrodite, goddess of beauty and love. TheRoman 10th Legion was camped in the western part of town near the Citadel. Jerusalem was no longer the country's capital nor its economic center. Its religious status also declined: Jews were not permitted to enter, while Christianity was still a forbidden religion.

Constantine's assumption of power as sole ruler of the Roman Empire wrought a transformation in the status of Christianity. No longer was it an outlawed and persecuted faith; in fact, itwould soon become the Empire's official religion. These developments had a significant impact on Jerusalem. Churches were built on sites identified as sacred to Christianity,attracting large numbers of pilgrims from all corners of the Empire.

This process shaped Jerusalem both materially and spiritually. The city grew in size and population and was the focus of special attention from the authorities. Monks and clerics made Jerusalem their home; it became the main stay of Christian learning and spiritual creation.

By order of the Emperor Constantine and under the auspices of his mother, the Empress Helena the Church of the Holy Sepulchre andthe Church of the Resurrection were built in Jerusalem. Another great church, erected on Mount Zion and known as the "Mother of Churches" -- commemorated the site of the Last Supper and the"dormition" of Mary.

In the 5th century the Empress Eudocia settled in Jerusalem, she had the city's boundary extended southward and a wall built that encompassed Mount Zion and the Siloam Pool. She also built a church at the Siloam Pool and another north of the Damascus Gate, dedicated to St. Stephen.

Jerusalem's official status within the church hierarchy was also enhanced. Coinciding with the appointment of the city's bishop, Juvenal, as Patriarch, Jerusalem was made a patriarchate, joining Rome, Constantinople, Antioch and Alexandria.

During the 6th century the Cardo (the city's main thorough fare), which begins at the Damascus Gate, was extended southward. Near its southern extremity the Emperor Justinian erected a vast church, the Nea (new church), in honor of Mary, mother of God. For contemporary Christians Jerusalem was above all else the actual site of the great events of the Scriptures, the church ofJerusalem celebrated each holiday at its historic location. The holy places became the stage on which the Biblical tales were presented as plays, with the participation of worshippers and pilgrims.

In 614 the country fell to the Persians. The conquest ofJerusalem was a bloody affair in which thousands of inhabitants were massacred. Many churches, including the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, were destroyed and others were damaged. The sacred cross upon which Jesus was crucified was looted.

Fifteen years later, in 620, the Emperor Heraclius restored Byzantine rule and returned the cross to its place. But within a decade, in 638, Jerusalem surrendered again, this time to the forces of a rising power on the stage of history -- the Muslim Arabs.