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The city's populations underwent a significant change. Western culture now took center-stage, with French the day-to-day language and Latin the language of prayer. The Jewish and Muslimin habitants were replaced by European and Eastern Christians. Under the Crusaders Jerusalem once more assumed a Christian character, they renewed Christian traditions and rebuilt churches and monasteries. The ¼a href="ef21.htm">Churh of the Holy Sepulchre, the prime destination of the Crusaders, was magnificently restored in stone, in Romanesque fashion. The palace of the Patriarch of Jersualem stood west of the church. To the south was the quarter occupied by the Hospitalers (warrior knights who initially undertook to protect and guide pilgrims, and to lodge them in their vast Jerusalem hospice, and eventually became part of the Kingdom's defenses). The holysites on the Temple Mount were declared Christian. The Temple Mount was the seat of the Templars, an order of monastic knights whose names derived from their location. In 1187 Jerusalem fell to Saladin (Salah-al-Din ibn Ayyub), putting an end to the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem. The great golden cross that rose above the Dome of the Rock was toppled and shattered, to be replaced by the crescent, the symbol of Islam. The city was gradually restored by Saladin, who built numerous public structures. Saladin rebuilt the city fortifications and expanded them to include Mount Zion. In 1212 his nephew Al-Mu'azim Issa, ruler of Damscus, continued the building and added inscriptions in his honor in the walls. Seven years later, however, in 1219 he pulled down the walls, fearing that the Crusaders were liable to return to Jerusalem and make use of the fortifications. Jerusalem remained an unprotected, unwalled city until Suleiman the Magnificent rebuilt its defenses. Following Saladin's victory Jews returned to Jerusalem, and were joined by immigrants from the Maghreb, France and Yemen. |
