Old City of Acre

Brief Description

Outstanding Universal Value

Brief synthesis

Acre, continuously settled from Phoenician times, was of major significance during the Crusader period in the Holy Land. Because of its position, located on a peninsula encompassing a natural bay, the city gained international significance from 1104 to 1291 as the capital of the Crusader kingdom of Jerusalem following its development as the Crusaders main port in the Holy Land. Whilst this strategically located port enabled it to become a centre for international trade, its physical boundaries, delineated by surrounding walls and sea, created a characteristic densely built mediaeval city.

Following a long period of decline, during which it was still the main entry port for Christian pilgrims visiting Jerusalem, it flourished again in the 18th century as the capital of this part of the Ottoman Empire. Its unique character is in the substantial remains of the Crusader city that are preserved virtually intact beneath the typical Ottoman city preserved till the present day, and have in recent years been revealed by scientific excavation.

The present townscape of the walled port-town is characteristic of Moslem perceptions of urban design, with narrow winding streets and fine public buildings and houses. Demonstrating the interchange of mediaeval European and Middle-Eastern architecture, the city has some exceptional edifices, including a citadel, mosques, khans and baths.

Criterion (ii): Acre is an exceptional historic port-town in that it preserves the substantial remains of its medieval Crusader buildings beneath the existing Moslem fortified town dating from the 18th and 19th centuries.

Criterion (iii): The remains of the Crusader town of Acre, both above and below the present-day street level, provide an exceptional picture of the layout and structures of the capital of the medieval Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem.

Criterion (v): Present-day Acre is an important example of an Ottoman walled town, with typical urban components such as the citadel, mosques, khans, and baths well preserved, partly built on top of the underlying Crusader structures.

Integrity (2010)

The boundaries of the property include the key elements of Crusader Acre which having been completely buried as a result of the Mamluk occupation at the end of the 13th century, is today mostly subterranean and has only recently begun to be uncovered. These well preserved remains include large portions of the fabric of urban life and buildings with all parts intact - walls, quarters, streets, alleys, fortresses, public buildings, religious buildings, dwellings, and shops, together with the subterranean infrastructure, architectural details, original plasterwork, and masonry. Building plans are clearly identifiable and building technology and materials can be accurately determined.

The property also encompasses the remains of the Ottoman city that was built on the Crusader city and took the form of an urban system of alleyways, courtyards, and squares, reflecting the values of Moslem society. The geographical conditions that determined its development, together with its socio-economic structure, have maintained the integrity of Acre as essentially an Ottoman port-city of the 18th century without significant changes until the present time.

The overall coherence of the city is vulnerable especially where maintenance and conservation activities are yet to be undertaken

Authenticity (2010)

Two major periods in history have contributed to the appearance of contemporary Acre: the Crusader period and the late Ottoman period. The special nature of the city's evolution has allowed Acre to retain its character as a port city, with a blend of public buildings, caravanserais (khans), and religious buildings alongside markets, small shops, and large residential quarters, together with an active port which is still a source of income and access to the city. The major proportion of Acre's individual buildings have remained largely in the same form as when they were built, with few major alterations over the last 150-300 years. However, individual buildings remain vulnerable to changes away from traditional materials and methods of maintenance and repair.

Protection and management requirements (2010)

The Old City of Acre is a designated a site of antiquity under the 1978 Antiquity Law.

Between 1993 and 2000 a heritage-focused Master Plan was drawn up by a steering committee for urban planning. This integrated the old city and port areas whilst also establishing a surrounding buffer zone.

The property is managed jointly by Acre's Municipality, the Old Acre Development Company, a Government Agency, and the Israeli Antiquities Authority. Advising local residents in all matters of development, building permits and conservation measures the Israeli Antiquities Authority also operates a field office in the city. This office also supervises public and private work undertaken in the property.

Much effort is being invested to ensure that the city of Acre remains a living city. In 2001, together with the local population, a residential quarter was selected as a Pilot Rehabilitation Project area. This project is ongoing and expanding, and aimed at developing measures to ensure the preservation of the physical fabric, whilst allowing adaptations required by modern life. Another goal is directed towards improving the social and economic conditions of local residents, and enhancing their sense of pride in the city's rich heritage. There is a need to strengthen the engagement of the local community in the maintenance of the built fabric of the city.

Long Description

Acre is an exceptional historic town in that it preserves the substantial remains of the medieval Crusader buildings beneath the existing Muslim fortified town dating from the 18th and 19th centuries. The result is an exceptional picture of the layout and structures of the capital of the medieval Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem. Present-day Acre is an important example of an Ottoman walled town, with typical urban components such as the citadel, mosques, khans and baths, well preserved, partly built on top of the underlying Crusader structures.

Ancient Acre was situated on Tel Akko, about 2.5 km east of the location of the old city. Around 1900 BC the town was fortified by a high earthen rampart with a brick gateway facing the direction of the sea. It was successively under Assyrian rule in the 9th century BC and a Phoenician town under Persian rule between the 6th and 4th centuries BC. Following the death of Alexander the Great the area around Acre was first ruled by the Hellenistic Ptolemid dynasty of Egypt and then the Seleucids of Syria. The present city, founded on the peninsula in the 3rd to 2nd centuries BC, was named Antiocha Ptolemais after its founder, Ptolemy II of Egypt. Acre was a centre for international trade because of its strategic position and its natural port. The city fell to the Romans in 63 BC and was granted the status of colonia . In 330, during the Byzantine period, this region passed into the control of the Roman Empire. During the early Arab period (638-1099) many cities were abandoned and destroyed: Acre decreased in importance as an international port. The city began its economic recovery during the 10th and 11th centuries and the port and city walls were rebuilt.

The Crusader period began for Acre in 1104, following the successful siege by Baldwin I, King of Jerusalem, and the Genoese commercial fleet. The king settled in the northern part of the city, where he built a fortified palace. Genoese, Venetian, and Pisan merchants built autonomous quarters nearby the port. The military orders installed themselves nearby. During the two centuries of Crusader rule Acre symbolized the interchange between the eastern and western cultures better than any other city. In 1187 the Muslims captured the whole of the Crusader lands and Acre was held for four years. It was not until 1191 that the Third Crusade led by Richard the Lion-heart led to the recapture of Acre and the adjoining coastal regions. A second Crusader kingdom was established with Acre as its capital, as the Crusaders were unable to retake Jerusalem. New neighbourhoods such as Monmizar to the north were built and Acre was given a new double city wall. More palaces, churches, and public buildings were erected, at a time when styles in the west were changing from Romanesque to Gothic.

The Mameluke period began in 1291 with the conquest of Acre and continued until 1517. Acre came within the mamluka of Gaza. The city was destroyed and totally abandoned, with only a few buildings remaining around the port. During the Ottoman period (1517-1917) Acre was a deserted ghost town. Reconstruction did not begin until the mid-18th century, under Daher El Amar, who renewed the port, manned it with officials and merchants, built a palace for himself, and rebuilt the fortifications. Acre enjoyed renewed economic expansion in the 19th century. Mosques, bathhouses, and caravanserai were built. Wealthy merchants settled there, building grand mansions in the eastern neoclassical style of the end of the 19th century. After capturing Acre in 1918 and being given control of Palestine by mandate of the League of Nations, the British developed the city outside the boundaries of the walls, constructing dwellings and administrative buildings. The port fell into disuse as the nearby modern port of Haifa superseded it. After Israel's independence in May 1948 only a few Muslim residents remained in the old city, but after the fighting had died down many Palestinian Arab refugees from other places began to arrive and settle in the old city, whereas many Jews settled in the new sections.

What remains today is a remarkable mixture, both above and below ground, of cultural elements from every period of Acre's eventful history between the 11th and 20th centuries.

Historical Description

Ancient Acre was situated on Tel Akko (or Tel El Fukhar), about 2.5km to the east of the location of the old city. Settlement at the tell appears to have began during the Early Bronze Age (c 3000 BCE). Around 1900 BCE the town was fortified by a high earthen rampart with a brick gateway facing the direction of the sea. When the Israelites entered the land of Canaan Akko was one of the cities allotted to the tribe of Asher. In the centuries that followed it was under Assyrian rule in the 9th century BCE and between the 6th and 4th centuries BCE it was a Phoenician town under Persian rule. Following the conquest of the entire region by Alexander the Great and his early death, the area around Acre was first ruled by the Hellenistic Ptolemid dynasty of Egypt and then the Seleucids of Syria.

The present city was founded on the peninsula in the earlier period (3rd-2nd centuries BCE) and named Antiocha Ptolemais after its founder, Ptolemy II of Egypt. There are still traces of fortifications, a wall, and tower from this period. Acre was a centre for international trade because of its strategic position and its natural port. After a short period as part of the Jewish Hasmonaean kingdom in the 1st century BCE the city fell to the Romans in 63 BCE and became part of the province of Syria; it was granted the status of colonia. The first Christian pilgrims passed through Acre on their way to Jerusalem. In 330, during the Byzantine period, this region passed into the control of the Roman Empire. This was a time of economic and demographic expansion, when hundreds of churches and monasteries were established all over the Holy Land. The larger cities expanded and were encircled by new fortification systems; Acre retained its status as the principal port of the region.

During the early Arab period (638-1099), when the city, which reverted to its original name, Akko, formed part of the Caliphate of Cairo, many of the country's cities were abandoned and destroyed. Acre decreased in importance as an international port and the city limits were reduced to include several quarters around the port, where a Moslem naval fleet was stationed. Acre began its economic recovery during the 10th and 11th centuries and the port and city walls were rebuilt.

The Crusader period began for Acre in 1104, some five years after the fall of Jerusalem. Baldwin I, King of Jerusalem, and the Genoese commercial fleet cooperated in laying siege to Acre from land and sea until the city fell to the Crusaders. A new and special model of settlement evolved, characterized by defined and autonomous quarters. The king settled in the northern part of the city, where he built a fortified palace. Genoese, Venetian, and Pisan merchants built autonomous quarters nearby the port. The military orders installed themselves nearby - the Hospitallers in the north of the city to the west of the palace, the Templars in the south-west of the city, and the German Knights close to the eastern wall of the wall. Other important quarters included those of the Patriarch (in which the Church of the Holy Cross, Acre's main cathedral, was built), the French merchants (the Provençal quarter), and the English merchants. Moslem and Jewish merchants also settled in the city.

Many public buildings were erected - fortified buildings, churches, bathhouses, bakeries, courts and hostels for pilgrims and merchants, covered markets - and also private dwellings. During the two centuries of Crusader rule Acre developed into a wealthy and thriving trading city. It symbolized the interchange between the eastern and western cultures better than any other city.

In 1187, after the debacle at Hattin and the destruction of the Crusader army, the Moslems captured the whole of the Crusader lands and Acre was held for four years. It was not until 1191 that the Third Crusade led by Richard the Lion Heart led to the recapture of Acre and the adjoining coastal regions. A second Crusader kingdom was established with Acre as its capital, since the Crusaders were not able to retake Jerusalem.

From 1191 to 1291 the second Crusader Kingdom expanded its borders. New neighbourhoods such as Monmizar to the north were built and Acre was given a new double city wall. More palaces, churches, and public buildings were erected, at a time when styles in the west were changing from Romanesque to Gothic. This change in style was put into practice in Acre and recent excavations have revealed buildings that reflect the transition between styles and the initial establishment of the Gothic style in the 13th century.

The Mameluke period (named after the Moslem rulers of Egypt) began in 1291 with the conquest of Acre and continued until 1517. Acre came within the mamluka of Gaza. The city was destroyed and totally abandoned, with only a few buildings remaining around the port.

During the Ottoman period (1517-1917) Acre was described by pilgrims and merchants who visited it in the 16th and 17th centuries as a deserted ghost town, with some structures from the Crusader period still standing, some jutting out of the earth, and others buried. Reconstruction did not begin until the middle of the 18th century, under Daher El Amar, who renewed the port, manned it with officials and merchants, built a palace for himself, and rebuilt the fortifications.

The building of Ottoman Acre in the 18th and 19th centuries buried the remains of the Crusader city, thereby preserving the Crusader remains. In 1799 Acre attained world fame after Napoleon failed to capture the city, under the command of its Turkish ruler Ahmed El-Jazar, after a long siege.

Acres enjoyed renewed economic expansion in the 19th century. Mosques, bathhouses, and caravanserai were built. Wealthy merchants settled there, building grand mansions in the eastern Neo-Classical style of the end of the 19th century.

In 1868 Baha'ullah, founder of the Baha'i faith, arrived in Acre as a prisoner of the Ottoman Empire. He spent the remaining 24 years of his life in the city, first imprisoned in the city's fortress and later under house arrest in a small building in the alleyways of the old city. During his sojourn in Acre, the Baha'ullah wrote his most important work, setting out the laws and precepts to be observed by Baha'i adherents. The Baha'ullah was freed towards the end of 1870 and went to live on a nearby estate outside the walls of the city. He died in 1892, his remains were buried on the estate, and to this day his tomb is the holiest shrine of the Baha'i.

After capturing Acre in 1918 and being given control of Palestine by mandate of the League of Nations, the British used the fortress as a prison. Several leading Jewish settlers were imprisoned there, and hangings also took place. The British developed the city outside the boundaries of the walls, constructing dwellings and administrative buildings. However, they did nothing to alter the fabric of life within the walls of the old city. The port fell into disuse as the nearby modern port of Haifa superseded it.

After Israel's independence in May 1948 only a few Moslem residents remained in the old city, but after the fighting had died down many Palestinian Arab refugees from other places began to arrive and settle in the old city, whilst many Jews settled in the new sections. At the present time the five thousand inhabitants of the walled city are exclusively Arab and some 80% are migrants from other parts of Israel.