In 1808 AD, a fire broke out in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, which led to disputes between the Christian sects on the one hand, due to a struggle for influence within the church, and between Muslims and Christians on the other hand. However, the atmosphere of tolerance prevailing in the city, which was part of the general Ottoman policy, soon returned. The church was rebuilt and restoration work was completed in 1810 AD.
Historical circumstances
On September 30, 1808 AD, a fire broke out in the Church of the Resurrection, destroying the dome of the Holy Shrine, the Rotunda, which is the main dome of the church, and the dome and roof of the Catholics. The most severe damage occurred in the western section of the church.
The fire started in the area designated for the Armenian community, who were accused of starting it. The heads of the Christian communities set up tents in the church yard to protect it from looting and attacks. Some sources mention that the senior Muslim scholars and dignitaries of Jerusalem participated in the guard, including the Hanafi Mufti Hassan Effendi al-Husseini, the head of the Ashrafs Omar Effendi al-Husseini, and others.
The heads of the Orthodox community asked the Ottoman Sultan Mahmud II to allow them to restore and rebuild the church, and they obtained a decree permitting them to do so in early 1809. When they began work in May of the same year, the heads of the Armenian and Catholic communities opposed them.
They also incited some Muslims to prevent the construction of the church, so the restoration work stopped and Jerusalem was filled with sectarian tension and the rulers lost control. After a short time, the Orthodox overcame local opposition and tried to continue work on the church, but the Janissaries (elite infantry and cavalry forces in the Ottoman army) intercepted the workers with their weapons and prevented the work from continuing on the church despite the Sultan’s decree and orders.
When the state tried to intervene again and force the restoration work to continue, the Janissaries declared a revolution against the governor, expelled him from the city, and took control of it and its citadel. After they stopped the restoration work by force of arms, they went to the leaders of the Orthodox community to mediate with the governor of Damascus to accept their demands, which were to move the military garrison in the citadel outside the city, dismiss the governor of the brigade, Mustafa Agha, and appoint another in his place.
The rebellion led by the Janissaries did not attract the support of the majority, so the governor of Damascus and Tripoli, Yusuf Kanj Pasha, sent a military unit led by a Moroccan officer to suppress the rebellion.
Repairs and renovations
The church was restored and rebuilt at the beginning of 1810 AD, and was completed in September of the same year.
Two days after the church was inspected, it was reopened and returned to its normal function and mission after being closed for two years since the fire broke out. The atmosphere of tolerance that had prevailed between Muslims and Christians in the city returned, as the Janissaries had not succeeded in gaining the support of scholars and notables in their disobedience.
Muslims participated in the reopening of the church, as they had previously participated in guarding it after the fire. A number of Jerusalemite families benefited financially from their children’s protection of Christian institutions, and from pilgrims’ visits to the holy places, most notably the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
Among the repairs to the church were the erection of walls on either side of the cruciform nave or “choir” to support the damaged arches and the new dome above. These walls effectively turned the nave into a separate church within the larger church.
Under the new dome, the Rotunda, the shrine was built to replace the dome damaged by fire, which dates back to 1555 AD.
Finally, the Orthodox built the stairs leading to the Calvary Chapel on the upper floor, behind the eastern gate of the church, which had been closed for a long time.
