Caesarea (), also Caesarea Maritima, Caesarea Palaestinae or Caesarea Stratonis, Today, the site is part of the Caesarea National Park, on the western edge of the Sharon plain in Israel.
The site was first settled in the 4th century BCE as a Phoenician colony and trading village known as Straton's Tower after the ruler of Sidon. It was enlarged in the 1st century BCE under Hasmonean rule, becoming a Jewish village; The city was populated throughout the 1st to 6th centuries CE and became an important early centre of Christianity during the Byzantine period. Its importance may have waned following the Muslim conquest of 640 when the city, then known in Arabic as Qisarya (), lost its status as provincial capital. The ruins of the ancient city beneath the depopulated village were excavated in the 1950s and 1960s for archaeological purposes.
Name
Whilst the name Caesarea was frequently used alone for the subject of this article, various markers were used to differentiate the location from these other locations; these include "Palaestina" ("of Palestine"), "Maritima" ("by the sea"; Greek: Parálios), "Sebaste" and "Stratonis". "Palaestina" is the most common term used in ancient sources, but, since the creation of Israel in 1948, historians in the West have tended to use the term less frequently.
The Latin name Caesarea also referred to several other cities in the region, notably Caesarea near Mount Hermon and Caesarea the capital of Cappadocia.
History
Straton's Tower
Stratonos pyrgos (Straton's Tower) was founded in the 4th century BCE by Abdashtart I, or Straton I king of Sidon. It was first established as a Phoenician colony and trading village. The pagan city underwent vast changes under Herod, who renamed it Caesarea in honour of the Roman emperor, Caesar Augustus.thumb|The Herodian hippodromeIn 22 BCE, Herod began construction of a deep-sea harbour named Sebastos and built storerooms, markets, wide roads, baths, a temple to the goddess Roma and Emperor Augustus, and imposing public buildings. Herod built his palace on a promontory jutting out into the sea, with a decorative pool surrounded by stoas.
Sebastos harbor
thumb|The harbor
Herod built the two jetties of the harbour between 22 and 15 BCE, and in 10/9 BCE he dedicated the city and harbour to Emperor Augustus (sebastos is Greek for augustus). The pace of construction was impressive considering the project's size and complexity. At its height, Sebastos was one of the most impressive harbours of its time. It had been constructed on a coast that had no natural harbours and served as an important commercial harbour in antiquity, rivaling Cleopatra's harbour at Alexandria. Josephus writes: "Although the location was generally unfavorable, [Herod] contended with the difficulties so well that the solidity of the construction could not be overcome by the sea, and its beauty seemed finished off without impediment."
When it was built in the 1st century BCE, the harbour of Sebastos ranked as the largest artificial harbour built in the open sea, enclosing around 100,000 m<sup>2</sup>.
The breakwaters were made of lime and pozzolana, a type of volcanic ash, set into an underwater concrete. Herod imported over 24,000 m<sup>3</sup> of pozzolana from the name-giving town of Puteoli, today Pozzuoli in Italy, to construct the two breakwaters: the southern one 500 meter, and the northern one 275 meter long.
Architects had to devise a way to lay the wooden forms for the placement of concrete underwater. One technique was to drive stakes into the ground to make a box and then fill it with pozzolana concrete bit by bit.
Although the box had no bottom, it was buoyant enough to float out to sea because of the watertight space between the inner and outer walls. Once it was floated into position, pozzolana was poured into the gap between the walls and the box would sink into place on the seafloor and be staked down in the corners. The flooded inside area was then filled by divers bit by bit with pozzolana-lime mortar and kurkar rubble until it rose above sea level.
Although it is unknown if this tsunami simply damaged or completely destroyed the harbour, it is known that by the 6th century the harbour was unusable and today the jetties lie more than 5 meters underwater.
Capital of Roman province
thumb|250px|The Roman double aqueduct that brought water from the foot of the [[Mount Carmel|Carmel range to Caesarea]]thumb|Mosaics
When Judea became a Roman province in 6 CE, Caesarea replaced Jerusalem as its civilian and military capital and became the official residence of its governors, such as procurator Antonius Felix and prefect Pontius Pilatus. The city was chiefly a commercial centre relying on trade.
Caeserea is described in detail by the 1st-century Roman Jewish historian Flavius Josephus. Josephus describes the harbour as being as large as the one at Piraeus, the major harbour of Athens.
Emperor Vespasian raised its status to that of a Colonia, with the name Colonia Prima Flavia Augusta Caesarea. According to Josephus, the outbreak of the Jewish revolt of 66 CE was provoked by Greeks of a certain merchant house in Caesarea sacrificing birds in front of a local synagogue. In 70 CE, after the Jewish revolt was suppressed, games were held there to celebrate the victory of Titus. Many Jewish captives were brought to Caesarea; Kasher claims that 2,500 captives were "slaughtered in gladiatorial games".
In the aftermath of the Bar Kokhba revolt Caesarea was changed to Syria Palaestina in 135. Caesarea was one of four Roman colonies for veteran Roman soldiers in the Syria-Phoenicia region. Caesarea is mentioned in the 3rd-century Mosaic of Rehob, with respect to its non-Jewish population.
Centre of Early and Byzantine Christianity; bishopric
thumb|The ancient city looking south
According to the Acts of the Apostles, Caesarea was first introduced to Christianity by Philip the Deacon, who later had a house there in which he gave hospitality to Paul the Apostle. It was there that Peter the Apostle baptized Cornelius the Centurion and his household, the first time Christian baptism was conferred on Gentiles. When newly converted Paul was in danger in Jerusalem, the Christians there accompanied him to Caesarea and sent him off to his native Tarsus. He visited Caesarea between his second and third missionary journeys. Paul was a prisoner in Caesarea for two years before being sent to Rome.
In the 3rd century, Origen wrote his Hexapla and other exegetical and theological works while living in Caesarea. The Nicene Creed may have originated in Caesarea. The Apostolic Constitutions says that the first Bishop of Caesarea was Zacchaeus the Publican, followed by Cornelius (possibly Cornelius the Centurion) and Theophilus (possibly the recipient of the Gospel of Luke). The first bishops considered historically attested are those mentioned by the early church historian Eusebius of Caesarea, who was the bishop of the see in the 4th century. He speaks of Theophilus who was bishop in the 10th year of Commodus (c. 189), of Theoctistus (216–258), Domnus, and Theotecnus, and Agapius. Among the participants in the Synod of Ancyra in 314 was the bishop of Caesarea named Agricolaus, who may have been the immediate predecessor of Eusebius, who does not mention him, or who may have been bishop of a different Caesarea. The immediate successors of Eusebius were Acacius (340–366) and Gelasius (367–372, 380–395). The latter was ousted by the semi-Arian Euzoius between 373 and 379. French historian Michel Le Quien gives much information about all of these and about later bishops of Caesarea. The Greek Orthodox Church of Jerusalem has a metropolitan see in Caesarea. The Latin archbishopric of Caesarea in Palestina was made a Roman Catholic titular see in 1432. The Melkite Catholic Church considers Caesarea a titular see. The library is mentioned as late as 6th-century manuscripts, but it may not have survived the capture of Caesarea by the Muslim armies in 640.
Byzantine period
During the Byzantine period, Caesarea became the capital of the province of Palaestina Prima in 390. Caesarea was also the metropolitan see, with ecclesiastical jurisdiction over Jerusalem, when rebuilt after its destruction in 70. In 451, however, the Council of Chalcedon established Jerusalem as a patriarchate, with Caesarea as the first of its three subordinate metropolitan sees. Caesarea remained the provincial capital throughout the 5th and 6th centuries. It fell to Sassanid Persia in the Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628, in 614, and was re-conquered by Byzantium in 625.
Early Muslim period
thumb|right|Depiction of Caesarea in the [[Umm ar-Rasas mosaics, circa 8th century]]
200px|thumb|right|11th century ([[Fatimid Caliphate|Fatimid period) jewelry from Caesarea]]
200px|thumb|right|The Sacro Catino, a hexagonal bowl made from green Egyptian glass, c. 9 cm high and 33 cm across, possibly brought from Caesarea to Genoa by [[Guglielmo Embriaco in 1101. Described as an object with miraculous properties in 12th-century literature, including the Historia of William of Tyre, it was only identified as the Holy Grail in the 13th century by Jacobus de Voragine. Seized and taken to Paris by Napoleon in 1805, it was damaged when it was returned to Genoa in 1816, which served to prove that it was made of glass, not emerald.]]
Caesarea was lost for good by the Byzantines to the Muslim conquest in 640. Archaeological excavations discovered a destruction layer connected to the Muslim conquest of the city.
According to 9th-century Muslim historian al-Baladhuri, the fall of the city was the result of the betrayal of a certain Yusef, who conducted a party of troops of Muawiyah into the city. The city appears to have been partially destroyed upon its conquest. The 7th-century Coptic bishop John of Nikiû, claims there were "horrors committed in the city of Caesarea in Palestine", while al-Baladhuri merely states that Kaisariyyah/Cæsarea was "reduced", mentioning it as one of ten towns in Jund Filastin (military district of Palestine) conquered by the Muslim Rashidun army under 'Amr ibn al-'As's leadership during the 630s. After the fall of Caesarea, 4,000 "heads" (captives), men, women and children, were sent to Caliph Umar in Medina, where they were gathered and inspected on the Jurd Plain, a plain commonly used to assemble the troops of Medina before battle, with room for thousands of people, before they were distributed as war booty to slavery in the Rashidun Caliphate.
The former Palaestina Prima became Jund Filastin, with the capital first at Ludd and then at Ramla. The city likely remained inhabited for some time under Arab rule, during the 7th and 8th centuries, albeit with much reduced population. Archaeological evidence shows a clear destruction layer identified with the conquest of 640, followed by some evidence of renewed settlement in the early Umayyad Caliphate. The area was farmed from the Rashidun Caliphate through to the First Crusade.
By the 11th century, it appears that the town had once again been developed into a fortified city. Writing in 1047, Nasir Khusraw describes it as "a fine city, with running waters, and palm-gardens, and orange and citron trees. Its walls are strong, and it has an iron gate. There are fountains that gush out within the city". Nasir Khusraw notes a "beautiful Friday mosque" in Caesarea, "so situated that in its court you may sit and enjoy the view of all that is passing on the sea."
Crusader/Ayyubid and Mamluk periods
thumb|250px|Remnants of the walls and moat built by [[Louis IX of France in 1251]]
thumb|The ruins of a side apse and the main apse of St. Peter's Cathedral in Caesarea
Caesarea was taken by Baldwin I in the wake of the First Crusade, in 1101. Baldwin sent a message to emir of Caesarea, demanding him to surrender the city or face a siege, but the Muslims refused. On May 2, 1101, Baldwin began sieging the city with trebuchets. After 15 days of resistance, the Crusader army broke through the defenses. Like in Jerusalem in 1099, the Crusaders proceeded to slaughter a portion of the male populace, enslave the women and children, and loot the city. William of Tyre describes the use of catapults and siege towers, and states that the city was taken in an assault after 15 days of siege and given over to looting and pillaging. Syriac Orthodox patriarch Michael the Syrian (born ca. 1126) records that the city was "devastated upon its capture".
Baldwin spared the emir and qadi for a hefty ransom. Baldwin appointed a cleric veteran of the First Crusade, also named Baldwin, as the Latin archbishop of Caesarea. The city was under Crusader control between 1101 and 1187 and again between 1191 and 1265. William of Tyre mentions the discovery of a "vessel of the most green colour, in the shape of a serving dish" (vas coloris viridissimi, in modum parapsidis formatum) which the Genuese thought to be made of emerald, and accepted as their share of the spoils. This refers to the hexagonal bowl known as the Sacro Catino in Italian, which was brought to Genoa by Guglielmo Embriaco and was later identified as the Holy Chalice. Caesarea was incorporated as a lordship (dominion) within the Kingdom of Jerusalem, and the Latin See of Caesarea was established, with ten archbishops listed for the period 1101–1266 (treated as titular see from 1432–1967). Archbishop Heraclius attended the Third Lateran Council in 1179.
Saladin recaptured the city in 1187, but it was once again captured by the Crusaders during the Third Crusade in 1191. In 1251 during the Seventh Crusade, Louis IX of France fortified the city, ordering the construction of high walls (parts of which are still standing) and a deep moat.
By the 12th century, Spanish-Jewish explorer Benjamin of Tudela recorded only 200 Jews and 200 Samaritans in Caesarea, a sharp decline from the much larger populations reported in the 7th century. This reduction aligns with the fact that the city's enclosed area had shrunk by more than 85 percent between the Byzantine and Fatimid periods. Baibars destroyed the fortified city completely to prevent its re-emergence as a Crusader stronghold, in line with the Mamluk practice in other former Crusader coastal cities. During the Mamluk period, the ruins of ancient Caesarea and of the Crusader fortified town lay uninhabited. In the 18th century it again declined. In 1806, the German explorer Ulrich Jasper Seetzen saw "Káisserérie" as a ruin occupied by some poor fishermen and their families. In 1870, French explorer Victor Guérin visited the site.
Bosniak village
The village of Qisarya () was allocated in 1880 to Bushnak (Bosniak) immigrants from Bosnia. The Bosniaks had emigrated to the area after Ottoman Bosnia was occupied by Austria-Hungary in 1878. According to historian Roy Marom,<blockquote>Fifty families of Bosnian refugees, mostly from Mostar, the main urban center of Bosnia and Herzegovina, settled among the ruins of Caesarea, renaming it with the Arabic name of Qisarya. Using the ancient masonry found on site, the settlers constructed a modern town with spacious accommodations and broad intersecting streets, according to traditional Bosnian town-plans. The town had two mosques, a caravanserai, a marketplace, a residence for the mudir, a harbor and custom offices. Qisarya attracted high-ranking Bosnian functionaries who established estates near Qisarya. The town was declared the seat of a mudirieh (a minor administrative division).</blockquote>A population list from about 1887 showed that Caesarea had 670 inhabitants, in addition to 265 Muslim inhabitants, who were noted as "Bosniaks".
Petersen, visiting the place in 1992, noted that the 19th-century houses were built in blocks, generally one story high, with the exception of the house of the governor. Some houses on the western side of the village, near the sea, had survived. There were several mosques in the village in the 19th century, but only one ("The Bosnian mosque") has survived. This mosque, located at the southern end of the city, next to the harbour, is described as a simple stone building with a red-tiled roof and a cylindrical minaret.
Bayyarat al-Khuri estate
In the early 20th century, the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem established Bayyarat al-Khuri ('The Priest’s Orchard') as an ecclesiastical agricultural estate within the confines of the Roman hippodrome, southeast of the late Ottoman Bosnian town. The complex—sometimes misidentified on British maps as a “Greek convent”—comprised a monumental limestone gateway bearing the taphos monogram of the Brotherhood of the Holy Sepulchre, a manually filled sabil (drinking fountain), a well house powered by a locally manufactured diesel engine, and a large plastered stepped water pool that fed open irrigation channels for citrus, date, and olive plots. In Addition, the Patriarchate owned extensive properties within the Bosnian town, including St. Paul’s supposed Prison Cellar, and the remnants of Caesarea’s Crusader cathedral. The Church properties inside the Bosnian town served as an occasional retreat for Church elders.