The Citadel of David, Jerusalem
A guided tour
The Tower of David is an ancient citadel located near the Jaffa Gate entrance to western edge of the Old City of Jerusalem. Also known as the Citadel, it is protected by a high wall and large towers, and is surrounded by a wide, deep moat.
It was during the Byzantine period that the Herodian tower and the Citadel as a whole acquired its name, "the Tower of David." The Byzantines, mistakenly identifying the hill as Mount Zion, presumed it to be David's palace mentioned in the Second Book of Samuel.
The minaret, though iconic, is not part of the original complex; it was added in 1635 by Turkish rulers. The citadel that stands today dates to the Mamluk and Ottoman periods. It was built on top of a series of ancient fortifications made by King Hezekiah, the Hasmoneans, King Herod, the Byzantines, and the early Muslims.
The Tower of David dominates the Old City from its highest point; it’s a site of strategic defense for the city. Since the second century BC, the fortress has guarded Jerusalem's vulnerable northern and western approaches.
The Biblical Period
Beneath the citadel lies the Broad Wall, also called Hezekiah's Wall. Unearthed in the 1970’s, this ancient defensive structure dates to the eighth century BCE. It’s seven meters (22 ft.) thick and 4 km (2.5 miles) long.
King Hezekiah built this massive defensive wall to protect residents in anticipation of a massive Assyrian attack. It significantly expanded the city limits. The wall is referred to in Nehemiah 3:8 and Isaiah 22:9–10.
The Broad Wall may have had a profound impact on the future development of religion. It prevented an Assyrian takeover, allowing Hezekiah to continue his reign. During this time, he established monotheism, overturning Solomon’s earlier policies that allowed for worship of other gods besides Yahweh (1 Kings 11:1–10). And, during this period in Jerusalem, the prophet Isaiah introduced the concept of the Messiah.
Let’s head inside!
Hasmonean Period
Fast forward to the second century BC, when the victory of Judah the Maccabee over the successors of Alexander the Great marked the start of the Hasmonean dynasty. The remnants of a wall and two towers, built of impressive hewn stone and still visible today, likely defined the city's western limits in the Hasmonean period.
You’re standing on a wall from the 2nd century BC, overlooking one of the Hasmonean towers! First-century historian Josephus Flavius described this as the “First Wall” to distinguish it from two subsequent walls that protected the city during the Second Temple period.
Here’s a closer look at one of the Hasmonean-era towers. Nearby, a catapult, stones, and arrowheads form mute testimony to the siege laid on the city in 132 BC by Antiochus IV of the Seleucid Dynasty.
The Herodian Period
No one built Jerusalem more grandly than King Herod, who reigned from 37 - 4 BC. Besides rebuilding the Temple, he fortified the city with the three magnificent towers of the citadel, named after his good friend, his favorite wife, and his brother (who committed suicide in captivity): Hippicus, Miriam, and Phasael. The Phasael and Miriam towers each housed a luxury apartment, while the Hippicus tower was used for water storage.
These three towers were erected on the north side of Herod’s palace, which was situated along the city wall. You’re standing on top of the 1st-century BC Phasael Tower. The tallest of the three at 145 feet high, it is the only Herodian tower that remains intact. From this vantage point, take in a 360-degree view of the Old City from the Dome of the Rock to the heights of the Mount of Olives!
Jesus of Nazareth was active in this period. After gathering apostles and supporters in the Galilee whose views often conflicted with the contemporary Jewish religious establishment, Jesus proceeded to Jerusalem where he was crucified as a rebel against Rome by order of the Roman procurator of Judea, Pontius Pilate. This exhibition room details the Herodian period and the subsequent destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans only a few decades after Jesus’ death.
The end of Herod's reign in 4 BC heralded a period of strife and uprisings, culminating in the destruction of the Temple and the sacking of the city by Roman legions in 70 AD. At the foot of Herod's towers archaeologists found traces of fire and fragments of white ceiling plaster, roof tiles and sections of clay water pipes bearing the seal of the 10th Legion.
You’re standing at the base of the 1st century BC Phasael Tower. Remnants discovered at the base of Herod’s towers attest to the Roman conquest and to the Legion's use of the Citadel as its camp.
'Caesar ordered the whole city...to be razed to the ground, leaving only the loftiest of the towers...for an encampment of the garrison (Josephus, 'The Jewish War' VII 1,1).
When Rome gave way to Byzantium, Jerusalem became a magnet for Christian pilgrims. During this period the Citadel was likely used as a monastery; small enclosures with rough white mosaic floors suggest monks' quarters. You’re standing in front of a covered Byzantine cistern dating from this period.
Egeria, a Spanish pilgrim to the Holy Land at this time, recorded her experience of celebrating Lent and Holy Week in Jerusalem in the 380’s; her diary offers primary source insight into the liturgical and cultural practices of the period.
Explore this exhibit to understand the Byzantine influence on Jerusalem’s history and architecture.
Of note is this miniature of the Holy Sepulchre, built by Emperor Constantine and located just down the street from the Citadel. Constantine's church was built as separate constructs over the two holy sites: that of Christ’s crucifixion and his burial. Here we see the great basilica (the Martyrium visited by Egeria in the 380’s), an enclosed colonnaded atrium (the Triportico) with the traditional site of Calvary in one corner, and across a courtyard, a rotunda called the Anastasis ('Resurrection'), the traditional site of Christ’s empty tomb.
Arab-Muslim Period
The Arab conquest of Jerusalem in 638 replaced the Byzantine presence with new Muslim rulers. You’re standing on the site of an Arab fortification tower dating to this period. The Muslims refurbished the citadel and occupied Jerusalem for 451 years until the First Crusade in 1099.
The Dome of the Rock, which dominates the skyline of Jerusalem to this day, was built between 685 and 691 during this 451-year period of Muslim rule. Explore this exhibition to learn more about the early Muslim presence in the city.
Of note within this exhibition are the remnants of a mosque used by the Muslim garrison living at the Citadel. Notice the pulpit to the right and the mihrab to the left; the mihrab indicates the direction of Mecca towards which Muslims pray.
The First Crusade in 1099 re-established Christian dominance in Jerusalem. Yet the Citadel’s powerful structure withstood the assault of the Crusaders, and its Muslim defenders surrendered only when they were guaranteed safe passage out of the city.
Check out this model of Crusader-era Jerusalem and explore the surrounding exhibition for more information on the period!
Beginning in 1118 AD, the Citadel became the seat of the Crusader Kings, who until then used the Al-Aqsa mosque as their headquarters.
In 1187, Sultan Saladin captured the city including the citadel. And, as portrayed by these equestrian statues, Richard the Lionhearted met Saladin in the Battle of Arsūf in 1191 during the Third Crusade; the battle marked a great victory for Richard.
However, in 1239 An-Nasir Dawud attacked the Crusader garrison and destroyed the citadel. In 1310 the citadel was rebuilt by Mamluk sultan Al-Nasir Muhammad ibn Qalawun, who gave it much of its present shape. This exhibition explores the Mamluk presence in the Citadel.
The Citadel owes its present configuration to the city's Mamluk rulers. The only remaining fortification in Jerusalem at the end of the Crusader era was the Citadel, which the Mamelukes restored in 1310. Sultan Nasser Muhammad Ibn Kaloun likely built the Citadel in its present form. In this period it was occupied by a small military force which was used principally for internal security.
The 16th-century Ottomans, notably Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent. restored the Citadel and built the fine eastern gate, as the inscription engraved in the stone above it indicates. You are standing on the moat just inside this great gate.
The Ottoman Turks also built the mosque whose minaret rises above the western section of the Citadel to create the distinctive skyline of the 'Tower of David' (as 19th-century travellers called the minaret).
With the decline of the Ottoman Empire, the Citadel fell into disrepair although it still contained a barracks and a few cannons used mainly on ceremonial occasions. When the German Kaiser Wilhelm II visited Jerusalem in 1898, part of the moat was filled in and the section of the wall between the Citadel and Jaffa Gate was razed so the monarch and his entourage could enter the city on horseback. Thus, effectively, the Citadel's career as a military stronghold ended.
By the time the Turks left Jerusalem in 1917, the Citadel was little more than a mound of rubble and refuse. The new British rulers, shocked and dismayed at the neglect of the 'Golden City' they had envisaged from their hymn books, launched a comprehensive clean-up and restoration campaign. The governor of the city, Sir Ronald Storrs, set up a public body, the Pro-Jerusalem Society, dedicated to this end. The focus of its work was the Citadel, which was transformed into a historic site and a cultural center for Jerusalemites of all faiths.
This legacy continues today. The Citadel serves as a testament to Jerusalem’s rich and varied history - a museum for tourists and pilgrims of alike who seek to uncover the city’s mysteries.
Explore this multifaceted site to your heart’s content - dig into layers of history!
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