I’ve been touring Israel from top to bottom and it’s a fascinating country – central to the Crusades of course. And one evening, I walked from Tel Aviv to what was once the city of Jaffa. Since 1950, it’s basically been swallowed up by Tel-Aviv into what is now referred to as the municipality of Tel Aviv-Yafo. But when you walk its ancient streets, it still has a unique flavour.
Jaffa is now a suburb of Tel Aviv in Israel. But it was once a key city in the Crusades. Jaffa’s position as the port closest to Jerusalem meant it was a vital location for the crusaders to establish a foothold and launch operations towards the holy city. For European pilgrims on the way to Jerusalem, it was the port where they disembarked before beginning the perilous journey towards the Holy Sepulchre.
The Battle of Jaffa, fought in 1192 between Saladin and Richard the Lionheart, was a significant event in the Third Crusade, with the Crusaders successfully defending Jaffa against Saladin’s forces. The resulting Treaty of Jaffa protecting pilgrims and brought the crusades to a stalemate. Proud Saladin had been forced to negotiate a truce.
Richard attacked from the sea. Initially he overestimated Saladin’s strength. But when reports came back to him of weakness on the Saracen side, he lost no time storming ahead. It’s said that at the risk of drowning, he waded into the sea and on to the beach to get going with his sword. Jerusalem had been lost by the crusaders just a few years earlier. And they didn’t regain it after the Battle of Jaffa. But the Muslim advance was stopped in its tracks. At least for a while.
Today, Jaffa is rather diminished. It’s completely overshadowed in fact by neighbouring Tel Aviv. I thought on my visit it looked a bit beaten up though there are some quaint Ottoman era buildings. The restaurants were great and the people very friendly. But a pale shadow of what it once was.
