American Consuls in the Holy Land, 1832-1914
Ruth Kark
Hardback
ISBN: 9780814325230
Pages: 388 Size: 6.5x9.5
Illustrations: 45 black and white images
Review
A model of distinctive scholarship.
— Professor Moshe Davis
This volume provides new insights into the role of U.S. consuls in the Ottoman Middle East in the special context of the Holy Land. The motivations and functioning of the American consuls in Jerusalem, and of the consular agents in Jaffa and Haifa, are analyzed as part of the US diplomatic and consular activity throughout the world, and of Western involvement in the Ottoman Empire and in Palestine during the century preceding World War I. The processes of cultural, demographic, economic, environmental, and settlement change and the contribution of the US consuls and American settlers to development of and modernization of Palestine are discussed. Based on primary archival sources such facets as the role of consuls regarding the use of extraterritorial privileges, Western religious and cultural penetration, control of land and land purchase, non-Muslim settlement, judicial systems, and technological innovations are considered from American, Ottoman, and local viewpoints.
Culled from various archives, this book summarizes and synthesizes important material on the history of Palestine. The book offers researchers and students a wealth of new information and opens avenues to the understanding of nineteenth century Palestine.
– Professor Israel Bartal, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Ruth Kark's new volume is a landmark contribution to Holy Land Studies. Impeccable in detail, it is comprehensive in scope with profuse visual documentation. A model of distinctive scholarship.
– Professor Moshe Davis, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem