Mamilla
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Mamilla ( he, ממילא) is a neighbourhood of Jerusalem that was established in the late 19th century outside the
Old City Old City often refers to old town, the historic or original core of a city or town. Old City may refer to several places: Historical cities or regions of cities ''(by country)'' *Old City (Baku), Azerbaijan * Old City (Dhaka), Bangladesh, also ca ...
, west of the
Jaffa Gate Jaffa Gate ( he, שער יפו, Sha'ar Yafo; ar, باب الخليل, Bāb al-Khalīl, "Hebron Gate") is one of the seven main open Gates of the Old City of Jerusalem. The name Jaffa Gate is currently used for both the historical Ottoman gate ...
. Until 1948 it was a mixed Jewish-Arab business district. Between
1948 Events January * January 1 ** The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) is inaugurated. ** The Constitution of New Jersey (later subject to amendment) goes into effect. ** The railways of Britain are nationalized, to form British ...
and
1967 Events January * January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair. * January 5 ** Spain and Romania sign an agreement in Paris, establishing full consular and ...
, it was located along the armistice line between the Israeli and Jordanian-held sector of the city, and many buildings were destroyed by Jordanian shelling. The Israeli government approved an
urban renewal Urban renewal (also called urban regeneration in the United Kingdom and urban redevelopment in the United States) is a program of land redevelopment often used to address urban decay in cities. Urban renewal involves the clearing out of blighte ...
project for Mamilla, apportioning land for residential and commercial zones, including hotels and office space. The
Mamilla Mall Mamilla Mall, also called Alrov Mamilla Avenue, is an upscale shopping street and the only open-air mall in West Jerusalem. Located northwest of Jaffa Gate, the mall consists of a pedestrian promenade called Alrov Mamilla Avenue lined by 140 s ...
opened in 2007.


Geography

The neighbourhood of Mamilla is located within the northwest extension of the
Hinnom Valley The Valley of Hinnom ( he, , lit=Valley of the son of Hinnom, translit=Gēʾ ḇen-Hīnnōm) is a historic valley surrounding Ancient Jerusalem from the west and southwest. The valley is also known by the name Gehinnom ( ''Gēʾ-Hīnnōm'', ...
, which extends from the southwest corner of the
Old City Old City often refers to old town, the historic or original core of a city or town. Old City may refer to several places: Historical cities or regions of cities ''(by country)'' *Old City (Baku), Azerbaijan * Old City (Dhaka), Bangladesh, also ca ...
along the city's western wall. The neighbourhood is bounded by the
Jaffa Gate Jaffa Gate ( he, שער יפו, Sha'ar Yafo; ar, باب الخليل, Bāb al-Khalīl, "Hebron Gate") is one of the seven main open Gates of the Old City of Jerusalem. The name Jaffa Gate is currently used for both the historical Ottoman gate ...
and Jaffa Road to the east and north, the downtown and Rehavia neighbourhood above it to the west, and Yemin Moshe's upward slope along its southwestern edge. Its total area is 120
dunam A dunam ( Ottoman Turkish, Arabic: ; tr, dönüm; he, דונם), also known as a donum or dunum and as the old, Turkish, or Ottoman stremma, was the Ottoman unit of area equivalent to the Greek stremma or English acre, representing the amount ...
().


History


Roman period

The now dry "Mamilla Pool", with a capacity of 30,000 cubic metres, was probably built by
Herod the Great Herod I (; ; grc-gre, ; c. 72 – 4 or 1 BCE), also known as Herod the Great, was a Roman Jewish client king of Judea, referred to as the Herodian kingdom. He is known for his colossal building projects throughout Judea, including his renov ...
. An underground channel connected it to
Hezekiah's Pool Hezekiah's Pool ( he, בריכת חזקיהו, ''Brikhat Hizkiyahu''), or the Patriarch's Pool, located in the Christian Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem, was once a reservoir forming part of the city's ancient water system. History Flavius ...
, situated inside the city walls and in immediate proximity to Herod's royal palace. Herod is known to have built the Pool of the Towers (probably identical to Hezekiah's Pool) and the Serpent's Pool (Birket es-Sultan, Sultan's Pool), which were both fed by aqueducts coming from the Mamilla Pool.W. D. Schram of Utrecht University,
Pools of Jerusalem
'. Retrieved 21 November 2013


Byzantine period

The massacre of Christians during the
Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
invasion of 614 at the Mamilla Pool, attributed by a Christian chronicler to Jewish revenge after years of Byzantine repression, was documented by an archaeological find in a chapel containing hundreds of human skeletons of urban dwellers of both sexes and of relatively young age. The site of the chapel is now covered over by the Mamilla Mall parking house.


Crusader period

Stone-carved sarcophagi from the Crusader period are visible west of Mamilla Pool among the tombs of the historical
Mamilla cemetery Ma'aman Allah (Mamilla) Cemetery ( ar, مقبرة مأمن الله) is a historic Islam, Muslim cemetery in West Jerusalem that dates back to the Crusades, and lies just to the west of the north-west corner of the walls of the Old City (Jerusal ...
, probably the remains of a cemetery of the Augustinian canons of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.


Mamluk period

The elaborate mausoleum of Emir ‘Ala al-Din Aydughdi ibn ‘Abdallah el-Kubaki, who died in Jerusalem in 1289, is known as
Turbat el-Kubakiya Ma'aman Allah (Mamilla) Cemetery ( ar, مقبرة مأمن الله) is a historic Muslim cemetery in West Jerusalem that dates back to the Crusades, and lies just to the west of the north-west corner of the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem, n ...
.


Ottoman period

In the late 19th century, the area around the Old City walls was barren and undeveloped. It was only notable for the junction of paths that would become Jaffa Road and the highway to Jaffa, with the road to Hebron outside the Jaffa Gate. Among its first structures was the ''Hospice Saint Vincent de Paul'', part of the emerging French Compound. The early building developed as an extension of the adjacent
souk A bazaar () or souk (; also transliterated as souq) is a marketplace consisting of multiple small stalls or shops, especially in the Middle East, the Balkans, North Africa and India. However, temporary open markets elsewhere, such as in the W ...
along the city walls at the Jaffa Gate as a quarter for merchants and artisans. It became home for commerce and residences that could not find room within the overcrowded
Old City Old City often refers to old town, the historic or original core of a city or town. Old City may refer to several places: Historical cities or regions of cities ''(by country)'' *Old City (Baku), Azerbaijan * Old City (Dhaka), Bangladesh, also ca ...
, and several of Jerusalem's prominent modern businesses, like Hotel Fast, were first built here. In 1908, the Ottoman authorities erected a
clock tower Clock towers are a specific type of structure which house a turret clock and have one or more clock faces on the upper exterior walls. Many clock towers are freestanding structures but they can also adjoin or be located on top of another buildi ...
above Jaffa Gate. The British removed it a decade later.


British Mandate

The British arrival in Jerusalem heralded a rational philosophy of infrastructure planning and development. It respected cultural and historic heritage and attempted to preserve such elements within the blossoming construction of the modern city. The
city walls A defensive wall is a fortification usually used to protect a city, town or other settlement from potential aggressors. The walls can range from simple palisades or earthworks to extensive military fortifications with towers, bastions and gates ...
were identified as such an element, so British workers acted to clear away the stalls on their perimeter and maintain an open area between the walls and the rest of the New City in the interest of an aesthetically pleasing visual basin. By the same token, planners demolished the Ottoman clock tower to preserve a historic
skyline A skyline is the outline or shape viewed near the horizon. It can be created by a city’s overall structure, or by human intervention in a rural setting, or in nature that is formed where the sky meets buildings or the land. City skylines ...
. Following the approval of the
1947 UN Partition Plan The United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine was a proposal by the United Nations, which recommended a partition of Mandatory Palestine at the end of the British Mandate. On 29 November 1947, the UN General Assembly adopted the Plan as Re ...
, an Arab mob ransacked and burned much of the district and stabbed some of its Jewish residents in the course of the
1947 Jerusalem riots The 1947 Jerusalem Riots occurred following the vote in the UN General Assembly in favour of the 1947 UN Partition Plan on 29 November 1947. The Arab Higher Committee declared a three-day strike and public protest to begin on 2 December 1947, in ...
, one of the events leading to the area's decades-long stagnation.


Jordanian period

As the
1948 Arab-Israeli War Events January * January 1 ** The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) is inaugurated. ** The Constitution of New Jersey (later subject to amendment) goes into effect. ** The railways of Britain are nationalized, to form British ...
commenced, the neighbourhood's location between Israeli and Jordanian forces made it a combat zone, leading to the flight of both Jewish and Arab residents. On May 22, 1948 the US Consul,
Thomas C. Wasson Thomas Campbell Wasson (February 8, 1896 – 23 May 1948) was an American diplomat who was assassinated while serving as the Consul General for the United States in Jerusalem. He was also a member of the United Nations Truce Commission. Bio ...
, was assassinated shortly after leaving the French Consulate in the Mamilla district. After the signing of the
1949 Armistice Agreements The 1949 Armistice Agreements were signed between Israel and Egypt,no man's land No man's land is waste or unowned land or an uninhabited or desolate area that may be under dispute between parties who leave it unoccupied out of fear or uncertainty. The term was originally used to define a contested territory or a dump ...
of barbed-wire and concrete barricades between Israeli and Jordanian lines. The active and hostile border subjected Mamilla to Jordanian sniper and guerilla attacks, and even stones thrown by Arab Legionnaires from the Old City walls above. The neighbourhood was one of several border areas in the city to experience a sharp decline, and subsequently became home to families of new immigrants with many children and of weak financial abilities, as well as dirty
light industry Light industry are industries that usually are less capital-intensive than heavy industry and are more consumer-oriented than business-oriented, as they typically produce smaller consumer goods. Most light industry products are produced for ...
like
auto repair An auto mechanic (automotive technician in most of North America, light vehicle technician in British English, and motor mechanic in Australian English) is a mechanic who services and repairs automobiles, sometimes specializing in one or more ...
. In Mamilla in this period, the residents were primarily
Kurdish Kurdish may refer to: *Kurds or Kurdish people *Kurdish languages *Kurdish alphabets *Kurdistan, the land of the Kurdish people which includes: **Southern Kurdistan **Eastern Kurdistan **Northern Kurdistan **Western Kurdistan See also * Kurd (dis ...
immigrants and their Israeli children.


Reunification and urban renewal plans

After the
Six-Day War The Six-Day War (, ; ar, النكسة, , or ) or June War, also known as the 1967 Arab–Israeli War or Third Arab–Israeli War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states (primarily United Arab Republic, Egypt, S ...
in 1967, Jerusalem's municipal borders were expanded to include the Old City and beyond. Barricades that had lined the border were torn down. Many buildings on Mamilla's eastern end were in shambles from the fighting and lack of maintenance. Several historic buildings were
condemned Condemned or The Condemned may refer to: Legal * Persons awaiting execution * A condemned property, or condemned building, by a local authority, usually for public health or safety reasons * A condemned property seized by power of eminent domain ...
. One was the Stern House, which housed Zionist leader
Theodor Herzl Theodor Herzl; hu, Herzl Tivadar; Hebrew name given at his brit milah: Binyamin Ze'ev (2 May 1860 – 3 July 1904) was an Austro-Hungarian Jewish lawyer, journalist, playwright, political activist, and writer who was the father of modern p ...
on his 1898 visit. However, popular outcry brought
Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
involvement which led to the temporary dismantling and reassembly nearby of this historical landmark. The 1970s saw numerous proposals for rehabilitating the neighbourhood, and it was defined as a zone of high-priority for reconstruction efforts. The administration responsible for preservation and construction in the Old City took Mamilla under its jurisdiction as well, both because of its proximity and its possession of many of the same considerations that the British weighed when regulating its development. A 1972 master-plan for revitalising the city centre transferred 100 of the 120
dunam A dunam ( Ottoman Turkish, Arabic: ; tr, dönüm; he, דונם), also known as a donum or dunum and as the old, Turkish, or Ottoman stremma, was the Ottoman unit of area equivalent to the Greek stremma or English acre, representing the amount ...
s () to ''Karta'', the municipal firm led by architects Gilbert Weil and Moshe Safdie charged with the project, and called for the destruction of almost every building save the French Hospice St. Vincent de Paul. The plan called for a subterranean street system, over-ground buildings for offices and stores, a pedestrian promenade, parking for 1,000 cars, and a bus terminal. This plan evoked massive criticism throughout the city government, although mayor
Teddy Kollek Theodor "Teddy" Kollek ( he, טדי קולק; 27 May 1911 – 2 January 2007) was an Israeli politician who served as the mayor of Jerusalem from 1965 to 1993, and founder of the Jerusalem Foundation. Kollek was re-elected five times, in 1969, 197 ...
lent full political backing to the plan. When deputy mayor Meron Benvenisti commissioned a more conservative plan under architect
David Kroyanker David Kroyanker (born 1939) is an Israeli architect and architectural historian of Jerusalem. He has written dozens of popular books about Jerusalem neighborhoods, streets, and buildings, and urban planning. Biography Kroyanker was born and rai ...
based on
facadism Facadism, façadism, or façadomy is the architectural and construction practice where the facade of a building is designed or constructed separately from the rest of a building, or when only the facade of a building is preserved with new buil ...
, the mayor immediately filed it away without any discussion. Karta evicted 700 families, communal institutions, and businesses, placing them in the then-developing neighbourhoods of
Baka Baka, baká or BAKA may refer to: Ethnicities and languages * Baka people (Cameroon and Gabon), an African ethnic group * Baka people (Congo and South Sudan), an African ethnic group * Baka language, a dialect cluster of Cameroon and Gabon * Baka ...
and Neve Yaakov, and moved the industry to Talpiot, the seed of its current industrial zone. The evictions cost the
Israeli government The Cabinet of Israel (officially: he, ממשלת ישראל ''Memshelet Yisrael'') exercises executive authority in the State of Israel. It consists of ministers who are chosen and led by the prime minister. The composition of the governmen ...
over $60 million and were only completed in 1988, when Mamilla ceased to exist as a neighbourhood and instead became a "compound" slated for future construction. The evicted residents were mostly Jewish immigrants from Arab states whose weak financial status left them vulnerable to Kollek's plan. The following steep increase in real-estate values of formerly depressed areas like Mamilla near the former armistice line and the Old City was perceived by evicted
Mizrahi Jews Mizrahi Jews ( he, יהודי המִזְרָח), also known as ''Mizrahim'' () or ''Mizrachi'' () and alternatively referred to as Oriental Jews or ''Edot HaMizrach'' (, ), are a grouping of Jewish communities comprising those who remained i ...
as an injustice. This became a key issue in 1970s Israeli social upheaval and the founding of the
Black Panthers The Black Panther Party (BPP), originally the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense, was a Marxism-Leninism, Marxist-Leninist and Black Power movement, black power political organization founded by college students Bobby Seale and Huey P. New ...
movement in Israel. After 16 years of controversy, during which the half-constructed Mamilla project remained an eyesore in the heart of the city, a revised plan drawn up by architect Moshe Safdie incorporating elements of Kroyanker's conservative design moved forward in 1986. The new plan called for the compound to be divided into four areas: an open-air mall with mixed-use 3-6 storey buildings and a
multi-storey car park A multistorey car park (British and Singapore English) or parking garage (American English), also called a multistory, parking building, parking structure, parkade (mainly Canadian), parking ramp, parking deck or indoor parking, is a build ...
, terraced residential housing, and two hotels along its border with the downtown. The British Ladbroke Group plc, which controls the Hilton Hotels Corporation, won the bid to build the project's main hotel (originally ''Hilton Jerusalem'' and now ''
David Citadel Hotel The David Citadel Hotel ( he, מָלוֹן מֽצוּדָת דָּוִד, ') is a luxury hotel on King David Street in Jerusalem, across the street from the Mamilla Mall. It has hosted VIPs, global political leaders, business moguls and celebrities ...
'') and its housing, which it built as a luxury
gated community A gated community (or walled community) is a form of residential community or housing estate containing strictly controlled entrances for pedestrians, bicycles, and automobiles, and often characterized by a closed perimeter of walls and fences ...
named David's Village ( he, כּֽפָר דָּוִד, '). (video tour) Numerous disputes between Karta and Ladbroke led the British firm to exit the project, and its shares were assumed by Alfred Akirov's ''Alrov'' company. However, further objections from many sources—including religious groups opposed to an entertainment area so close to the Old City and possible operation on the
Jewish Sabbath Shabbat (, , or ; he, שַׁבָּת, Šabbāṯ, , ) or the Sabbath (), also called Shabbos (, ) by Ashkenazim, is Judaism's day of rest on the seventh day of the week—i.e., Saturday. On this day, religious Jews remember the biblical storie ...
—kept construction at a crawl. Both Alrov and Karta accused each other of
breach of contract Breach of contract is a legal cause of action and a type of civil wrong, in which a binding agreement or bargained-for exchange is not honored by one or more of the parties to the contract by non-performance or interference with the other party ...
and sued. After years of frozen construction and drawn-out
mediation Mediation is a structured, interactive process where an impartial third party neutral assists disputing parties in resolving conflict through the use of specialized communication and negotiation techniques. All participants in mediation are ...
, the Jerusalem district court found parts of both parties' complaints to be justified and ordered 100 million
NIS Nis, Niš, NiS or NIS may refer to: Places * Niš, a city in Serbia * Nis, Iran, a village * Ness, Lewis ( gd, Nis, links=no), a village in the Outer Hebrides islands Businesses and organizations * Naftna Industrija Srbije, Petroleum Industry of ...
paid to Alrov by Karta, which allowed construction to resume. May 28, 2007 saw the opening of phase one of the shopping mall and part of the 600-meter promenade. The completion of the remainder of the promenade, the Stern House rebuilding, and the other construction, including the 207-room five-star second hotel, was scheduled to be completed in the spring of 2008. Like several other luxury neighbourhoods in the city, apartments in the David's Village development are mostly owned by foreigners who visit for only a few days or weeks a year. Critics contend that this makes it a
ghost town Ghost Town(s) or Ghosttown may refer to: * Ghost town, a town that has been abandoned Film and television * Ghost Town (1936 film), ''Ghost Town'' (1936 film), an American Western film by Harry L. Fraser * Ghost Town (1956 film), ''Ghost Town'' ...
in the city centre. Mamilla is also the location of the projected Simon Wiesenthal Center's
Museum of Tolerance Jerusalem The Museum of Tolerance Jerusalem (MTJ; ) is a Simon Wiesenthal Center-planned complex due to be used from 2022 onwards as a convention center, entertainment venue, and town square, with a secondary use as a museum of tolerance in Israeli societ ...
, a controversial project because its construction would require building on part of an old Muslim cemetery.


Mamilla Mall

The $150 million, pedestrian-only Mamilla shopping mall has been touted as a luxury destination in the style of Los Angeles'
Rodeo Drive Rodeo Drive is a street in Beverly Hills, California, with its southern segment in the City of Los Angeles. Its southern terminus is at Beverwil Drive, and its northern terminus is at its intersection with Sunset Boulevard in Beverly Hills. The ...
or The Grove. Its commercial space is leased at $40 to $80 per square metre to 140 businesses, including international names like Rolex, MAC, H. Stern, Nike, Polo Ralph Lauren, Nautica,
bebe Bebe, Bèbè, Bebé, Bébé or BeBe may refer to: People and fictional characters * Bebe (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or nickname * Bebé, footballer Tiago Manuel Dias Correia (born 1990) * Bebé (f ...
, and
Tommy Hilfiger Thomas Jacob Hilfiger ( /hɪlˈfɪgər/; born March 24, 1951) is an American fashion designer and the founder of Tommy Hilfiger Corporation. After starting his career by co-founding a chain of jeans/fashion stores called People's Place in upst ...
, as well as local chains like
Castro Castro is a Romance language word that originally derived from Latin ''castrum'', a pre-Roman military camp or fortification (cf: Greek: ''kastron''; Proto-Celtic:''*Kassrik;'' br, kaer, *kastro). The English-language equivalent is '' chester''. ...
,
Ronen Chen Ronen Chen ( he, רונן חן; born in 1965) is an Israeli fashion designer. According to Xnet, he is the most widely distributed and internationally known Israeli fashion designer. Biography Ronen Chen was born in 1965 in Ramat Gan, a city e ...
, Steimatzky Books, and Cafe Rimon. The mall is also slated to house an
IMAX IMAX is a proprietary system of high-resolution cameras, film formats, film projectors, and theaters known for having very large screens with a tall aspect ratio (approximately either 1.43:1 or 1.90:1) and steep stadium seating. Graeme F ...
theatre. The first Gap store in Israel opened in Mamilla Mall in August 2009.


Teddy Fountain

The
Teddy Fountain Teddy Park, also known as Teddy Kollek Park, is a public park situated opposite Jerusalem's Old City and David's Citadel, and integrated with the Hutzot HaYotzer Artists complex in the Mitchell Parks & Gardens. The park was developed by the Jerus ...
opened on the valley slope in 2013.


Notable residents

*
Uri Malmilian Uri Malmilian ( he, אורי מלמיליאן; born April 24, 1957) is an Israeli former football player and current manager. Early life and playing career Born in the neighbourhood of Mamilla in West Jerusalem, Malmilian had a memorable playing ...
(born 1957), football (soccer) player and manager


References


Further reading

* * * * *
Human Skeletal Remains from the Mamilla cave, Jerusalem

Encounters- David-s Village- Mamilla Jerusalem
Foreign Ministry of Israel The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs ( he, מִשְׂרַד הַחוּץ, translit. ''Misrad HaHutz''; ar, وزارة الخارجية الإسرائيلية) is one of the most important ministries in the Israeli government. The ministry's ...
*


External links

*
Mamilla-Alrov quarter HD Virtual tour
*
Israel Shamir Israel Shamir (Russian: Исраэль Шамир, ; born 1947 or 1948), also known by the names Robert David, Vassili Krasevsky, Jöran Jermas and Adam Ermash, is a Swedish writer and journalist, known for promoting antisemitism The book was rep ...

Mamilla Pool
* Mamilla Hotel


Alrov Mamilla Avenue

Mamilla Project at the LCUD site
{{Coord, 31, 46, 34.02, N, 35, 13, 24.44, E, display=title Mamilla, Central business districts Planned developments Neighbourhoods of Jerusalem Populated places established in the 19th century Shopping malls established in 2007 19th-century establishments in Ottoman Syria