According to Jewish tradition, the world was created by God in 3761 BCE, bringing forth the Sun, Moon, Adam, and Eve.
In 1813 BCE, a man named Abraham was born. He believed that the entire universe was the creation of a single divine entity.
Abraham eventually settled in Hebron, located in the land of Canaan—an area that, in modern terms, includes Israel, the West Bank, Gaza, Jordan, and parts of southern Syria and Lebanon. Because of his legacy and covenant, Abraham is regarded as the patriarch of three major world religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
Throughout history, the Jewish people have been known for their intelligence and ingenuity, particularly in agriculture and innovation. As a result, Canaan flourished as a prosperous nation.
Egyptian rulers were displeased with Canaan's progress and launched an invasion in 1456 BCE. Pharaoh Thutmose III led a decisive victory against a coalition of Canaanite rulers at Megiddo, a site located about 29 km southeast of Haifa in northern Israel.
Following this conquest, many Jews were taken into slavery by the Egyptians. As enslaved people, they longed for a savior to deliver them from oppression.
In 1250 BCE, a group of Canaanite refugees escaped slavery in Egypt under the leadership of Moses. Moses is regarded as the most significant prophet in Judaism and one of the most revered figures in Christianity, Islam, the Druze faith, and other Abrahamic religions.
The Canaanite refugees celebrated their newfound freedom, but Moses passed away before reaching Canaan. Leadership then fell to Joshua, who became the commander of the Israelite tribes after Moses' death.
Joshua, a charismatic warrior, led the Israelites in the conquest of Canaan following the Exodus from Egypt, ushering in another era of Jewish prosperity.
After Joshua’s death, in 875 BCE, Samuel designated Jerusalem as the capital. The construction of the First Temple began in 832 BCE. However, no historical evidence exists today to confirm this temple’s construction.
During this period, we see the emergence of the Chinese scholar Confucius, who was born in 571 BCE in Shandong, China.
In 546 BCE, Siddhartha Gautama was born in Lumbini, Nepal. A few centuries after his passing, he became known as the Buddha.
Meanwhile, the Assyrian Empire was expanding. Assyria, located in northern Mesopotamia, covered much of present-day Iraq and parts of Iran, Kuwait, Syria, and Turkey.
In 556 BCE, the Assyrian king invaded Judea and laid siege to Jerusalem.
This once-prosperous nation later faced another invasion, this time by the Babylonians, whose empire stretched across modern southern Iraq, from Baghdad to the Persian Gulf. In approximately 423 BCE, the Babylonians destroyed the First Temple and enslaved many Jews.
Once again, the Jewish people longed for a Messiah—someone who could restore their independence and lead them to prosperity.
After the fall of the Babylonian Empire, the Jews began rebuilding their homeland and, in time, constructed the Second Temple.
In 353 BCE, Alexander the Great ruled over a vast empire.
By 247 BCE, Venerable Mahinda Thero traveled from India to Sri Lanka, introducing Buddhism to the island. He is recognized as the "father of Sinhalese literature" for translating and writing commentaries on the Tripitaka in Sinhala, transforming it into a literary language. He also played a key role in introducing Mauryan culture and architecture to Sri Lanka.
In 152 BCE, the Roman Empire began to rise in power.
During this period, Sri Lanka was ruled by the renowned King Dutugamunu the Great, who reigned from 161 BCE to 137 BCE.
By 62 BCE, the expanding might of Rome brought Israel under its control. Roman general Pompey conquered Jerusalem, turning the Jewish state into a Roman sub-province.
At this time, the Roman Empire had grown into a dominant force, extending its influence across Europe and the Mediterranean region.
Meanwhile, in Sri Lanka, another notable ruler, King Vattagamani Abhaya—also known as Walagamba—ruled from 103 BCE to 77 BCE.
In the year 1 CE, Jesus was born into a Jewish family in Judea.
Some Jews believed he was the long-awaited Messiah and savior of Israel, while others strongly opposed this view. Jesus was a gifted speaker with revolutionary ideas, which led to conflict with religious authorities.
Angered by his teachings, fundamentalist Jewish leaders demanded that the Roman government execute him. As a result, the Roman governor Pontius Pilate sentenced Jesus to crucifixion, an event that likely took place in 30 or 33 CE.
This event caused a division among the Jewish people. Those who accepted Jesus as the Son of God and the savior of Israel became known as Christians, while those who rejected this belief remained Jews.
Both groups continued to live in Judea under Roman rule. During the height of the Roman Empire, the famous Colosseum, an enormous amphitheater, was constructed between 70 and 72 CE, providing entertainment for Roman citizens.
Enduring the heavy taxation in Rome was no easy task. Meanwhile, the people of Judea (the Jewish land of Israel) worked tirelessly—cultivating the land, developing new innovations, and striving to build their identity despite internal divisions.
Their resistance against excessive taxation and Roman rule eventually led to the complete Roman conquest of Judea.
In 70 CE, the Roman army, led by Emperor Titus, laid siege to Jerusalem. After five months, the city was destroyed, along with the Second Jewish Temple.
An estimated 2,000,000 people lost their lives, and countless stories emerged of cruelty, slavery, and exile. In an effort to erase Jewish identity, the Romans renamed the region Syria Palaestina (or Roman Palaestina). Effectively, the Jewish people were now suppressed and displaced.
Palestine, ravaged by Roman invasion, became home to a mix of communities, including Jews, Christians, Cilician pirates, and Arabs following various local religions.
Despite their displacement, Jews continued to regard Jerusalem as the heart of their faith. Meanwhile, Christian sects that emerged through Jesus laid their own claim to the city as a sacred center.
During this period, Roman rulers adopted the teachings of Jesus and brought them to Rome, leading to the rise of Roman Catholicism. It was under Emperor Constantine the Great (306–337 CE) that Christianity gradually became the dominant religion of the Roman Empire.
Meanwhile, in Sri Lanka, King Vasaba of Anuradhapura (67–111 CE) pioneered large-scale irrigation projects to support paddy cultivation. He is credited with constructing the world heritage site, the Elahera Anicut, along with 11 reservoirs and 12 canals, laying the foundation for Sri Lanka’s advanced water management system.
Sri Lanka was also ruled by several notable kings, including King Sri Sangha Bodi (247–249 CE), King Mahasena (274–301 CE), and King Buddhadasa (337–365 CE). During their reigns, the teachings of Buddha were firmly established in the region.
But why were the Arabs concerned? Their ancestor, Abraham, originally from their land, had gradually become associated with Judaism. As a result, various communities in the region began anticipating a savior—one who would represent them and their homeland.
It was in this climate that Mohammed was born. His birth coincided with a time when the Arabs sought a leader, especially as they witnessed Christianity being embraced by Rome. Mohammed affirmed the monotheistic teachings of Adam, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and other prophets. His teachings and practices formed the foundation of Islamic belief. He passed away at the age of 62.
As Islam gained influence, its history in Jerusalem began with the city's conquest by Caliph Umar in 635 CE (or 638 CE). With the Muslim expansion, many people in Judea, Syria, and Palestine were compelled to embrace Islam. However, some Jews and Christians who resisted conversion remained in Judea and Jerusalem.
This era saw frequent conflicts and wars among the Byzantines (the Eastern Roman Empire), Arab Muslims, Jews, and Christians—each fighting for control over Jerusalem, the revered "City of God."
The Muslim conquest of Jerusalem secured Arab control over Palestine, which remained unchallenged until the First Crusade in 1099.
On November 27, 1095, Pope Urban II called for the First Crusade to reclaim Jerusalem.
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March 1096 – A people’s army, led by Peter the Hermit, marched toward Constantinople (present-day Istanbul, Turkey).
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July 15, 1099 – The Crusaders captured Jerusalem, establishing the Kingdom of Jerusalem.
Sri Lanka’s Timeline During This Period
Around the same time, the Kingdom of Polonnaruwa was founded following the Chola conquest of Anuradhapura. King Vijayabahu I ruled the kingdom from 1055 to 1111.
On December 1, 1145, Pope Eugenius III launched the Second Crusade.
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January 7, 1148 – The Crusader army suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of Seljuk forces while crossing the Cadmus Mountains (now Madran Mountain in Aydın Province, Turkey).
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As a result, the Second Crusade failed.
Sri Lanka’s Development Amidst the Crusades
While conflicts raged in the Middle East, Sri Lanka was under the rule of King Parakramabahu the Great (1153–1186). He expanded and beautified his capital, developed extensive irrigation systems, restructured the military, reformed Buddhist practices, and encouraged the arts. His reign also saw military campaigns in South India and Burma.
On October 29, 1187, Pope Gregory VIII called for the Third Crusade to retake Jerusalem.
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Three European monarchs—Richard I of England, Philip II of France, and the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I—led the campaign, earning it the name "The King’s Crusade."
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August 20, 1191 – The Massacre of Ayyadieh took place after the fall of Acre (a port city in modern-day Israel). King Richard I ordered the execution of over 2,000 Muslim prisoners of war in front of Sultan Saladin’s Ayyubid forces. In response, Saladin ordered the execution of Crusader prisoners.
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The Third Crusade failed and ended with a peace treaty.
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August 1198 – Pope Innocent III called for the Fourth Crusade to reclaim Jerusalem. However, the campaign failed.
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1215 – Pope Innocent III launched the Fifth Crusade, which also ended in failure, with Crusaders retreating to Europe empty-handed.
Sri Lanka Faces Invasions
During this period, Sri Lanka faced its own challenges. The South Indian invader Kalinga Magha launched an attack with the intent of ruling the entire island.
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The Kingdom of Polonnaruwa was sacked, leading to a mass migration of Sinhalese to the south and west.
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Despite his efforts, Kalinga Magha was unable to conquer the entire island. Instead, he established the Jaffna Kingdom in the north, becoming its first ruler.
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In response, Vijayabahu III established the Kingdom of Dambadeniya in the southern and western regions around 1220.
The Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth Crusades also ended in failure. By 1291, the last remaining Christian stronghold in the Holy Land fell into Islamic hands.
For centuries, countless lives were lost as different religious and cultural groups fought for dominance. These conflicts resulted in immense suffering and devastation. Estimates suggest that around 9,000,000 people died in the Crusades to the East between 1095 and 1291. In the struggle to reclaim and hold the Holy Land, at least half of the casualties were Christians.
With Muslim rule established in the region, the Jewish people dispersed across Europe, North America, and Asia, preserving their faith and traditions despite many challenges.
The Jewish Experience in Medieval England
In England, Jews occupied a unique legal and economic position. While merchants held a special status, Jews were distinct in that they were direct subjects of the king—unlike the rest of the population. This provided them with certain protections but also made them vulnerable to royal whims. Every new king would review and renew a royal charter that granted Jews permission to remain in England.
Economically, Jews played a crucial role. The Church forbade lending money for profit, creating an economic gap that Jews filled, as they were barred from most other trades due to Christian guild monopolies. Since Judaism does not prohibit lending with interest between Jews and non-Jews, Jewish financiers became central to the European economy.
However, their financial success made them targets. The king could tax Jews heavily at will, seizing their wealth without needing parliamentary approval. Over time, this led to the widespread reputation of Jews as greedy moneylenders, fueling resentment from both the Church and the general public.
Anti-Jewish Persecution in England
Anti-Jewish sentiment was particularly intense in medieval England, where hostile myths and stereotypes spread rapidly. The image of Jews as enemies of Christ gained popularity, alongside fabricated tales such as the Wandering Jew and accusations of ritual murder.
One of the most infamous blood libels (the first recorded in 1144) claimed that Jews kidnapped and murdered Christian children before Passover, using their blood to make matzah (unleavened bread eaten to commemorate the Jewish exodus from Egypt). These false accusations fueled violent anti-Jewish riots, including the 1190 massacre in York, where over 100 Jews were slaughtered.
Sri Lanka’s Timeline
During this period, the Kingdom of Dambadeniya (1220–1345) was established in Sri Lanka.
Meanwhile, Europe and the Middle East experienced a series of devastating crises.
The Great Famine (1315–1322)
The Great Famine was the first major catastrophe. It began with severe weather in the spring of 1315, leading to crop failures that persisted until 1317. Europe did not fully recover until 1322.
The disaster was not limited to agriculture. Cattle diseases wiped out up to 80% of livestock, compounding food shortages. Crime rates soared, disease spread rapidly, and mass starvation led to widespread suffering.
The Black Death (1346–1353)
The second crisis—the Black Death—was even more devastating. This bubonic plague pandemic swept across Western Eurasia and North Africa, peaking in Europe between 1347 and 1351.
It remains the deadliest pandemic in recorded history, killing an estimated 75–200 million people. The disease, caused by the Yersinia pestis bacterium, was primarily spread by fleas on rats. However, during the Black Death, it likely evolved into a pneumonic form, which spread person-to-person through airborne transmission.
The sheer scale of death reshaped societies, destabilizing economies and altering religious, political, and social structures across the world.
With this timeline, Sri Lankan rulers changed the Dambadeniya kingdom to Gampola(1345 - 1412) and
Kotte (1412 - 1597). Parakramabahu VI was the first king of Kotte, ruling from 1410 until his death in 1467.
He is the last great king in Sri Lanka who managed to unite the island under one flag. His rule is famous for
the Renaissance in Sinhalese literature, (especially poetry) due to the patronage of the king himself.
Classical literature (prose and verse) as well as many rock inscriptions and royal grant letters
(patent letters, sannas) have been found, rendering much information pertaining to this period.
For Europe, the Inquisition period was also very unfortunate.
In 1478 Pope Sixtus IV issued a papal decree, authorizing the Catholic Monarchs to name inquisitors in order to enforce religious uniformity and to expel Jews from Spain.
Beginning in the 12th century and continuing for hundreds of years, the Inquisition is infamous for the severity of
its tortures and its persecution of Jews and Muslims. Its worst manifestation was in Spain, where the
Spanish Inquisition was a dominant force for more than 200 years, resulting in some 32,000 executions.
Over half of Spain's Jews had converted to Catholicism as a result of the Massacre of 1391.
Due to continuing attacks, around 50,000 more had converted by 1415. Those who remained decided to convert
to avoid expulsion.
Over 200,000 Jews converted to Catholicism and between 40,000 and 100,000 were expelled.
In 2014, the government of Spain passed a law allowing dual citizenship to Jewish descendants,
to "compensate for shameful events in the country's past”.
In 2015, the Spanish Parliament passed a law recognizing the descendants of Jews expelled in 1492 as Spanish
citizens.
At the start of the 16th century, many events led to the Protestant Reformation (1517-1648). It was a religious reform movement that swept through Europe in the 1500s. Clergy abuse caused people to begin criticizing the Catholic Church. The greed and scandalous lives of the clergy had created a split between them and the peasants. This reformation process allowed for the development of personal interpretations of the Christian message and led to the development of modern nation-states.
With this timeline, the Portuguese arrived in Sri Lanka. Their presence on the island lasted from 1505 to 1658. Rajasinha I (He was a king of Sitawaka, known for his patriotism and fight against the Portuguese invasion of Sri Lanka. Born as Tikiri Bandara to King Mayadunne, he received the name "Rajasimha" (meaning the Lion King) after the fierce Battle of Mulleriyawa.) attempted to expel the Portuguese from the island but was repulsed with heavy losses at the siege of Colombo in 1587–8.
Seeking to subdue the last major kingdom in Sri Lanka, the Portuguese launched a military invasion of Kandy in the Campaign of Danture of 1594. The invasion was a disaster for the Portuguese, with their entire army, wiped out by Kandyan forces.
After massive expulsions of Jews from Western Europe (England, France, Germany, and Spain), they found refuge in the lands of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. The greatest increase in Jewish numbers occurred in the 18th century when Jews came to make up 7% of the Polish population. By 1648, the Jewish population of Poland reached 450,000, or 60% of the world's Jewish population.
With this timeline, the Dutch were used by the Sinhalese king to take revenge on the Portuguese who wanted to expand their rule. The coming of the Dutch ensured that the Portuguese had two enemies to deal with so finally the Portuguese were forced to sign a treaty with the Dutch and come to terms with their enemies.
Portugal was at war with its ruler, the King of Spain. Once Portugal obtained its freedom from Spain in 1640, the Netherlands settled for peace with Portugal. Then they divided the occupied areas of Ceylon amicably under a treaty signed in Goa. Slowly, the Dutch became the rulers of coastal and outer areas of Ceylon and Indonesia, and the Portuguese were left with smaller pieces of territory than those of the Dutch and the English.
Finally, the Portuguese left Ceylon (Sri Lanka) in 1658.
Khmelnytsky Uprising was also reported from 1648 to 1657.
Before the Khmelnytsky uprising, magnates had sold and leased certain privileges to arendators ((leaseholders), many of whom were Jewish, who earned money from the collections they made for the magnates by receiving a percentage of an estate's revenue. By not supervising their estates directly, the magnates left it to the leaseholders and collectors to become objects of hatred to the oppressed and long-suffering peasants. Khmelnytsky (He was a Ruthenian nobleman and military commander of Ukrainian Cossacks) told the people that the Poles had sold them as slaves "into the hands of the accursed Jews." With this as their battle cry, Cossacks and the peasantry massacred numerous Jewish and Polish–Lithuanian townsfolk, as well as szlachta (noble class) during the years 1648–1649.
Estimates of the death toll of the Khmelnytsky uprising are estimated as 4 million.
Jews were subject to a wide range of restrictions throughout most of European history. The practice of their religions was often restricted, and they had to swear special oaths. Jews were not allowed to vote, where voting existed, and some countries formally prohibited their entry, such as Norway, Sweden, and Spain after the expulsion in the late 15th century.
In 1790, in the United States, President George Washington gave them some rights including the right to practice their religion, with all other Americans. On September 28, 1791, revolutionary France emancipated its Jewish population. The 40,000 Jews living in France at the time were the first to confront the opportunities and challenges offered by emancipation.
With this timeline, a part of Sri Lanka was ruled by the Dutch. The Dutch presence in Sri Lanka lasted 150 years, officially from 1658 when the Dutch expelled the Portuguese, until 1796, the year of the British occupation. The other part of Sri Lanka was ruled by Kandyan monarchs, King Vimaladharmasuriya I and Rajasinghe II were the most prominent rulers.
Britain conquered Palestine from the Ottoman Empire during 1917-18. Following the Great War, British rule
in Palestine was administered under a League of Nations 'Mandate' until 1948. Unlike other colonies, this
mandate aimed to lead the native population to self-government and independence. In 1921, the
Country of Jordan was created by the British.
Under the rule of Adolf Hitler and after the Nazi Party achieved power in Germany in 1933, its state-sponsored
racism led to anti-Jewish legislation, economic boycotts, and violence. After the September 1939
German invasion of Poland (the beginning of World War II), and after the June 1941 German invasion of the
Soviet Union, these murderers began massive killing operations aimed at entire Jewish communities.
Six million Jewish men, women, and children were killed during the Holocaust—two-thirds of the Jews
living in Europe before World War II.
With this unfortunate event, Jews demanded full implementation of the Balfour Declaration.
The Balfour Declaration was a public statement issued by the British government in 1917 during
the First World War announcing its support for the establishment of a "national home for the Jewish people"
in Palestine, then an Ottoman region with a small minority Jewish population.
Although the United States supported the Balfour Declaration of 1917, which favored the establishment of
a Jewish national home in Palestine, President Franklin D. Roosevelt assured the Arabs in 1945 that the
United States would not intervene without consulting both the Jews and the Arabs in that region.
The British, who held a colonial mandate for Palestine until May 1948, opposed both the creation of
a Jewish state and an Arab state in Palestine as well as unlimited immigration of Jewish refugees to the region.
Great Britain wanted to preserve good relations with the Arabs to protect its vital political and economic interests
in Palestine.
Throughout 1947, the United Nations Special Commission on Palestine examined the Palestinian question and
recommended the partition of Palestine into a Jewish and an Arab state. On November 29, 1947, the United Nations
adopted Resolution 181 (also known as the Partition Resolution) that would divide Great Britain’s former Palestinian
mandate into Jewish and Arab states in May 1948 when the British mandate was scheduled to end. Under the resolution,
the area of religious significance surrounding Jerusalem would remain a corpus separatum under international control
administered by the United Nations.
But, to date, this agreement has still not materialized. So, unfortunately, History Repeats.
