Caliph al-Hakim orders the destruction of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre

Category
Religion
Place
Middle East
Date
1009
Reference
Excerpts from Books and Wikipedia
"Unlike his Fatimid predecessors, who had shown great religious tolerance, al-Hakim was a fanatical Shi'ite who actively, and often bloodily, persecuted Christians, Jews, and Sunni Muslims. . . . Al-Hakim's persecution of Christians reached its peak in 1009 when he ordered the destruction of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. . . . Though the Church of the Holy Sepulchre was rebuilt in 1048, its destruction led many Christians to believe that Jerusalem had to be brought back under Christian control, contributing directly to the development of the crusading movement." [Furtado: 1001 Days] "Meanwhile, al-Hakim of the Fatimids had quietly gone mad. In 1016, he declared himself divine and ordered his name inserted into Friday prayers in place of Allah's." [Bauer: Medieval World, p. 566]

This event is linked to the following periods

PeriodMiner
Begin
End
Category
The Crusades
1095
1291
Wars
Abbasid Caliphate
750
1258
Caliphate