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1834 CE Fellahin Revolt Quake

6 am 26 May 1834 CE

by Jefferson Williams









Damage Distribution from 1834 and 1837 CE Quakes
   Fig. 3 - Damage distribution and its severity, ranging between ‘Moderate’
    and ‘Severe’ of the May 1834 and January 1837 earthquakes, according to
   historical reports. - from Zohar et al (2015)


Introduction & Summary

This earthquake likely stuck Palestine at 6 am on 26 May 1834 CE (give or take a few days) while Jerusalem was being ransacked by rebel forces during the 1834 CE Fellahin Revolt. One eyewitness reported ten days of aftershocks. The same eyewitness reported that many houses in Jerusalem were destroyed and part of the wall of the outer enclosure of al-Aqsa Mosque crumbled. Tops of minarets are also reported to have fallen. In Bethlehem, there are reports of damage to structures and deaths. There are further reports of damage in Jaffa, Ramla, and Caesarea and large quantities of asphalt are said to have appeared on the SW shores of the Dead Sea after the earthquake. Zohar et al (2015) present fairly compelling evidence that one of the minarets damaged in Jerusalem was the al-Nabi Da’ud minaret on Mount Zion. There is also a speculative report of seismic damage in Dhiban and Ambraseys (2009) found reports of unknown reliability which may claim damage in Madaba, Umm al-Rassas, and al-Rahba, all located in modern day Jordan. Ambraseys (2009) also reports that the shock was felt along the Mediterranean coast from Gaza and Ascalon Caesaraea to Acre, but not at Tiberias while Amiran et al (1994) reports additional damage in Nablus and Tiberias.

Textual Evidence

Text (with hotlink) Original Language Biographical Info Religion Date of Composition Location Composed Notes
Damage Reports from Textual Sources n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a
Letter from an anonymous Welsh traveler to Jerusalem English translated from Welsh
Biography

Christian 16 July 1834 CE Jerusalem An eyewitness described an earthquake in Jerusalem while it was being captured and sacked by rebel forces during the 1834 CE Fellahin Revolt which dates the earthquake to late May or early June of 1834 CE. The earthquake was said to have destroyed many houses, and levelled to the earth that part of the city wall which passes the temple of the Muhammadans. The monastery of Bethlehem was rendered uninhabitable and many of the inhabitants were killed in the ruin of their houses. For ten days earthquakes continued to rock the city, though none of them was by any means so severe as the first.
Report by the Monk Neophytos English translated from Greek
Biography

Greek Orthodox Neophytos dated the earthquake in the Julian Calendar. Once this date is converted to the Gregorian calendar, his time and date for the earthquake is 6 am Sunday 26 May 1834 CE. Neophytos described the earthquake as lasting but three seconds yet so violent that the dome of the Catholicon was cracked in seven places and all the plaster fell off. He also noted that the big dome of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre was shaken, but being of wood and well bound together, it was not greatly damaged. Many big houses in Jerusalem were cracked and many fell. Part of the city wall, near the Mosque of Omar, fell. A minaret fell in Jerusalem, and another one on the Mount of Olives, as did the dome of the Shrine of the Ascension. In Bethlehem the monasteries of the Franks and the Armenians and ours were greatly damaged, especially the belfry. By God's mercy the beautiful Church of the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ, as well as the new pilgrim-house, was not damaged.
Baptisin Poujoulat French
Biography

~1837 CE Baptisin Poujoulat reported that Jerusalem experienced a violent earthquake in 1834 CE which also tore down the walls of Caesarea. In possible hyperbole, he reports that 4000 people died under the rubble in Caesarea and that the earthquake was preceded by thick smoke, distant rumblings, and multicolored flames coming out of Mount Argée (location unknown). Poujoulat reports that in Caesarea minarets, vaults, mosques, churches, and carvanaseris partially collapsed and several (nearby?) villages were partially destroyed. A salt water lake is said to have inundated a village known as Komtzi.
Edward Robinson English
Biography

1838 CE Edward Robinson reported second hand accounts that a large quantity of asphaltum was cast upon the shore near the SW part of the Dead Sea after the earthquake of 1834 CE.
Titus Tobler German
Biography

1853 CE Titus Tobler wrote that in July 1834 CE, an earthquake threw down several structures in Jerusalem, damaged part of a wall near a Mosque in the same city, and threatened the collapse of the Latin Rlofters (?)
William McClure Thomson English
Biography

Protestant Christian around April 1857 CE Jaffa In a passage written around April 1857 CE, William McClure Thomson recalled his experiences during the 1834 CE Fellahin Revolt Earthquake. He was in Ramleh at the time of the earthquake. In Ramleh, the earthquake cracked nearly all the houses and threw down many. A tower in Jaffa had been rudely shaken by the same earthquake. He dated the earthquake to 23 years before he was writing (i.e., 1834 CE) and while rebel forces occupied Jerusalem (late May/ early June 1834 CE).
History of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem English Christian 1913 CE A History of the Greek Patriarchate of Jerusalem states that the Dome of the Catholicon was partly destroyed in an earthquake in 1834 CE. The Catholicon apparently refers to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
Menahem Mendel of Kamieniec Jewish Zohar et al (2015:244 n. 2) report that Menahem Mendel of Kamieniec (1800-73) dates the event to the 30th count of the Jewish ‘Omer’ which, according to Zohar et al (2015:244 n. 2), corresponds to 14 Iyyar. If one assumes a Hebrew year of 5594, this converts to a Gregorian date of Friday, 23rd of May (Mendel 1839). Zohar et al (2015:244 n. 2) also report that Mendel wrote that there were two shocks - one at noon and the second at night (Mendel 1839).
Other Authors
Text (with hotlink) Original Language Biographical Info Religion Date of Composition Location Composed Notes
Damage Reports from Textual Sources

Seismic Effects

´

Partial List of Seismic Effects
Effect Sources Notes
Destroyed or damaged houses in Jerusalem Anonymous Welsh Traveler, Neophytos
Wall outside Al-Aqsa Mosque Damaged Anonymous Welsh Traveler probable location
Wall outside Mosque of Omar fell Neophytos
Wall outside an unnamed Mosque (presumably in Jerusalem) partly damaged Titus Tobler
threatened the collapse of the Latin Rlofters (?) in Jerusalem Titus Tobler
A minaret fell in Jerusalem Neophytos
A minaret on the Mount of Olives fell Neophytos
The dome of the Shrine of the Ascension fell Neophytos
Monastery in Bethlehem Damaged Anonymous Welsh Traveler, Neophytos Neophytos was more specific - In Bethlehem the monasteries of the Franks and the Armenians and ours were greatly damaged, especially the belfry but the beautiful Church of the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ, as well as the new pilgrim-house, was not damaged
Dome of the Catholicon (Jerusalem) cracked Neophytos, History of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem
City Walls of Caesarea damaged Baptisin Poujoulat
The minarets, the vaults, mosques, churches, and carvanaseris partly collapsed in Caesarea Baptisin Poujoulat
sea water inundated a village called Komtzi Baptisin Poujoulat
Tower in Jaffa rudely shaken William McClure Thomson
cracked nearly all the houses in Ramleh, and threw down many William McClure Thomson
A large quantity of Asphalt appeared on the SW shore of the Dead Sea Edward Robinson

Locations

Locations
Location Sources Notes
Jerusalem Anonymous Welsh traveler, Neophytos, Baptisin Poujoulat, Titus Tobler, History of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem
Bethlehem Anonymous Welsh traveler, Neophytos
Caesarea Baptisin Poujoulat. William McClure Thomson1
Ramla William McClure Thomson
Jaffa William McClure Thomson unclear if there was significant damage
Dead Sea Edward Robinson, Blankenhorn (1905:208)
Dhiban Tristram et al (1873) speculative - see Archeoseismic Evidence
an area 10 leagues (~55 km.) south of Mount Argée (?) Baptisin Poujoulat
a village called Komtzi Baptisin Poujoulat
Footnotes

1 Thomson (1861:502) wrote something in 1857 CE that may or may not recall earlier seismic damage to the walls of Caesarea during the 1834 CE Fellahin Revolt Earthquake

I recalled the day and night I spent among Caesarea's broken walls and prostrate columns more than twenty years ago. Fresh from scenes of war, and earthquake, and sickness, and death in Jerusalem, I then felt a mysterious sympathy with these sad and forsaken ruins.

Letter from an anonymous Welsh traveler to Jerusalem

Biography

Biography

Excerpts
English translated from Welsh by MacAlister (1918)

THE REVOLT OF 1834.

The following is a translation of a letter, unsigned, which I happened to light upon when turning the pages of an old Welsh magazine (Y Gwyliedydd, Vol. XII [1835], p. 27). It describes the experiences of some Welsh traveller who found himself in Jerusalem at the time of the revolt of the Arabs under Ibrahim Pasha; and, as a first-hand record of experiences during that exciting episode, I thought it might be worth rescuing from its obscurity. There is nothing to show who was the writer or the recipient of the letter ; it was probably not written for publication, but sent to the magazine by the writer's friends.

R A. S. Macalister
Jerusalem, 16th July, 1834.

I hope you have received the letter which I wrote you from Grand Cairo three or four months ago. In that letter I told you of my intention of returning in the month of June ; and no doubt I should have fulfilled my promise had it not been that totally unexpected occurrences, against which no one could have made preparations, have detained me here. When in Cairo, I thought that it would be foolish for me to return to Europe without seeing the places which are so celebrated in the Scriptures, and in other historians, and which were so near me. Accordingly, with an Arab, I crossed the Isthmus of Suez and the shores of the Red Sea, and on camel-back I reached Mount Sinai in Arabia. Thence I crossed the desert, and after many dangers I reached Jerusalem. Ibrahim Pasha, who was in Jerusalem, treated me in a kind and friendly manner; I dined with him, and I enjoyed his friendship for some time after.

As I was continually making excursions among the Arabs, they conversed with me freely, and I understood that they were very discontented with the rule of the Pasha, especially for his practice of taking their young men for soldiers. They told me that there was a widespread conspiracy to break out in revolt, and that I would do well to leave Palestine. Accordingly I made preparations to leave the place, but, notwithstanding all my diligence, I was too late. So soon as the Pasha had left for Jaffa, the revolution began. The strongholds of Herek and Solth [sic. presumably Kerak and es-Salt] were ruined, and the Arabs from Samaria and Hebron made their way to Jerusalem. The Pasha had not left more than 600 men, and the enemy was more than 40,000. But as the wall was fortified with a few cannon, and the Arabs were armed with javelins and guns only, we could have held out for ever had they not found a subterranean entrance. They came in at midnight and obliged the soldiers, after a brave resistance, to retreat to the castle. All the Christians fled to the different monasteries, and thus they saved their lives. For five or six days the city was given up to pillage and plunder, and I never witnessed a scene so heartrending. The Jews, who had no safe place wherein to flee, suffered greatly. Their houses were spoiled so completely that there was not a bed to lie down upon; many of them were slain, their wives and daughters outraged, etc. In short, things were done too barbarous to relate. In the hope of receiving good pay, or for some other end, this cruelty was spared the monasteries.

To increase our misery, an earthquake, one of the strongest ever felt in Palestine, destroyed many houses, and levelled to the earth that part of the city wall which passes the temple of the Muhammadans. The monastery of Bethlehem was rendered uninhabitable, and many of the inhabitants were killed in the ruin of their houses. For ten days earthquakes continued to rock the city, though none of them was by any means so severe as the first.

When the Pasha heard of our condition, he hurried from Jaffa with 5,000 men. It was a journey of only twelve hours from Jaffa to Jerusalem, but the Pasha was three and a-half days before he could bring us help. There were more than 30,000 of the country Arabs holding the mountain roads, and as the soldiers were following their way along the water-courses below them, the rebels profited thereby to stone them — at times rolling ugly masses of rock down upon them, and thus they were flattening down their enemies and rendering the pathways quite impassable for horsemen and gunners. However, the energy and bravery of Ibrahim Pasha conquered every obstacle, and at last he came in triumph to Jerusalem.

You cannot imagine how anxious, I am to return, but as the Pasha is still waging a bloody war with the Arabs, it is impossible for me to leave the city. If God permits me to return to Europe I shall not regret my journey. The first opportunity that I shall have obtained I shall mount on my camel's back, and, swift as the wind, I shall hasten across the desert to Cairo and Alexandria, and thence to Europe; If I should leave Jerusalem now, there is not the least doubt that I should be killed by the Arabs

English translated from Welsh by MacAlister (1918) - embedded



Chronology
Year Reference Corrections Notes
Late May/Early June 1834 CE none
Seismic Effects Locations Online Versions and Further Reading
References

Report by the Monk Neophytos

Biography

Biography

Excerpts
English translation from Greek by Spyridon (1938)

ANNALS OF PALESTINE, 1821-1841

S. N. Spyridon
(Jerusalem)

FOREWORD.

When first I came upon what we call the Mar Saba Collection of Manuscripts, I was greatly elated, yet at the same time depressed. I rejoiced in reading the homely tale of Palestine to be found in these Greek manuscripts. But then, while these manuscripts may be accessible to many at the Greek Patriarchate, Jerusalem, the language is a standing difficulty. The manuscripts are in the Greek tongue, which, although once official in Palestine, is now a dead language to most of the inhabitants of this country. Hence the necessity of translating the manuscripts into a better known medium.

An immense store of information is locked up in the Greek manuscripts of the convents of Mar Saba, Mount Sinai, Mount Athos, and the Phanar, and awaits the diligence of a scholar. The present volume, which the editor hopes to be the forerunner of others, is a translation of a part of a manuscript by the Monk Neophytos. We know very little about the life of the author, except the scanty information we can glean from his own works. From his other writings we know that he came to Jerusalem from Cyprus in 1801 and that he was still writing in 1846. Here and there, throughout this volume, we get a glimpse of his life. He very probably came to Jerusalem when young and certainly learned the Arabic tongue. His Greek, though very distant from the language of Homer, is still literary. His writings have a human interest all through; in particular there is a great freedom of a great freedom of expression when speaking of the religious communities or, as he calls them, "nations"; he is frank with the candour of a child, yet he never means to be offensive. For this reason the editor has neither suppressed nor changed anything in the translation, even where he decidedly disagrees with the author's opinions. The translation- is very literal, often at the expense of the English.

The translator is especially grateful to Archbishop of Ascalon, Vassilios, Keeper of the Mar Saba Manuscripts, who has kindly given access to the text. He also wishes to acknowledge his indebtedness to Fr. Eugene Hoade O.F.M. whose collaboration has made the work possible.

... INSURRECTION OF THE MOSLEMS OF JERUSALEM, JUDAEA. SAMARIA AND SURROUNDING DISTRICTS (APRIL 28th, 1834).

In those days there was a great uprising in all Arabia, and' in all the villages around Jerusalem, in Judaea and Samaria for the people revolted against Ibrahim Pasha, the Egyptian overlord.

These were the causes of rebellion. On the 4th day of Diakainesimos (Easter Wednesday) April 25th, Ibrahim Pasha convoked all the leading men and notables of the districts of Samaria and Judaea and put to them the following questions: "As we, Moslems, have as perpetual enemies the Nazarene nations, is it or is it not necessary for us to have a big standing army?" They replied: "Yes, undoubtedly it is necessary.'

The Pasha continued: "If so, from whom shall we take men for this army, from the Christians or from the Moslems?"

Thy replied: 'From the Moslems, assuredly.'

He said: 'You have answered rightly. Therefore it is necessary for you, if you are true Moslems and wish the welfare of the nation, to send in your young men from every city and from every village, so that they may learn from their youth the art of war and be trained in it, and so be ready in case of need."

Silence fell upon the meeting and for long they thought of the replv : "Your order be upon our heads, but there is no need for us to give our boys and young men for war. When the enemy of our religion enters our country, all of us young and old, will go out and fight and willingly shed our blood for our faith and our fatherland."

The Pasha replied: "How do you expect to wage war if you know not the art thereof: "

They replied : "This art of war, known to our grandfathers, who withstood the enemy and defended their country until now, is also known to us, and as they once did, so we also hope to do in the future.''

The Pasha replied: "War is not the place for a herd of useless men : technique and skill are required. This is my decision. One young man shall be taken from every five Moslems, who shall be trained in the regular tactics of war. This order I want carried out without delay, beginning here in Jerusalem."

Briefly, the idea of the Pasha was to get 3,000 young men from the three districts, of Jerusalem, Judaea and Samaria, and a proportionate 200 from the city of Jerusalem.

All the Moslems of these districts were greatly disturbed and knew not what to do. Coming together, some of them decided to revolt, saying: "It is far better to die with our arms in our hands than to give our beloved children to everlasting slavery, without the hope of ever seeing them again. "

On Easter Saturday, in the evening, a message was brought to the Pasha saying that in the village of Abu Dls near Bethany some people had died of plague.

THE DEPARTURE OF IBRAHIM PASHA FOR JAFFA AND THE SIEGE OF JERUSALEM BY THH FELLAHEEN (APRIL 28tli-MAY 27th, 1834.)

The Pasha, fearing lest his army should be infected by the plague and because he felt the planning of a revolt, left for Jaffa on Sunday after Easter, for he had with him only a few soldiers. He gave out that it was his fear of the plague which caused him to depart. He left a thousand soldiers in Jerusalem to protect the city and the citadel. As soon as the Jerusalemites and the fellaheen heard of the departure of the Pasha, they gathered together from all parts and held council secretly as to whether they should obey the order of the Pasha or revolt. Despite their party feuds, they unanimously decided to revolt.

On Wednesday, May 8th, they surrounded Jerusalem, and forbade the people to leave or enter the city. Soon, about ten thousand men from Samaria, Hebron, Judaea and Jerusalem had gathered to the ranks. On Thursday morning, they sent a message to the soldiers in the citadel and on the city walls that they should quit Jerusalem and go wherever they wished. The Bimbashis (Majors) and the Miralais (colonels) replied that they had no intention of leaving but would resist until death. The fellaheen then began to fire on the city walls with their rifles and to attack, the city, but they were easily repulsed by the regular soldiers within the city.

At the beginning, some of the Jerusalemites showed themselves on the side of the Pasha, others said they were indifferent, but secretly, all of them, as time proved, were on the side of the fellaheen. The fellaheen kept up a continual fire on the walls, night and day, so that the soldiers became tired of the long duty, and the officers decided to withdraw all the men to the citadel and leave the city walls to be defended by the citizens of Jerusalem. The Bimbashi asked the notables of the city to come to him and he explained the situation to them. They replied that it was not a wise policy for them to fight against the fellaheen and they pleaded all kinds of excuses, but especially the lack of arms. The Bimbashi and his officers were quite aware of the fact that the Jerusalemites and the fellaheen were in agreement on the question of the revolt, so lie said to them:

"I want to know if you are on the side of the Pasha or with the fellaheen.''

They replied : "May it never come to pass that we should be on the side of the fellaheen, we are the force of our Effendi, the Pasha etc.''

The Bimbashi therefore said to them: "If you will be faithful to the Pasha, I will make you the promise that the Pasha will not seek one man from the city of Jerusalem for the army-'' They gave him so many promises and assurances that he went to the Court and wrote with his own hand promising that he would remain and defend Jerusalem to the end, and that he would not demand one man for the army. This he signed, and the Mullah was witness and surety.

The above took place on Saturday morning. The fellaheen with the fugitives from Jerusalem kept up their attacks on the city and attempted to capture it. Then the Bimbashi and the Miralais brought into action the cannon on the citadel and on the walls, and quickly beat back the fellaheen.

At six o'clock on Sunday morning, May 13th, there was an earthquake. It lasted but three seconds, but it was so violent that the dome of the Catholicon was cracked in seven places and all the plaster fell off.

The big dome of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre was shaken, but being of wood and well bound together, it was not greatly damaged,1a Many big houses in Jerusalem were cracked and many fell. Part of the city wall, near the Mosque of Omar, fell. A minaret fell in Jerusalem, and another one on the Mount of Olives, as did the dome of the Shrine of the Ascension. In Bethlehem the monasteries of the Franks and the Armenians and ours were greatly damaged, especially the belfry. By God's mercy the beautiful Church of the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ, as well as the new pilgrim-house, was not damaged1b.

The fellaheen got frightened at the earthquake and stopped firing for the moment, but the next day they began again, and so did the cannon from inside. This continued until Saturday. Then the people of Silwan and the fugitives from Jerusalem remembered that there was an old sewer, now closed up for many years, leading into the city. They gathered near the Dung Gate 2 and with great difficulty they excavated and found the exit of the sewer which opens within the city at a mill in the Jewish quarter. On Sunday morning thirty-six daring young fellaheen and some from Jerusalem, holding their swords in their hands, jumped up into the mill; thence they ran to the Dung Gate, and breaking the locks, they threw it open. The fugitives of Jerusalem and the fellaheen poured into the city quickly without a word. The Bimbashi, being informed, quickly summoned, with drums and trumpets, all his soldiers who were on the walls and shutting the Gate of the citadel, they took up their position on the battlements beside the cannon and made ready for the attack. Then the people of Jerusalem, who said that they did not have any arms, appeared fully armed and joined the fellaheen.
Footnotes

1a Three supports were broken near the base. The belfry and the arches were shaken. Many of the cisterns in Jerusalem were cracked and the water hewed out of them.

1b The wall of the Church was cracked near where the Armenians celebrate. The tower of St. John Damascenus in the monastery of St. Saba was completely cracked.

English translation from Greek by Spyridon (1938) - embedded



Chronology
Year Reference Corrections Notes
6 am Sunday 25 May 1834 CE At six o'clock on Sunday morning, May 13th 1834 CE none
  • Neophytos' date (13 May) and day of the week (Sunday) are correct in the Julian Calendar but not in the Gregorian Calendar
  • Neophytos' date was converted to the Gregorian Calendar using fourmilab
  • The Greek Orthodox Church has not adopted the Gregorian Calendar
  • 25 May 1834 CE fell on a Sunday in the Gregorian Calendar (calculated using CHRONOS)
  • 13 May 1834 CE fell on a Sunday in the Julian Calendar (calculated using fourmilab)
Seismic Effects Locations Online Versions and Further Reading
References

Voyage dans l’Asie-Mineure en 1836–7 by Baptisin Poujoulat

Biography

Biography

Excerpts
English from Poujoulat (1840) Volume 2

This siege, begun on the 8th of June, had lasted for ten eight days, and the viceroy's son trembled for his life . At the same time, the plague and a violent earthquake broke out in Jerusalem; the holy city was plunged into the most appalling consternation. At this moment, the 19th regiment line, commanded by Colonel Moustapha Bey, who left Damascus to succor the Egyptian general, was massacred by a numerous troop of mountaineers in the gorges which border the magnificent plain of Esdrelon on the west.

French from Poujoulat (1840) Volume 2

Ce siége, commencé le 8 juin , durait depuis dix huit jours, et le fils du vice - roi tremblait pour sa vie . En même temps , la peste et un violent tremblement de terre éclatèrent à Jérusalem ; lą ville sainte était plongée dans la plus effroyable consternation . En cet instant, le 19" régiment de ligne, que commandait le colonel Moustapha bey , parti de Damas pour aller secourir le général égyptien , fut massacré par une nombreuse troupe de montagnards dans les gorges qui bornent à l'ouest la magnifique plaine d'Esdrelon .

English from Poujoulat (1840) Volume 1

The city walls [of Caesarea] were torn down by the earthquake of 1834. This catastrophe announced itself with a terrible character. One morning we saw coming out of the foot of Mount Argée thick smoke intermingled with flames of a thousand colors, accompanied by a long noise similar to the distant rumblings of an angry tone. In a moment Caesarea was shaken in its foundations; the houses crumbled and were broken, and four thousand people were buried under the rubble. The minarets, the vaults mosques, churches, and carvanaseris are partly collapsed. The people of Caesarea in that moment of terror, believed that the world was about to end, and the angel's trumpet sounded the last day. This earthquake was felt over an area of ten leagues, south of Mount Argée; several villages were incompletely destroyed a salt water lake took the place of a village called Komtzi.

French from Poujoulat (1840) Volume 1

Les murailles de la ville ont été renversées par le tremblement de terre de 1834. Cette catastrophe s'annonça avec un caractère effroyable. Un matin on vit sortir du pied du mont Argée une épaisse fumée entremêlée de flammes aux milles couleurs , accompagnées d'un long bruit semblable aux grondements lointains du ton nerre. En un moment Césarée fut ébranlée dans ses fondements ; les maisons tombèrent en dé bris, et quatre mille personnes restèrent enseve lies sous les décombres. Les minarets , les voûtes des mosquées, les églises , les karavanserails s'é croulèrent en partie. Les habitants de Césarée dans ce moment d'épouvante , crurent que le monde allait finir, et que la trompette de l'ange sonnait le dernierjour. Ce tremblement de terre se fit sentir sur une étendue de dix lieues, au sud du mont Argée ; plusieurs villages furent en tièrement détruits un lac d'eau salée prit la place d'un bourg appelé Komtzi.

French from Poujoulat (1840) Volume 2 - embedded



French from Poujoulat (1840) Volume 1 - embedded



Chronology
Year Reference Corrections Notes
1834 CE 1834 CE none
Seismic Effects Locations Online Versions and Further Reading
References

Biblical Researches in Palestine, Mount Sinai and Arabia Petraea, A Journal of Travels in the Year 1838 by Edward Robinson

Biography

Biography

Excerpts
English from Robinson (1841)

Asphaltum. Our Arabs picked up along the shore small pieces of bitumen, asphaltum, (Arabic el-Hum- fnarj) which we brought away. Our Sheikh of the Ta'amirah told (as a report) the same story of its origin, which was heard by Seetsen and Burckhardt, viz. that it flows down the face of a precipice upon the eastern shore, until a large mass is collected, when from its weight or some shock it breaks of or and falls into the sea.1 The Sheikh of the Jehalin, who afterwards accompanied us to Wady Musa, related the same report ; assigning the place on the North of the peninsula. It cannot of course be South of the isthmus ; for the road travelled by Irby and Mangles and their party passes all the way at thee foot of the rocks along the shore. Nor is it probable that any such spot exists further North; we had the eastern coast very distinctly in sight for two days, as we travelled along the western shore, and examined it continually with our glasses ; so that any such marked point upon the rocks would hardly have escaped our notice. All agreed, that there was nothing of the kind upon the western coast.

More definite and trustworthy was the account which the Arabs gave us of the appearance of the bitumen in the sea. They believe that it thus appears only after earthquakes. The Sheikhs above mentioned, both of the Ta'amirah and Jehalin, related that after the earthquake of 1834, a large quantity of asphaltum was cast upon the shore near the S. W. part of the sea ; of which the Jehalin brought about sixty Kuntars into market.2 My companion also remembered that in that year, a large amount had been purchased by the Frank merchants at Beirut. During the last year also, after the earthquake of Jan. 1st, 1837, a large mass of bitumen (one said like an island, another like a house) was discovered floating on the sea, and was driven aground on the west side, not far to the North of Usdum. The Jehalin and the inhabitants of Yutta swam off to it ; and cut it up with axes, so as to bring it ashore. The Ta'amirah heard of it, and went to get a share. They found seventy men already upon and around it. It was carried off by camel-loads, partly up the pass of 'Ain Jidy ; and sold by the Arabs for four Piastres the Rutl or pound. The share of 4he Ta'amirah brought them more than five hundred dollars ; while others sold to the amount of two or three thousand dollars. — Except in those two years, the Sheikh of the Jehalin, a man fifty years old, had never known of bitumen appearing in the sea, nor heard of it from his fathers.
Footnotes

1 Seetzen in Zach's Monatl. Corr. XVIII. p. 441. Burckhardt, p. 394. English. Lane's Mod. Egypt. IL p. 372.

2 The Kuntar is about 98 lbs.

English from Robinson (1841) - embedded



Chronology
Year Reference Corrections Notes
1834 CE 1834 CE none
Seismic Effects Locations Online Versions and Further Reading
References

Denkblatter aus Jerusalem by Titus Tobler

Biography

Biography

Excerpts
English from Tobler (1853)

In July 1834, a strong earthquake threw down several piles, and also blew out one part of the wall by a Mosque10, and threatened the collapse of the Latin Rlofters11.
Footnotes

9 Geramb 1, 325. Rurz vor der Ankunft Röfers (Krantbeiten des Orients. 43).

10 Unflar. Geramb a. a. D.

11 Röſer a. a. D. Gehr Zehrreidhes über Erdebeben ſ. Bolney 1, 234 f.

German from Tobler (1853)

Im Heumonat 1834 warf ein beftiges Erdbeben mehrere Häufer um9, ftieß auch einen Theil der zur Moſchee übergehennen Mauer um10, und brohte den Einſturz des lateinifchen Rlofters11.
Footnotes

9 Geramb 1, 325. Rurz vor der Ankunft Röfers (Krantbeiten des Orients. 43).

10 Unflar. Geramb a. a. D.

11 Röſer a. a. D. Gehr Zehrreidhes über Erdebeben ſ. Bolney 1, 234 f.

German from Tobler (1853) - embedded



Chronology
Year Reference Corrections Notes
July 1834 CE July 1834 CE none
Seismic Effects Locations Online Versions and Further Reading
References

The Land and the Book by William McClure Thomson

Biography

Biography

Excerpts
English from Thomson (1861)

CHAPTER XXXIV.

JAFFA, OR JOPFA.

April 10th (1857 CE).

...Let us now enter and ascend this campanile by its winding stairs of one hundred and twenty-six steps. The entire height cannot be much less than one hundred feet. Twenty-three years ago [1834 CE], after this tower had been rudely shaken by an earthquake, which cracked nearly all the houses in Ramleh, and threw down many, I ascended to see if it had been injured ; but it stood precisely as before, not a rent or crack from bottom to top, and thus it has stood a hundred earthquakes uninjured. It is twenty-five feet square at the base, and diminishes by graceful offsets, dividing it into different storeys, with various-- shaped windows and architectural embellishments. The summit has been accommodated with a round tower and balcony, to fit it for the muezzin of the mosque ; but this is obviously an anomalous addition to the original structure, and most of it has been shaken down by those earthquakes which have had no effect on the body of the tower.

At the time I speak of, the whole of this country was in revolt against Ibrahim Pasha and Mohammed Aly of Egypt. I was shut up in Ramleh for many anxious days, and often came to this lofty look-out to watch the movements of the opposing forces with a heavy heart, for my family was in Jerusalem — the only Franks there, with one exception — and the city was in the hands of the rebels. After returning from one of these sad and solitary watchings, I wrote in my journal as follows :
The view from the top of the tower is inexpressibly grand. The whole plain of Sharon, from the mountains of Judea and Samaria to the sea, and from the foot of Carmel to the sandy deserts of Philistia, lies spread out like an illuminated map. Beautiful as vast, and diversified as beautiful, the eye is fascinated, the imagination enchanted, especially when the last rays of the setting sun light up the white villages which sit or hang upon the many-shaped declivities of the mountains. Then the lengthening shadows retreat over the plain and ascend the hill sides, while all below fades out of view under the misty and mellow haze of summer's twilight The weary reapers return from their toil, the flocks come frisking to their folds, and the solemn hush of Nature shutting up her manifold works and retiring to rest, all conspire to soothe the troubled heart into sympathetic repose. At such an hour I saw it once and again, and often lingered until the stars looked out from the deep sky, and the breezes of evening shed soft dews on the feverish land. What a paradise was here when Solomon reigned in Jerusalem, and sang of the ' rose of Sharon !' Better still will it be when He that is greater than Solomon shall sit on the throne of David his father ; for ' in his days shall the righteous flourish, and abundance of peace so long as the moon endureth. The mountains shall bring peace to the people, and the little hills, by righteousness.1
Footnotes

1 Ps. lxxiL 3.7.

English from Thomson (1861) - embedded

  • Part III Chapter XXXIV. Jaffa or Joppa
  • see bottom paragraph of page 530 starting with Twenty-three years ago, after this tower had been rudely
  • from Thomson (1861:529-530)
  • from archive.org


Chronology
Year Reference Corrections Notes
Late May/Early June 1834 CE see Notes none
  • William McClure Thomson recalled his experience in Ramleh during the 1834 CE Fellahin Revolt Earthquake which he dated to 23 years before he was writing (~April 1857 CE) and while the rebels occupied Jerusalem - which took place in late May and early June of 1834 CE
Seismic Effects Locations
Footnotes

1 Thomson (1861:502) wrote something in 1857 CE that may or may not recall earlier seismic damage to the walls of Caesarea during the 1834 CE Fellahin Revolt Earthquake

I recalled the day and night I spent among Caesarea's broken walls and prostrate columns more than twenty years ago. Fresh from scenes of war, and earthquake, and sickness, and death in Jerusalem, I then felt a mysterious sympathy with these sad and forsaken ruins.

Online Versions and Further Reading
References

History of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem

Excerpts

English from Dowling (1913)

Chapter XIV - Important Events connected with the History of the Church of the Resurrection

... 1834 The Dome of the Catholicon was partly destroyed by an earthquake. It was repaired by the Greeks.

Footnotes

1 For additional details see Mr. George Jeffrey's valuable The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Jerusalem: Extract from the Journal of the Royal Institute of British Architects, 3rd series, Vol. XVII, Nos. 18, 19, 20.

English from Dowling (1913) - embedded



Chronology
Year Reference Corrections Notes
1834 CE 1834 CE none
Seismic Effects Locations Online Versions and Further Reading
References

Menahem Mendel of Kamieniec

Biography

Biography

Excerpts
Characterization by Zohar et al (2015)

Zohar et al (2015:244 n. 2) report that Menahem Mendel of Kamieniec (1800-73) dates the event to the 30th count of the Jewish ‘Omer’. That is, the Hebrew date of Iyyar, 14th which corresponds to the Gregorian date of Friday, 23rd of May (Mendel 1839). He also notes that there were two tremors: one at noon and the second at night (Mendel 1839).

Chronology
Year Reference Corrections Notes
23 May 1834 CE none
  • Calculated using CHRONOS
  • Zohar et al (2015:244 n. 2) report that Menahem Mendel of Kamieniec dated the event to the 30th count of the Jewish ‘Omer’ which, according to Zohar et al (2015:244 n. 2), corresponds to the Hebrew date of Iyyar, 14th
  • Hebrew Year of 5594 is assumed
  • 14 Iyyar 5594 fell on a Friday (calculated using CHRONOS)
  • According to Zohar et al (2015:244 n. 2), Menahem Mendel of Kamieniec wrote that there were two tremors: one at noon and the second at night (Mendel 1839).
Locations Online Versions and Further Reading
References

Other Authors

Ambraseys (2009)

Amiran et al (1994) Other References

Archaeoseismic Evidence

Location (with hotlink) Status Intensity Notes
Jerusalem - Introduction n/a n/a n/a
Jerusalem - Mount Zion possible to probable ≥8 Zohar et al (2015) compared drawings from 1833 CE and earlier to drawings and photographs from 1838 CE and later to conclude that the Ottoman minaret known as al-Nabi Da'ud on top of King David’s Sepulchre at Mount Zion was rebuilt to a shorter size likely due to damage incurred in the 1834 CE Fellahin Revolt Quake. The contemporaneous eye-witness source Neophytos wrote that a minaret fell in Jerusalem. Minarets are frequently damaged during earthquakes due to their vulnerability to seismic shaking.
Dhiban possible Tristram et al. (1873:135), while speculating on the discovery of the Mesha Stele in 1868 CE, suggested that the Stele was first exposed during the Safed earthquake of 1 January 1837 CE probably unaware that if an earthquake from around that time exposed the Mesha Stele, it would probably have been the 1834 CE Fellahin Revolt Earthquake.
Location (with hotlink) Status Intensity Notes
Jerusalem - Introduction



Jerusalem - Mount Zion



Dhiban



Tsunamogenic Evidence

Paleoseismic Evidence

Location (with hotlink) Status Intensity Notes
Taninim Creek Dam possible
Flame structures - ~1500-~1900 CE

Marco et al (2014) observed zigzaged flame structures atop a permeable lacustrine unit wedged between two impermeable units. They interpreted the flame structures to be a result of overpressures or liquefaction. They surmised that the liquefaction was either induced directly by seismic shaking or by loading from a tsunami that breached the dam and placed a load of ~3 m of (additional ?) sloshing water above the sediment-water interface. Stone displacements observed on the northern part of the dam along with the spatial distribution and the zigzaged nature of the flame structures (indicating shearing) led them to favor the tsunamogenic interpretation. If correct, a tsunamogenic interpretation suggests an offshore slope failure during the causitive earthquake as active faults are not known to be present in this part of the coast.

The flame structures would have formed below the sediment water interface making this event difficult to date. Dating was approximate and was based on stratigraphy, archaeology, and textual accounts. The permeable lacustrine unit was assumed to have been deposited within an artificial lake that formed behind a dam that was originally constructed around 400 CE. Based on an estimated deposition rate, Marco et al (2014) surmised that it was deposited between ~400 CE and ~1400-1700 CE. Only one organic sample taken about 0.3 m above the flame structures produced a radiocarbon date. It dated to 250 yrs BP. Error bars were not presented but can be assumed to be between ±20 and ±75 years. Marco et al (2014:1451-1453) argued that a fresh brackish water lake behind the dam was present in some form during the late Ottoman period, possibly until the 18th century CE, due to the presence of flour mills on the west side of the dam which would have been powered by water from the dam. However, this may be contradicted by the presence of a pedogenic soil which formed above the permeable lacustrine unit presumably after the lake dried out. The pedogenic soil, however, contained freshwater fossils suggesting that the lake may have dried out, formed a soil horizon, and then filled intermittently again.

It also has to be noted that some dates discussed in their paper (e.g. dating the the sharp lithological boundary between the permeable lacustrine unit and the overlying clayey unit to circa 18th century) disagree with the Century track in the stratigraphic column they presented in Figure 3.

Historical evidence was based on Ambraseys and Barzanagi (1989) who, according to Marco et al (2014:1457), described "boats that were swept ashore from the Akko harbor (50 km north of the studied site), and a large wave that was reported from as far south as the Nile Delta", presumably due to the 25 Nov. 1759 CE Baalbek Quake. Although Marco et al (2014) suggested that the 25 Nov. 1759 CE Baalbek Quake was the most likely candidate for the flame structures, the date is, unfortunately, not well constrained.

Dead Sea - Seismite Types n/a n/a n/a
Dead Sea - ICDP Core 5017-1 possible to probable 6 Lu et al (2020a) associated a 3 cm. thick turbidite in the core to the 1834 CE Fellahin Revolt Earthquake. CalBP is reported as 153 ± 44 yr B.P. This works out to a mean date of 1797 CE with a 1σ bound of 1753 - 1841 CE.
Dead Sea - En Gedi possible see table
Potential Seismites in En Gedi

Migowski et. al. (2004) identified several seismites from around this time.

Depth (cm.) Thickness (cm.) Seismite Type Min. Intensity Max. Intensity Quake Assignment (Migowski) Quake Assignment (Williams)
-13 10 4 8.2 9.0 1927 CE not assigned
3 3 4 8.0 8.8 1837 CE 1834 CE
8 3 4 8.0 8.8 1822 CE not assigned - 1822 CE Quake unlikely - too far away
22 2 4 8.0 8.8 1759 CE not assigned
27 12 4 8.2 9.0 1712 CE not assigned
41 4.8 4 8.1 8.9 1656 CE not assigned
52 1 1 5.6 7.0 1588 CE not assigned

Dead Sea - Nahal Ze 'elim possible n/a
Potential Seismites at site ZA-1

At site ZA-1, Ken-Tor et al (2001a) identified two seismites from around this time. Event H was higher up in the section.

Event Thickness (cm.) Seismite Type Modeled Age (± 2σ) Intensities Quake Assignment (Ken-Tor) Quake Assignment (Williams)
G 50 Liquefied Sand 1815 CE ± 145 unavailable for now - different mechanism 1834 CE Quake not assigned
H 30 Liquefied Sand 1595 CE ± 75 unavailable for now - different mechanism 1927 CE Quake not assigned

Araba - Introduction n/a n/a n/a
Araba - Qasr Tilah possible ≥ 7 Haynes et al. (2006) dated Event I to between 1515 and 1918 CE and suggested it was most likely a result of the 1546 CE earthquake.
Araba - Taybeh Trench possible ≥ 7 LeFevre et al. (2018) dated Event E1 to 1744 CE ± 56.
Araba - Trenches in Aqaba possible ≥ 7 Niemi (2011:153) noted that the most recent scarp-forming event fault [in Trench AQ-1] occurred after A.D. 1045-1278 based on a corrected, calibrated radiocarbon age from charcoal collected from a buried campfire at the base of the scarp in Trench T-1. This likely represents fault motion in one of the historical earthquakes affecting southern Jordan (e.g. 1068, 1212, 1458, or 1588).
Location (with hotlink) Status Intensity Notes
Taninim Creek Dam



Dead Sea - Seismite Types



Dead Sea - ICDP Core 5017-1

Lu et al (2020a) associated a 3 cm. thick turbidite in the core to the 1834 CE Fellahin Revolt Earthquake. CalBP is reported as 153 ± 44 yr B.P. This works out to a mean date of 1797 CE with a 1σ bound of 1753 - 1841 CE. Ages come from Kitagawa et al (2017). The deposit is described as a 3 cm. thick turbidite (MMD). Lu et al (2020) estimated local seismic intensity of VI which they converted to Peak Horizontal Ground Acceleration (PGA) of 0.09 g. Dr. Yin Lu relates that "this estimate was based on previous studies of turbidites around the world (thickness vs. MMI)" ( Moernaut et al, 2014). The turbidite was identified in the depocenter composite core 5017-1 (Holes A-H).

See the following from Lu et al (2020b) regarding estimating intensity from turbidites:

Previous studies have revealed that the intensity threshold for triggering historic turbidites are variable in different regions and range from MMI V½ to VII½ (Howarth et al., 2014; Moernaut, 2020; Van Daele et al., 2015; Wilhelm et al., 2016). The intensity threshold constrained from the Dead Sea data (≥VI½) is situated in the middle of this range.

Previous studies in Chilean lakes have indicated that the (cumulative) thickness of historic turbidites across multiple cores correlates with seismic intensity, and can thus be used to infer paleo-intensities in this setting (Moernaut et al., 2014). However, in the case of the Dead Sea core 5017-1, there is a random relationship (a correlation factor of 0.04) between the thickness of prehistoric turbidites and seismic intensity (Figure 5a).


Dead Sea - En Gedi

Migowski et. al. (2004) identified several seismites from around this time.

Depth (cm.) Thickness (cm.) Seismite Type Min. Intensity Max. Intensity Quake Assignment (Migowski) Quake Assignment (Williams)
-13 10 4 8.2 9.0 1927 CE not assigned
3 3 4 8.0 8.8 1837 CE 1834 CE
8 3 4 8.0 8.8 1822 CE not assigned - 1822 CE Quake unlikely - too far away
22 2 4 8.0 8.8 1759 CE not assigned
27 12 4 8.2 9.0 1712 CE not assigned
41 4.8 4 8.1 8.9 1656 CE not assigned
52 1 1 5.6 7.0 1588 CE not assigned


Dead Sea - Nahal Ze 'elim

At site ZA-1, Ken-Tor et al (2001a) identified two seismites from around this time. Event H was higher up in the section.

Event Thickness (cm.) Seismite Type Modeled Age (± 2σ) Intensities Quake Assignment (Ken-Tor) Quake Assignment (Williams)
G 50 Liquefied Sand 1815 CE ± 145 unavailable for now - different mechanism 1834 CE Quake not assigned
H 30 Liquefied Sand 1595 CE ± 75 unavailable for now - different mechanism 1927 CE Quake not assigned


Araba - Introduction



Araba - Qasr Tilah

Haynes et al. (2006) dated Event I to between 1515 and 1918 CE and suggested it was most likely a result of the 1546 CE earthquake.



Araba - Taybeh Trench

LeFevre et al. (2018) dated Event E1 to 1744 CE ± 56.



Araba - Trenches in Aqaba

Niemi (2011:153) noted that the most recent scarp-forming event fault [in Trench AQ-1] occurred after A.D. 1045-1278 based on a corrected, calibrated radiocarbon age from charcoal collected from a buried campfire at the base of the scarp in Trench T-1. This likely represents fault motion in one of the historical earthquakes affecting southern Jordan (e.g. 1068, 1212, 1458, or 1588).



Notes

Zohar et. al. (2016)

Time Date Time Uncertainty Type of Quake Reliability Zone Most Damaged or felt locations Reported Damage Localities Estimated magnitude in previous studies
13:00 26 May 1834 CE. n/a Main and Aftershock Very High Central (Israel and southern Lebanon) Palestine
  • Dead Sea Southwest
  • Caesarea
  • Jerusalem
  • Jaffa
  • Umm al-Rassas
  • Deir Mar-Saba
  • Bet-Lehem
  • Medaba
  • 6.4 Migowski et al. (2004)
  • 6.3 Ben-Menahem (1991)
  • Average magnitude 6.3
  • Size degree Str
  • Casualties n/a
Discussion References

Zohar, M., et al. (2016). "Reappraised list of historical earthquakes that affected Israel and its close surroundings." Journal of Seismology: 1-15.

Ambraseys (2009)

AD 1834 May 26 Palestine

The earthquake happened at 13 h on 26 May 1834 in Palestine during the 1834 revolt at the time of the siege of Jerusalem by the fellahin, who entered the city on the day after the earthquake (Rustam 1923, 17).

In Jerusalem part of the wall, where it forms the outer enclosure of the al-Aqsa mosque, crumbled during the first shock, and some houses and tops of minarets fell (Nicolayson 1911, 83-89). One minaret in the city and another on the Mount of Olives were shaken down, and the cupola of the church of the Ascension caved in (Spyridon 1938). The church of St Prodromos and the masonry dome of the church of the Holy Sepulchre were damaged (PEMS 1834, 176) and, according to others, collapsed (Thompson 1835). In fact the structure was only damaged, with the French and Russians pledging to finance its repair. Houses suffered various degrees of damage without loss of life.

In Bethlehem, 8 km south of Jerusalem, the Church of the Nativity, which had become degraded through neglect, was damaged and the walls of the Church of the Cross were cracked. The church of the monastery of Deir Mar Saba, 9 km southeast of Jerusalem, was cracked in two places and two of its belfries were thrown down (PEMS 1834, 176).

It is said that east of the Dead Sea the earthquake toppled the Moabite monolith of Meisha at Dhiban and damaged historical remains at Madaba, Umm al-Rassas and ai-Rahba (Klein 1868; Anderson 1997). Also, after the earthquake of 1834, a large quantity of asphalt was apparently cast onto the shore near the southwestern corner of the Dead Sea, three tons of which were brought to market by the natives. An identical incident was reported after the earthquake of 1837, with the asphalt driven aground on the western side of the Lisan not far from Jabel Usdun.

On the Mediterranean coast in Jaffa, 54 km west of Jerusalem, according to letters from eye-witnesses, the shocks caused some concern and damaged a few dilapidated free-standing walls, cracking house ceilings (Thompson 1835).

Also in Caesaraea, 85 km northwest of Jerusalem, parts of the remaining old walls and of some houses fell, while four nearby villages were also affected, without casualties (Poujoulat 1840, 154).

The shock was felt along the Mediterranean coast from Gaza and Ascalon Caesaraea to Acre, but not at Tiberias, whch at the time had fallen to the fellahin. Despite the relatively large number of sources that refer to this earthquake, it is not possible to locate its epicentral region (Blanckenhorn 1905; Macalister 1918, 142; Tobler 1856, 34).

References

Ambraseys, N. N. (2009). Earthquakes in the Mediterranean and Middle East: a multidisciplinary study of seismicity up to 1900.

Amiran et al (1994)

Time Date Discussion Sources
04 26 May 1834 CE.
  • Strong, many aftershocks during 10 days

  • Tiberias, `Akko, Nablus, Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Ashkelon, Gaza.

  • Jerusalem: several churches damaged, including the cupola of the Holy Sepulchre. Damage to the city wall, many houses and cisterns, which were emptied as a result of the earthquake. A minaret in the city and one on the Mount of Olives collapsed, as did the cupola of the Ascension.

  • Bethlehem: much damage to the Latin, Armenian and Greek Orthodox monasteries (82). According to (83), many people were killed. Deir Mar Saba: a tower cracked. Large blocks of asphalt floated on Dead Sea (42:11; 229; 84).

  • Willis (1928)
  • Sieberg (1932b)
  • Perrey (1850)
  • Blankenhorn (1905)
  • Arvanitakis (1903)
  • Milne (1911)
  • Ben-Menahem (1979) p. 267
  • Ben-Menahem et. al. (1992)
  • Spyridon (1938)
  • Macalister (1918)
References

Amiran, D. , Arieh, E. and Turcotte, T. (1994). "Earthquakes in Israel and adjacent areas: macroseismic observations since 100 B.C.E." Israel Exploration Journal 44: 260-305.

Ben-Menahem (1991)

Estimated Seismic Parameters from Ben-Menahem (1991)
Time Date Lat.
(°N)
Long.
(°E)
Location I0 ML Discussion
0400 23 May 1834 CE. 31.3 35.6 East of the Lisan X 6.3
  • King Meisha monolith fell to the ground. Discovered by a missionary in 1868 at Dhiban (the ancient Divon), very close to the epicenter. Many columns and arches also fell in the old cities of Moab.

  • Damage in Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Nablus, Gaza, Lisan and Kerak. Large blocks of asphalt floated on the Dead Sea. The shallow water road connecting the Lisan with En-Gedi disappeared and sea became impassable by foot.

  • In his travelogues, Tristram [1874] gives a vivid account of earthquake ruins in the Castle of Rabba (31.34° N, 35.75° E; the Biblical Ashtarot, Karn'aim, Gen 14, 5), Dhiban (31.300N, 35.60°E. Here King Mesha's monolith fell to the ground due to the earthquake of May 23, 1834, which led to its discovery in 1868), Um-Resas (31.53° N, 35.74° E) and Medeba (Figures 4a and 9).

References

Ben-Menahem, A. (1991). "Four Thousand Years of Seismicity along the Dead Sea rift." Journal of Geophysical Research 96((no. B12), 20): 195-120, 216.

Abou Karaki (1987)

23 MAY 1834, 31.3° N 35.6° E
  • East of Lisan, I0 = XI the following towns and sites were damaged: Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Nablus, Gaza, the monastery of Mar-Saba as well as Karak; appearance of large blocks of Asphalt floating on the Dead Sea,..., many columns and arcades of the towns of Moab are fallen, ML = 6.3 (BM1).

  • 1834 A.D., Syria, Palestine, Acre, Jerusalem, Ascalon, Gaza, Tiberias, very strong, several churches were damaged in Jerusalem (Will).
French

23 MAI 1834, 31°,3 N 35°,6 E

  • à l'Est du Lisan, I0 = XI les villes et sites suivants ont été endommagés : Jérusalem, Bétléhem, Naplouse, Gaza, le monastère de Mar-Saba ainsi que Karak; apparition de larges blocs d'Asphalte flottant sur la Mer Morte,..., beaucoup de colonnes et d'arcades des villes de Moab sont tombées, ML = 6,3 (BM1).

  • 1834 apr. J.C., Syrie, Palestine, Acre, Jérusalem, Askalane, Gaza, Tiberias, très fort, plusieurs églises ont été endommagées à Jérusalem (Will).

References

Abou-Karaki, N. (1987). Synthèse et carte sismotectonique des pays de la bordure Orientale de la Méditerranée: sismicité du système de foilles du Jourdain – Mer Morte, University of Strasbourg, France. Ph.D. Diss.

Arvanitakis (1905) Catalog entry



References

Arvanitakis, G. L. (1903). "Essai sur le climat de Jerusalem." Bulletin de lnstitut Egyptien ser. 4(t. 4): 178-189.

Misc. Notes

Investigation of damage reports in Nablus and Tiberias

Arvanitakis (1903) lists Tiberias as receiving damage - cites Archive of the Greek Patriarchs as a source
Milne (1911) no mention of damage in Tiberias or Nablus
Blanckenhorn (1905)
Perrey (1850)
Willis (1928) lists Tiberias - cites Perrey (1850), Arvanitakis (1903), and Vigouroux (1912)
Sieberg (1932a) - 1834 earthquake is not listed
Sieberg (1932b) - lists damage in Tiberias but not Nablus - does not cite a source - 1834, Mai 23, Ausgebreitetes Erdbeben in Palestina, gemeldet aus Hasse, Askalon, Akko und Tabarlje. In Jerusalem kraftige Schaden an Hausern und einigen Kirchen.
Legendre, A. (1912) - lists the 1837 earthquake but not the 1834 earthquake in his brief catalogue.

Wikipedia page for the 1834 CE Fellahin Revolt Quake



Wikipedia page for the Siege of Jerusalem (1834 CE)



Paleoclimate - Droughts

Footnotes

References

References

Source Information

Ambraseys does not list Anderson (1997) in his references but he does list the following :

Anderson, H., Jackson, J. (1987), 'Active tectonics of the Adriatic region', GJRAS, 91, 937-983.

Ambraseys does not list Klein (1868) in his references but he does list the following :

Dowling, T. E. (1913). The orthodox Greek patriarchate of Jerusalem, Society for promoting Christian knowledge.

Klein, S. (1939), 'Remarks on the article by J. Braslayski', Zion, N.S, 4, 90.

Klein, C. (1892), Raimund von Aguilers; Quellenstudie zur Geschichte des ersten Kreuzzuges, Berlin.
Klein, C. (1892), Raimund von Aguilers; Quellenstudie zur Geschichte des ersten Kreuzzuges, Berlin.
Klein, C. (1892), Raimund von Aguilers; Quellenstudie zur Geschichte des ersten Kreuzzuges, Berlin.
Klein, C. (1892), Raimund von Aguilers; Quellenstudie zur Geschichte des ersten Kreuzzuges, Berlin.

MacAlister, R. A. (1918), 'The revolt of 1834', Palestine Exploration Fund, Quarterly Statement, pp. 142-143.

MacAlister, R. A. (1918), 'The revolt of 1834', Palestine Exploration Fund, Quarterly Statement, pp. 142-143.

MacAlister, R. A. (1918), 'The revolt of 1834', Palestine Exploration Fund, Quarterly Statement, pp. 142-143.

Nicolayson vid (1911), 'Journal of a missionary', in Quarterly Statement, Palestine Exploration Fund, Jerusalem, pp. 83-89.

PEMS Echo du Monde Savant, Paris, 1834 p. 176

Poujoulat, B. (1840), Voyage dans l'Asie-Mineure en 1836-7, 2 volumes, Paris: Ducollet. p. 154

Rustam, Asad Jibrail (1923), Syria under Mehmet Ali, PhD dissertation, University of Chicago. p. 17

'Spyridon, S. N. (1938), 'Annals of Palestine 1821-1841', Palest. Orient. Soc., 10, 63L-132.

'Spyridon, S. N. (1938), 'Annals of Palestine 1821-1841', Palest. Orient. Soc., 10, 63L-132.

Thompson, W. M. (1835), 'Journal of missionary Rev. W. M. Thomson', in Missionary Herald Manchester, February, BM PP 1047a.

Tobler, T. (1856), Denkblatter aus Jerusalem, Constanz, pp. 32-35.

Tristram, H. (2014). The Land of Moab: Travels and Discoveries on the East Side of the Dead Sea and the Jordan, Literary Licensing LLC.

Tristram, H. (2014). The Land of Moab: Travels and Discoveries on the East Side of the Dead Sea and the Jordan, Literary Licensing LLC.

Tristram, H. (2014). The Land of Moab: Travels and Discoveries on the East Side of the Dead Sea and the Jordan, Literary Licensing LLC.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Baker_Tristram

Legendre, A. (1912). Orages et tremblements de terre en Palestine. Dictionnaire de la Bible. F. Vigouroux. Vol. 4 - Part 2: 2030-2031.

Vigouroux, F. (1903). Dictionnaire de la Bible, Letouzey et Anne.

Go to page 502/614 in the link below

http://www.4shared.com/web/preview/pdf/Z2iKLYOF

Earthquake Catalogs

Amiran, D. H. K., Arieh, E. and Turcotte,T. (1994). "Earthquakes in Israel and adjacent areas: macroseismic observations since 100 B.C.E." Israel Exploration Journal 44: 260-305.

Arvanitakis, G. L. (1903). "Essai sur le climat de Jerusalem." Bulletin de lnstitut Egyptien ser. 4(t. 4): 178-189.

Blanckenhorn, M., (1905), 'Ober die lezten Erdbeben in Palastina und die Erforschung etwaiger kiinftiger', Z. deutsch. Plast.-Vereins, 27 (2), 206-218.

Kallner-Amiran, D. L. (1952). "A Revised Earthquake-Catalogue of Palestine." Israel Exploration Journal 2(1): 48-65.

Milne, J. B. (1911). Catalogue of destructive earthquakes. Appendix I to Report of the 81st meeting of the British Association for the Advancement of Science. Portsmouth, 1911, August 31-September 7. Ann Arbor, Mich. pp. 694-740

Perrey, A. (1848). Memoire sur les tremblements de terre ressentis dans la peninsule Turco-Hellenique et en Syrie. [Bruxelles]: Acadamie Royale de Belgique.

Sieberg, A. (1932a). Erdbebengeographie, Borntraeger.

Sieberg, A. (1932b). Untersuchungen Uber erdbeben und bruchschollenbau im Astlichen Mittelmeergebiet, ergebnisse einer erdbebenkundlichen Orientreise, unternommen im frajahr 1928 mit mitteln der Notgemeinschaft der deutschen wissenschaft, G. Fischer.

Willis, B. (1928). "Earthquakes in the Holy Land." Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America 18(2): 73-103.