TIBERIUS & A WOMAN CALLED DONA GRACIA

Tiberius is located on the shores of the Kinneret (Sea of Galilee) & was founded in 22 C.E.by one of Herod's sons, Herod Antipas. The city has survived the rigours of time, having overcome wars, massacres, earhquakes, floods & economic hardship. Counted as one of the four holy Jewish cities, the others being Jerusalem, Safad & Hebron, Tiberius is an intergral part of Israel's history. It was for a period of time the seat of the Sanhedrin (71 rabbis appointed to sit as a tribunal in every city in the ancient Land of Israel) & was an important spiritual centre during the Roman (63 B.C.E – 324 C.E.) & Byzantine (324 C.E.– 640 C.E) periods, as evidenced by the Jerusalem Talmud which was compiled here. Home to the gravesites of many of Judaism's most prominent sages it has over the centuries been the battleground involving conflicts between Jews, Pagans, Christians & Muslims.

Intertwined within this tapestry of historical events is the story of an amazing & righteous woman, a Jewess by the name of DONA GRACIA (1510-1569).

In 1492 under the leadership of the Catholic monarch's Isabella 1 & Ferdinand 2, the Spanish expelled the Jews from Spain. Among those expelled was the wealthy Benvenista family who relocated to Portugal where Dona Gracia was born in 1510. The tentacles of the Spanish inquisition extended to Portugal & Dona Gracia, (Gracia in Hebrew translates to Hanna), was given the additional Catholic name, Beatrice. The Benvenista family like many other Jewish families were Conversos who practised Catholocism externaly but in secret clung to their Jewish faith. Wealthy in her own right, Dona Grazia married Francesco Mendes Nasi, a fellow converso who came from an extremely succesfull banking family. This union resulted in the birth of a daughter named Reyna. Their combined wealth was envied & attracted the interest of those in power. Tragically, her husband Francesco dies 6 years after their marriage. The families vast financial wealth induced King John 3 of Portugal to exploit the situation by insisting that Dona Gracia's daughter Reyna be brought up in the royal court in exchange for large sums of money. In response, Dona Gracia fled to Holland with her daughter and other members of her family including her nephew, Don Yosef Mendez Nasi the son of her deceased brother. Her brother-in-law Diogo had succesfully established a branch of the family bank in Antwerp, Holland. With the premature death of Diogo, Dona Gracia and her nephew Don Yosef Mendez Nasi took control of their financial empire. Charles 5 of Spain & his sister Queen Marie, regent of the Netherlands, proposed that Dona Gracia's daughter Reyna marry an obscure Spanish nobleman therby aquiring a massive amount of money in the form of a dowry. Dona Gracia responded to this proposal by declaring that she would "rather see her daughter dead". Once again Dona Gracia had to flee, this time to Venice.

Whilst in Venice she was accused of "Judaizing", was arrested & had her assets frozen.The rest of the family fled to Ferrara where her nephew Don Yosef aquired the help of Sultan Suleiman, the ruler of the Ottoman Empire. Realizing the economic benefits of such a family to Turkey & the Empire, he threatened Venice with war . The Venetians relented and freed Dona Gracia who went to Istanbul, where for the first time was able to practise her religion openly.

Throughout her travails, Dona Gracia assisted her fellow Jews fleeing the inquisition. Using her personal wealth she employed secret agents to assist Jews in their escape to safe havens. She supported Yeshivot, hospitals and other instituitions beneficial to the populace. She gave financial help to the needy, provided funds for the printing and publishing of manuscripts and the poor were daily guests at her dinner table. Dona Gracia turned her attention to the Holyland & focused her sites on Tiberius. She wanted to establish a community of Torah scholars & restore the city to its former glory. In 1558 she closed a deal with Sultan Suleiman to lease the city for a fee of 1000 ducats per annum therby creating an independent Jewish City state which became a place of refuge for persecuted Jews. The returning Jews faced immense difficulties as they made their way to the Holyland and many died on route. The rebuilding of the city walls & construction of houses and synangogues began. Mulberry trees were planted in order to provide silk worms with the necessary fodder for the production of silk, a product which would benefit the community economically. By the early 1560's the Jewish population of Tiberius which included some Torah scholars, started to flourish.

Sadly, Dona Gracia's unfortunate death in 1569 prevented her ambitions for Tiberius being fully realized.

Today, Tiberius has a street & hotel named after her, the latter of which houses a Dona Gracia exhibition which in my opinion does not do her justice.

Ron Traub (Tour Guide & Architect) Website : rontraub-tours.com Photo : Rimonah Traub. Sketch : Unknown.