Zahir al-Umar: The Forgotten King of 18th-Century Palestine

In this episode, Lucas and Luna step back from the familiar ground of the Ottoman Tanzimat and British Mandate to explore an earlier, extraordinary chapter in Palestine's history: the rise of Zahir al-Umar, a Bedouin-born tax farmer who built an independent state in northern Palestine in the 1700s. From his capture of Acre in 1746 to his alliance with the Russian Empire against the Ottomans, Zahir defied the sultan in Istanbul, minted his own coins, and ruled for over four decades. We trace his origins in the Zebdani clan, his conquest of Tiberias and Nazareth, the construction of Acre's walls and aqueducts, and his dramatic fall in 1775 at the hands of the Ottoman admiral Cezayirli Gazi Hasan Pasha. We also explore the legacy of Zahir's rule: the rise of Acre as a major port, the flourishing of cotton and olive trade, and the groundwork for later Palestinian regional identity. Zahir al-Umar remains a controversial figure—some see him as a rebel, others as a proto-nationalist. This episode offers a fresh angle on Palestine's long history, showing that the struggle for autonomy and self-rule long predates the modern era.

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