Caesarea
|
Caesarea, seaport of ancient Palestine, on the coast of Samaria, founded about 23 BC by the Judean king Herod the Great. According to the New Testament, it was at Caesarea that the disciple Saint Peter converted Cornelius, the first Gentile, to Christianity. In AD 66 the citizens of Caesarea supported a revolt against the Romans, who then massacred most of the city's Jewish inhabitants. Following the fall of Jerusalem in AD 70, Caesarea was made the capital of Roman Palestine. It fell to the Muslims in 638 and was captured in 1102 during the First Crusade. The site of the ancient city is occupied by modern Sedot Yam, Israel.