July 23

501: A violent
earthquake hit Eretz Yisrael during which the town of Akko was totally
destroyed.

636: Following
the Battle of Yarmuk Arabs took control of most of Eretz Yisrael from the
Byzantine Empire.

1253: The Jews
were expelled from V…

July 20

356 BCE: 
In Macedonia, King Philip II and Queen Olympia give birth to Alexander
the Great. You can draw a straight line from Alexander’s Hellenization of Asia
Minor to Chanukah to Tisha B’Av, 70 CE.

http://www.biography.com/print/profil…

July 16

622: The
Prophet Mohammed begins his Hijra from Mecca to Medina. This marks the
beginning of the Islamic calendar.  The
importance of this to Jewish history should require no explanation.

1099: As the
Crusaders sacked Jerusalem, they bur…

July 14

1086:
Toirdelbach Ua Briain passed away.  Born
in 1009, he was the King of Munster and the High King of Ireland. During his
reign, in 1079, Jews reportedly made their first appearance in the Emerald
Isle. “The Annals of Inisfallen record …