The District of Acre (also 'Province of') or Akko Sanjak was one of the districts of the Damascus Wilayah, established by the Ottoman Empire in Ottoman Palestine. It is located within the boundaries of the modern State of Israel. The city of Acre was the district's capital.

Origins

The Ottoman Empire took over Acre in 1793. In the early 1800s, under Ottoman control, the District of Acre was created, and was added as a subdivision (sanjak) to the Ottoman Province of Syria. In 1888, the Districts of Acre, Latakia, Tripoli, Beirut, and Nablus were separated from Syria and combined with the Province of Beirut. This lasted until the fall of the Ottoman Empire in 1918.

British

After the dismantlement of the Ottoman Empire in World War I, the Mandate of Palestine, which contained the District of Acre, was assigned to the British in 1920. Palestine remained under British control until it withdrew control of the mandate in 1948.

Israel

In 1948, as a result of both the 1947 UN Partition Plan and the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, 26 of the villages in the District of Acre were depopulated by Israeli forces. The District of Acre was dissolved after the creation of Israel. However, a smaller sub-district of Israel's North District consisting of Acre and a number of towns north and northeast of the city.

Crusades references

During the crusades of the 1200s, the term "District of Acre" was used to identify the city of Acre itself.

See also

• List of villages depopulated during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war