Destruction of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre
The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, other churches, synagogues, Torah scrolls and other non-Muslim religious artifacts and buildings in and around Jerusalem, were destroyed starting on 28 September 1009 on the orders of the Fatimid Caliph Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah, known by his critics as "the mad Caliph" or "Nero of Egypt". His son, the Fatimid Caliph Al-Zahir, allowed the Byzantines to rebuild the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in 1027–28. The construction of a much diminished ensemble was wrapped up by 1048. This was the second of the two times the church was seriously damaged, the first being in 614 during the Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628.