Episode 1

Napoleon Bonaparte, seeking to establish a French presence in Ottoman-controlled Palestine, laid siege to the walled city of Acre in 1799. He advertised Palestine as a homeland to the Jews under French protection, calling on them to 'rise up' against their 'oppressors.' While his assault failed, Napoleon's project for a Jewish homeland in the region under a colonial protectorate would go on to be revived by the British 40 years later.