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| CATEGORIES ABOUT UNITED MONARCHY | |
| 11th century bc establishments | |
| 10th century bc disestablishments | |
| ancient israel and judah | |
| hebrew bible | |
| SHOPPER'S DELIGHT | |
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In 1050 BCE (Before Common Era), the Hebrew tribes united to form the Kingdom Of Israel . Saul was the first King of Israel. He unified the tribes under a single Israelite authority, but, according to the Torah , due to his constant disobedience to God, he ruled for only 2 years. David , the second King of Israel, established Jerusalem as Israel's national capital 3,000 years ago. Before then, Shilo had been capital of Israel . David succeeded in truly unifying the Hebrew tribes, and set up a monarchical government. He embarked on successful military campaigns against Israel's enemies, and defeated bitter foes such as the Philistines , thus creating secure borders for Israel. David built up an established centralised government in Jerusalem, a standing army, judiciaries across the land, and a sophisticated infrastructure. Under King David, Israel grew from Kingdom to Empire, and its sphere of influence – militarily and politically – in the Middle East expanded greatly, controlling a number of weaker client states around it. The third King of Israel, Solomon , (meaning "one who peace is his" in Hebrew) was portrayed as a wise leader in the Torah. Solomon constructed the First Temple in Jerusalem. His reign was a time of peace for Israel. Following Solomon's death, tensions between the northern part of Israel containing the 10 northern tribes, and the southern section dominated by Jerusalem and the southern tribes reached boiling point, and in in the north and Judah in the south. Biblical Minimalists hold that there was no such thing as the United Monarchy or wonder whether it was as powerful as the Bible says. SEE ALSO
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