In 1775 , Ahmed el-Jazzar " the Butcher " brought peace to the region with an iron fist . In 1780 , many Polish Jews settled in the town . During the 18th and 19th centuries it received an influx of rabbis who re-established it as a center for Jewish learning . Around 600 people , including nearly 500 Jews , died when the town was devastated by the 1837 Galilee earthquake . Rabbi Haim Shmuel Hacohen Konorti , born in Spain in 1792 , settled in Tiberias at the age of 45 and was a driving force in the restoration of the city
1837 Galilee earthquake
Galilee earthquake of 1837
Tiberias