Bethlehem was the birthplace of King David. Over the years it became known as the City of David. Bethlehem was first settled by Canaanite tribes. They built a temple to their god on the place where the mount of the Nativity now sits. Around 1200 B.C.E., the Philistines had housed a large part of their army stationed in Bethlehem. Then it was taken over by the Israelites, becoming the city King David was born in.