Joseph Trumpeldor
Joseph Trumpeldor | |
---|---|
Born | 21 November 1880 Pyatigorsk, Russian Empire |
Died | 1 March 1920 Tel Hai, Occupied Enemy Territory Administration | (aged 39)
Battles/wars | Russo-Japanese War
|
Awards | Cross of St. George |
Joseph Vladimirovich (Volfovich) Trumpeldor (
Early life
Joseph Trumpeldor was born in Pyatigorsk in the North Caucasus of the Russian Empire. His father, Wulf Trumpeldor, served as a cantonist in the Caucasian War, and as a "useful Jew", was allowed to live outside the Pale of Settlement. Though proudly Jewish, Trumpeldor's upbringing was more Russian than traditionally Jewish. Originally in training as a dentist, Joseph Trumpeldor volunteered for the Russian army in 1902. During the Russo-Japanese War, he participated in the siege of Port Arthur, where he lost his left arm to shrapnel. He spent a hundred days in the hospital recovering, but elected to complete his service. When he was questioned about his decisions and told that he was heavily advised not to continue fighting given his handicap, he responded "but I still have another arm to give to the motherland." When Port Arthur surrendered, Trumpeldor went into Japanese captivity. He spent his time printing a newspaper on Jewish affairs and organized history, geography and literature classes. He also befriended several prisoners who shared his desire of founding a communal farm in Palestine. On return from captivity, he moved to Saint Petersburg. Trumpeldor subsequently received four decorations for bravery including the Cross of St. George, which made him the most decorated Jewish soldier in Russia.[3]
Due to his handicap he began to study law. He gathered a group of young Zionists around him and in 1911 they immigrated to Palestine, then part of the Ottoman Empire. At first he joined a farm on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, and then worked for a time at Kibbutz Degania.
World War I
When
Political activism
In June 1917, Trumpeldor returned to Russia in order to convince the Provisional Government to form a Jewish regiment in the Russian army. According to his plan, the regiment would break through the Turkish front in the Caucasus to Eretz Yisrael. Additionally he organised Jews to defend themselves and established the HeHalutz in Russia, a youth organization that prepared immigrants for aliyah, and returned to Palestine himself.[citation needed]
Battle of Tel Hai
On 1 March 1920, several hundred
It is unclear exactly what happened once Trumpeldor assumed command, but an early report speaks of 'misunderstanding on both sides'. Ultimately, a major firefight raged in which seven Jews and five Arabs were killed outright; Trumpeldor was shot in the hand and stomach, and died while being evacuated to Kfar Giladi that evening. The eight Jews were buried in two common graves in Kfar Giladi, and both locations were abandoned for a time.[7]
Last words
The last words attributed to him, "Never mind, it is good to die for our country" (En davar, tov lamut be'ad artzenu אין דבר, טוב למות בעד ארצנו), became well-known in the pre-state Zionist movement and in Israel of the 1950s and 1960s. According to
These words, which quickly spread throughout the Jewish immigrant community in Palestine, are similar to the Latin apophthegm[14] Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori, the line from the Roman lyric poet Horace's Odes (III.2.13), which can be rendered in English as "It is sweet and honourable to die for one's country", or "It is sweet and fitting to die for the fatherland" and which inspired numerous nineteenth- and twentieth-century nationalist patriots internationally.
National hero
After his death, Trumpeldor became a symbol of Jewish self-defence, and his memorial day on the 11th day of Adar is officially noted in Israel every year.
Legacy
Both right-wing and
Israeli rap group Hadag Nahash have a song about Trumpeldor on their debut album Ha-mechona shel ha-groove (2000). The song "Gabi ve Debi" from the 2003 followup Lazuz also mentions Trumpeldor and quotes his famous last words.
The 2015 novel, Joseph's Dream, by Elana Beth Schwab, is based on Trumpeldor's life.[citation needed]
The 2017 Russian-language documentary novel Moi drug Trumpeldor ("My Friend Trumpeldor") by the Saint Petersburg-based author Aleksandr Laskin narrates Trumpeldor's story through the eyes of his friend David Belotserkovsky.[citation needed]
See also
- Trumpeldor Cemetery, Tel Aviv
Notes
- ^ The Zion Mule Corps under Lieutenant-Colonel J. H. Patterson, landed at Helles from 27–28 April, four weeks after being raised, having been stranded at Mudros when its ship ran aground. The corps was embarked in the same ship as the 9th Mule Corps bound for Gaba Tepe and so a detour to Helles was ordered. The mule corps was disembarked under artillery fire from the Asiatic shore, with help of volunteers from the 9th Mule Corps and began carrying supplies forward immediately.[4] In May, Private M. Groushkowsky prevented his mules from stampeding under heavy bombardment and despite being wounded in both arms, delivered the ammunition, for which he was awarded a Distinguished Conduct Medal. Captain Trumpeldor was shot through the shoulder but refused to leave the battlefield.[5]
References
- ^ Idith Zertal, Israel's Holocaust And The Politics Of Nationhood, Cambridge University Press, 2005 p.14
- ^ "Postcard Sent by Joseph Trumpeldor to his Parents from Japanese Captivity / Postcard with a Dedication by Trumpeldor in Hebrew / Real-Photo Postcard from Japanese Captivity | kedem Auction House Ltd". www.kedem-auctions.com.
- ^ Kessler, Oren (March 2, 2020). "The Long Shadow of Joseph Trumpeldor". Mosaic. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
- ^ Alexander, H. M. (1917). On Two Fronts: Being the Adventures of an Indian Mule Corps in France and Gallipoli. New York: E. P. Dutton. pp. 146–148, 154.
- ^ Patterson, J. H. (1916). With the Zionists in Gallipoli. London: Hutchinson & Co. pp. 210, 123–124, 204.
- ^ Henry Laurens, La Question de Palestine, vol. 1, Fayard, Paris 1999, p. 502
- ^ ISBN 0-8050-4848-0.
- ^ Aviel Roshwald, The Endurance of Nationalism; Ancient Roots and Modern Dilemmas, Cambridge University Press. 2006, p. 148.
- ^ Silver, Matthew. "Fighting for Palestine and Crimea: Two Jewish Friends from Philadelphia during the First World War and the 1920s". In Peter Y. Medding (ed.). Jews and Violence: Images, Ideologies, Realities. Studies in Contemporary Jewry, vol. 18. Oxford University Press. pp. 201–218, p. 215, n. 43.
- ^ Yael Zerubavel, "The Historic, the Legendary, and the Incredible: Invented Tradition and Collective Memory in Israel", in John R. Gillis, Commemorations: The Politics of National Identity, Princeton University Press, 1994 pp. 105–126, 115.
- ^ Yael Zerubavel, Recovered Roots: Collective Memory and the Making of Israeli National Tradition, University of Chicago Press, 1995, pp. 159–160, 167.
- ^ Silver, p. 215, n. 43.
- ^ Idith Zertal, Israel's Holocaust and the Politics of Nationhood, Cambridge University Press, 2006 p. 14. Gerry said that his last words were "It is worth dying for our country", and this was later emended. Zertal records that Pinhas Schneourson testified he had heard Trumpeldor, just before his death, in reply to the query: "How are you?", say: "It is good to die for our country." (n. 14)
- ^ Anita Shapira, Land and Power: The Zionist Resort to Force, 1881–1948, Stanford University Press, 1992, p. 101.
Sources
- The personal papers of Joseph Trumpeldor are kept at the Central Zionist Archives in Jerusalem. The notation of the record group is A42.
External links
- Media related to Joseph Trumpeldor at Wikimedia Commons