Page 40 - Kol Bogrei Habonim - Winter 20

MERHAVIA’S GLASGOW
CONNECTION
STEPHEN KLINER
Reprinted With Permission From
THE ESRA MAGAZINE, ISSUE NO.
187, DECEMBER/JANUARY 2016,
PAGES 64-65
I Glasgow Jewish attempt at practical
t is some four years plus since I
obtained my Israel Tour Guide Licence.
During the two-year course at the
Hebrew University in Jerusalem, I visited
almost every site of interest throughout the
length and breadth of the country.
I am often asked, which of the many sites I
enjoyed the best or which gave me the most
pleasure.
Whilst naturally fascinated by the classical
Roman sites of Caesarea and Bet Shean, the
Hasmonean/Herodian sites of Massada and
Herodium, and of course, the eternal city of
Jerusalem, the site that evoked the most
passion in me was undoubtedly Merhavia.
Merhavia was the first communal Jewish
agricultural settlement in the Jezreel Valley.
The introductory movie, shown at the
Visitors’ Centre, made a fleeting reference to
a little-known story of four young pioneers
and their families, who in 1911 turned up at
40
the gates of Hatzar Merhavia, the Great
Courtyard of Merhavia, hailing from my
hometown of Glasgow, Scotland.
My curiosity was whetted and following my
visit I was eager to research the story further.
My first port of reference was the book,
“Jewish Glasgow”, which states: “The first
settlement in Israel started in 1909, when a
to establishing an agricultural village, to be
group of families began saving with the view
called Merhavia. This activity was almost
unique among Western Jewish communities..”
It is a known fact that there was little Aliyah
from Western Europe at that time, let alone
from the small Jewish community of
Glasgow, situated on the western edge of
Europe. So, how did it all come about?
The story starts in the late 19th/early 20th
century, when a large influx of Lithuanian
Jews arrived in Glasgow, bringing with them
a strong Zionist commitment.
Glasgow became a popular venue for the
Zionist rallies.
Research into material from the Scottish
Jewish Archive Centre in Glasgow, disclosed
that in 1909 a group of like-minded Zionists