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Jewish Legion
The Jewish Legion was a series of battalions of Jewish soldiers who served in the British Army during the First World War. Some participated in the British conquest of Palestine from the Ottomans.
The formation of the battalions had several motives: the expulsion of the Ottomans, the gaining of military experience, and the hope that their contribution would favorably influence the support for a Jewish national home in the land when a new world order was established after the war. The idea for the battalions was proposed by Pinhas Rutenberg, Dov Ber Borochov and Ze'ev Jabotinsky and carried out by Jabotinsky and Joseph Trumpeldor, who aspired for the battalions to become the independent military force of the Yishuv in Palestine.
Their vision did not fully materialize, as the battalions were disbanded shortly after the war. However, their activities significantly contributed to the establishment of paramilitaries such as the Haganah and the Irgun (which later became the foundation for the Israel Defense Forces).
During the First World War, a debate emerged within the Zionist leadership on whether to support either side, the Entente Powers or the Central Powers, or to maintain neutrality and on the policy that would best ensure the survival of the Jewish community in Palestine during the war and benefit its aspirations for a national home afterward. The debate created a rift between those who supported the Entente Powers and those who supported the Central Powers. The Jews of German origin were patriotic to their country of origin, and the battalions were a British initiative against the Ottoman Empire, which was allied to Germany. Therefore, the "German" Jews opposed the battalions vehemently, and Chaim Weizmann yielded to them by opposing the battalions mainly because the one protecting the Yishuv in Palestine was a German general. There was also the real fear that the Ottomans would carry out a massacre if they decided that the Jews were a fifth column, as had occurred to the Armenians.
Pinhas Rutenberg was a member of the Socialist Revolutionary Party (SR), which, unlike the Bolsheviks, supported the Russians' alliance with Britain. David Ben-Gurion and Yitzhak Ben-Zvi supported the Ottomans and opposed the battalions. What changed their minds completely was the Balfour Declaration, and they later enlisted in the battalion.
During the period leading up to the outbreak of the war in 1914, revolutionaries were waiting for a revolution in Russia. The Okhrana was successful in its activities against the revolutionaries, and SR activists went into exile from Russia. Vladimir Lenin and his colleagues also established the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party, which competed with the SR in exile. When the war broke out, a meeting was held among the SR exiles' leadership, which was divided between the left and the right. Supporters of Ilya Fondaminsky argued that the war would shake the tsarist regime and therefore should enlist and aid the British to hasten the revolution. There was also an opposing trend led by Viktor Chernov, a rival to Rutenberg, who opposed that approach.
Rutenberg went to London, met with Chaim Weizmann and tried to convince him to support the establishment of the Jewish battalions. Rutenberg told Weizmann that the war was an opportunity to advance the idea of a republic in Israel. To convince the Entente Powers, Jewish legions of Jewish exiles needed to be established. According to Professor Matityahu Mintz, Rutenberg preceded Ze'ev Jabotinsky. Rutenberg acted in September 1914, and Jabotinsky began in 1915.
The question arises as to what motivated Rutenberg, who was traveling on behalf of the SR to the British and French capitals to pressure Russia for greater democratisation, engage with the Jewish people and meet Weizmann. Mintz clarifies that for Rutenberg, they were not separate domains. Before his trip, Rutenberg had not spoken about or sought a solution to the Jewish question, but that was a result of Rutenberg's discussions with the SR leadership, who sent him to France. Mintz does not believe that Rutenberg's return to the Jewish people was insincere but emphasises the alignment between his conduct and the interests of the party and of Russia. The evidence for maintaining ties and prioritising the party's interests was Rutenberg's rapid and smooth integration into the government leadership after the February Revolution of 1917, during Alexander Kerensky's Social Revolutionary administration.
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Jewish Legion
The Jewish Legion was a series of battalions of Jewish soldiers who served in the British Army during the First World War. Some participated in the British conquest of Palestine from the Ottomans.
The formation of the battalions had several motives: the expulsion of the Ottomans, the gaining of military experience, and the hope that their contribution would favorably influence the support for a Jewish national home in the land when a new world order was established after the war. The idea for the battalions was proposed by Pinhas Rutenberg, Dov Ber Borochov and Ze'ev Jabotinsky and carried out by Jabotinsky and Joseph Trumpeldor, who aspired for the battalions to become the independent military force of the Yishuv in Palestine.
Their vision did not fully materialize, as the battalions were disbanded shortly after the war. However, their activities significantly contributed to the establishment of paramilitaries such as the Haganah and the Irgun (which later became the foundation for the Israel Defense Forces).
During the First World War, a debate emerged within the Zionist leadership on whether to support either side, the Entente Powers or the Central Powers, or to maintain neutrality and on the policy that would best ensure the survival of the Jewish community in Palestine during the war and benefit its aspirations for a national home afterward. The debate created a rift between those who supported the Entente Powers and those who supported the Central Powers. The Jews of German origin were patriotic to their country of origin, and the battalions were a British initiative against the Ottoman Empire, which was allied to Germany. Therefore, the "German" Jews opposed the battalions vehemently, and Chaim Weizmann yielded to them by opposing the battalions mainly because the one protecting the Yishuv in Palestine was a German general. There was also the real fear that the Ottomans would carry out a massacre if they decided that the Jews were a fifth column, as had occurred to the Armenians.
Pinhas Rutenberg was a member of the Socialist Revolutionary Party (SR), which, unlike the Bolsheviks, supported the Russians' alliance with Britain. David Ben-Gurion and Yitzhak Ben-Zvi supported the Ottomans and opposed the battalions. What changed their minds completely was the Balfour Declaration, and they later enlisted in the battalion.
During the period leading up to the outbreak of the war in 1914, revolutionaries were waiting for a revolution in Russia. The Okhrana was successful in its activities against the revolutionaries, and SR activists went into exile from Russia. Vladimir Lenin and his colleagues also established the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party, which competed with the SR in exile. When the war broke out, a meeting was held among the SR exiles' leadership, which was divided between the left and the right. Supporters of Ilya Fondaminsky argued that the war would shake the tsarist regime and therefore should enlist and aid the British to hasten the revolution. There was also an opposing trend led by Viktor Chernov, a rival to Rutenberg, who opposed that approach.
Rutenberg went to London, met with Chaim Weizmann and tried to convince him to support the establishment of the Jewish battalions. Rutenberg told Weizmann that the war was an opportunity to advance the idea of a republic in Israel. To convince the Entente Powers, Jewish legions of Jewish exiles needed to be established. According to Professor Matityahu Mintz, Rutenberg preceded Ze'ev Jabotinsky. Rutenberg acted in September 1914, and Jabotinsky began in 1915.
The question arises as to what motivated Rutenberg, who was traveling on behalf of the SR to the British and French capitals to pressure Russia for greater democratisation, engage with the Jewish people and meet Weizmann. Mintz clarifies that for Rutenberg, they were not separate domains. Before his trip, Rutenberg had not spoken about or sought a solution to the Jewish question, but that was a result of Rutenberg's discussions with the SR leadership, who sent him to France. Mintz does not believe that Rutenberg's return to the Jewish people was insincere but emphasises the alignment between his conduct and the interests of the party and of Russia. The evidence for maintaining ties and prioritising the party's interests was Rutenberg's rapid and smooth integration into the government leadership after the February Revolution of 1917, during Alexander Kerensky's Social Revolutionary administration.