SIR MOSES MONTEFIORE
The project “for Cultivation of the Land in Palestine”
――Abraham Shoshana and Samuel Aboo――Sir Moses and Lord
Palmerston――Great Britain’s protection of the Jews in the East
――Lord Aberdeen――Sir Stratford Canning――Dr. Edward Robinson
――Burghas _Bey_――A new journey to the East.
ENGLAND and English Jews deserve indisputably to be placed in the
forefront of Zionism. A great pioneer of Anglo-Jewish Zionism during
the Palmerston period was Sir Moses Montefiore (1784‒1885). He was
a man of great stability and magnanimity of character, and was much
admired by Jew and Gentile alike. There have been few Jews in history
who have been able to look back on a life of useful and beneficial
activity with so much gratification as he, or who were so entitled to
feel proud of the fact that throughout their lives they had done their
duty not only to the country in which they lived, but to the ancient
land of their fathers, to the English people as English patriots and
to the Jewish nation as faithful sons of their race.
Sir Moses was an enthusiastic supporter of “The Fund for the
cultivation of the land in Palestine by the Jews.” This was the
harmless name given to Zionism at the beginning of his activity. We
read in the _Diaries of Sir Moses and Lady Montefiore_¹:――
¹ Diaries of Sir Moses and Lady Montefiore ... Edited by Dr.
L. Loewe,... In Two Volumes, With Illustrations. Vol. i.
London ... 1890, _p._ 167.
“Friday, May 24th (1839, Safed)....
“The heads of the Portuguese and German congregations came to pay
their respects to Sir Moses and Lady Montefiore (1784‒1862). Two
of these gentlemen, the Rev. Abraham Shoshana and Samuel Aboo, were
landowners in a neighbouring village, and gave their opinion on the
subject of agriculture. Sir Moses, referring in his diary to the
conversation, says:――
‘From all information I have been able to gather, the land in this
neighbourhood appears to be particularly favourable for agricultural
speculation. There are groves of olive trees, I should think, more
than five hundred years old, vineyards, much pasture, plenty of wells
and abundance of excellent water; also fig-trees, walnuts, almonds,
mulberries, etc., and rich fields of wheat, barley, and lentils; in
fact it is a land that would produce almost everything in abundance,
with very little skill and labour. I am sure if the plan I have in
contemplation should succeed, it will be the means of introducing
happiness and plenty into the Holy Land. In the first instance, I
shall apply to Mohhammad (Mehemet) Ali for a grant of land for fifty
years; some one or two hundred villages; giving him an increased
rent of from ten to twenty per cent., and paying the whole in money
annually in Alexandria, but the land and villages to be free, during
the whole term, from every tax or rate either of _Pasha_ or Governor
of the several districts; and liberty being accorded to dispose
of the produce in any quarter of the globe. The grant obtained, I
shall, please Heaven, on my return to England, form a company for
the cultivation of the land and the encouragement of our brethren in
Europe to return to Palestine. Many Jews now emigrate to New South
Wales, Canada, _etc._, but in the Holy Land they would find a greater
certainty of success; here they will find wells already dug, olives
and vines already planted, and a land so rich as to require little
manure. By degrees I hope to induce the return of thousands of our
brethren to the Land of _Israel_. I am sure they would be happy in the
enjoyment of the observance of our holy religion, in a manner which is
impossible in Europe.’”
Political steps were undertaken and representations made. Sir Moses
spoke to Lord Palmerston about agriculture for the Jews in Palestine:――
“On April 30th (1840) the Committee proceeded to Downing Street,
and were most kindly received by Lord Palmerston. He promised to use
his influence with Mohhammad Ali and the Turkish Government to put a
stop to such atrocities.¹ Sir Moses mentioned on this occasion, when
Lord Palmerston was speaking of his visit to Palestine, Mr. Young’s
humanity at _Jerusalem_, and also the fact that the Jews were desirous
of being employed in agricultural pursuits.”²
¹ Damascus.
² _Ibid._, _p._ 214.
Then arose the question of Great Britain’s protection of the Jews in
the East:――
“His brethren in the East appealed to Sir Moses to intercede with
the English Government to take them under their protection. They
complained of being compelled by local governors to pay heavier
taxes than any of the non-Israelite inhabitants. Both Lord Palmerston
and his successor Lord Aberdeen listened with great kindness to the
statements made to them on that subject by Sir Moses. Lord Palmerston,
in reply to his representations, said the Christians had suffered more
than the Jews from the Governor being a fanatic, and added that he
(Sir Moses) had his authority to write to the Jews in the East that
if they had any serious complaints to make, the English Consuls would
attend to them, and forward them to the Ambassador at Constantinople,
who would represent them to the Ministers of the Porte....
“Lord Aberdeen, with whom he subsequently had an interview on the same
subject, said that he saw no objection to the British Consul receiving
the statements of grievances made by the Jews, and transmitting such
statements to the British Ambassador in Constantinople, who would be
directed to confer thereon with the Ministers of the Porte, with a
view to the redress of the grievances complained of.”
“On Sir Moses pressing the desire of the Jews in the East to be
brought under British protection, his Lordship said that he did
not see how it could be accomplished. All the European Powers were
extremely jealous of any interference on the part of England. His
Lordship added, however, that he would consider the best means to
afford the Jews protection for the sake of humanity and justice.
“On the 7th November, Sir Stratford Canning (1786‒1880),¹ previous
to leaving for Constantinople, called on Sir Moses, and afterwards
sent him a note, appointing to see him on the following day at twelve
o’clock. Sir Moses accordingly went to him. The purpose of this
interview was to solicit protection for the _Israelites_ in the East.
Sir Moses informed him of the directions given by Lord Palmerston, and
Sir Stratford said he would be happy to do all that his duty permitted,
and to hear from Sir Moses whenever he pleased. They had a long and
interesting conversation respecting the Jews and the Holy Land, and
Sir Moses was exceedingly satisfied by Sir Stratford’s kindness.”²
¹ The Rt. Hon. Sir Stratford Canning――afterwards Viscount
(1852) Stratford _de_ Redcliffe, G.C.B.
² _Ibid._, _pp._ 303‒304.
It may be pointed out here that the extension of Great Britain’s
protection to the Jews in the East was at that time regarded in other
countries as something to which the Jews were justly entitled, and the
granting of this protection was supposed to be necessitated by English
policy.
Dr. Edward Robinson (1797‒1863), the eminent American scholar, wrote:――
“France has long been the acknowledged protector of the Roman Catholic
religion, in the same Empire; and the followers of that faith find
in her a watchful and efficient patron;... In the members of the
Greek Church, still more numerous, ... the Russians have even warmer
partisans.... But where are England’s partisans in any part of Turkey?
That England, while she has so deep a political interest in all that
concerns the Turkish Empire, should remain indifferent to this state
of things in Syria, is a matter of surprise.”¹
¹ Biblical Researches in Palestine,... By Edward Robinson,
D.D.... Vol. iii. London, MDCCCXLI., _pp._ 464‒465.
Notwithstanding the formal difficulties indicated by Lord Aberdeen
the scheme grew, and Sir Moses received very sincere promises, for
despite the force of Lord Aberdeen’s reasoning, it was too subtle
to commend itself to the common sense of Sir Moses, who was acting
not as a diplomatist, but as an ardent protector of his oppressed
people. The two points in Sir Moses’ programme were his scheme for the
colonization of Palestine and his efforts to obtain British protection.
Sir Moses had started his second voyage to Palestine in 1838. He was
then already a friend of Mehemet Ali. Reaching Alexandria on July 13th,
he was cordially received by the _Pasha_, who listened attentively as
he unfolded his scheme. Mehemet Ali promised every assistance. “You
shall have any portion of land open for sale in Syria,” he said, “and
any other land which by application to the _Sultan_ may be procured
for you. You may have anyone you would like to appoint as Governor in
any of the rural districts of the Holy Land, and I will do everything
that lies in my power to support your praiseworthy endeavours.” He
further gave instructions to the Minister of Finance, Burghas _Bey_,
to confirm these assurances in writing.
“A new era seemed dawning for the Jews of the Holy Land. Sir Moses
returned to England with a light heart, and prepared to put his plans
into execution.... He was still conning over the voluminous data he
had collected, and was constructing in his mind the foundation of a
new commonwealth for Palestine, when he was suddenly called upon to
proceed again to the East,――this time, not as a peaceful reformer,
but as the champion of his people, charged to vindicate their honour
in the face of a foul conspiracy. He cheerfully laid aside his
agricultural schemes, and girded up his loins for the new enterprise.
When he returned home in the following spring, crowned with laurels,
and hailed on all sides as the deliverer of _Israel_, his triumph was
clouded by one sad thought――the projects to which he had devoted the
whole of the previous year were no longer possible. Mehemet Ali had
ceased to be lord of Syria, and his improving rule had been replaced
by the asphyxiating authority of the Stamboul _Effendis_, under whom
questions of social well-being could expect little furtherance.”¹
¹ _The Life of Sir Moses Montefiore_, by Lucien Wolf. London,
1884, _pp._ 78‒79.
In these words Mr. Lucien Wolf, in his excellent _Life_, describes
the change that took place in the plans of Sir Moses. The change was,
however, quite superficial. If we consider all the facts and documents,
we cannot doubt that Sir Moses was a great Zionist throughout his
whole life. His type stands midway in the evolution of Zionism. He
was not unconscious of the exaltedness, the pathos, the revulsion of
feeling that the struggle for the revival of a nation awakens in the
normal mind of a Jew. His rôle as a “champion of his people” in his
Zionist efforts is of far greater importance than his defence of the
unfortunate Jewish sufferers in Damascus. The latter was a necessity,
and it was indeed a great honour for any man to be entrusted with
the perilous mission of defending these innocent martyrs. But
unquestionably noble and necessary as it was to struggle against
those shamelessly fabricated charges which have unfortunately been
brought against the Jews again and again, and to protest against that
gross libel upon the honour and humanity of Judaism, a libel that
accused the Jews of being murderers and cannibals, can such a struggle
be compared for dignity and greatness with the stimulating effort
for national regeneration? What was the result of all these pleas
of defence? Some individuals were saved from martyrdom; but since
then the same terrible accusation has been levelled against the
Jews a hundred times over, and it is hurled at them in our own time
with still greater malice and wickedness than in 1840. No one would
underrate the great value and the imperative necessity of Jewish
self-defence; but the efforts undertaken by Sir Moses in 1838 were
more than merely defensive――they were an attempt to transform the
whole situation.
Reviewing the results of the whole period here surveyed, we see that
what Sir Moses attempted was in fact Zionism, political Zionism. It
was, however, left to a later generation to take up the work afresh,
on lines dictated by sound political reasoning. The new generation had
already an organization behind it; Sir Moses acted as an individual.
He could not have succeeded even if the political circumstances had
been radically different. The first essential to colonization, though
one which has been generally overlooked, is a national movement to
support it. So many illusions are shattered by the cold touch of
reality: the best that the regenerator can do is to close his eyes
and to go boldly forward, supported by the strength and the enthusiasm
of the masses, for in that way he can overcome the most formidable
obstacles. But the practical side has also to be considered.
Colonization can never be successfully established without large
capital and carefully laid plans. All these conditions were lacking in
Sir Moses’ day. It is, therefore, no matter for surprise that the plan
on which Sir Moses had so confidently relied slipped out of his hands.
But Zionism was undoubtedly the greatest and noblest of Sir Moses’
aspirations. He made seven journeys to Palestine together with his
wife, who shared his devotion and enthusiasm: and many of these
journeys were very dangerous. _Jerusalem_ was the watchword of his
life. One of his last expressions, as quoted by a biographer, was:
“I do not expect that all _Israelites_ will quit their abodes in those
territories in which they feel happy, even as there are Englishmen
in Hungary, Germany, America and Japan: _but Palestine must belong to
the Jews_, and _Jerusalem_ is destined to become the seat of a Jewish
Commonwealth.”