History events
1303 — (7th of Nisan, 5063) (7 Nisan 5063) A Jewish pogrom in the city of Weissensee (Germany). The cause was an accusation of ritual murder (Blood libel)
1425 — (6 Nisan 5185) The Sharia court in Jerusalem, at the initiative of the Ashkenazi Jewish community, legalized the building of the Rambam Synagogue, which was founded in 1267
1584 — (23th of Nisan, 5344) “Queen Elizabeth I granted Sir Walter Raleigh a charter for the colonization of an area in North America” that would lead him to recruit Joachim Gans to join the expedition which make Gans “the first recorded Jew in Colonial America.”
1817 — (8 Nisan 5577) A decree by Alexander I was published, establishing the «Society of Israelite Christians» in Russia. It was intended to provide material assistance to baptized Jews who, according to the decree, not only lost all help from their former co-religionists but also suffered «persecution from them and oppression of every kind.»
1831 — (11th of Nisan, 5591) “The Colonial Act of William IV which passed the Legislature “today” removed any restraint or disabilities under which persons professing the Hebrew religion” in Barbados “then labored and subjected them like other persons to fines and penalties for the non-performance of duties
1841 — (3 Nisan 5601) A regulation by the Russian government regarding the destruction of Jewish books. Not only «harmful» books were subject to destruction, but also those whose owners refused to pay for their shipment to the censorship committee and back
1872 — (15th of Adar II, 5632) Today, “the Royal Navy launched it first armour-cased iron vessel, the ironclad H.M.S. Thunder” which had “been built by Samuda Brothers, Jewish marine engineers and ship builders.” MG 108
1903 — (26th of Adar, 5663) The Jewish quarter of Port Said, Egypt was invaded and looted by Arabs in consequence of an earlier ritual murder charge that took place on September 17, 1902.
1921 — (15th of Adar II, 5681) Arab demonstrations begin in Haifa protesting Jewish immigration. Following police action designed to break up the gatherings, anti-Jewish riots broke out “during which ten Jews and five policemen were injured” by the rioters
1926 — (10 Nisan 5686) The fifth exhibition of the Association of Hebrew Artists, «Tower of David,» opened in Jerusalem. It closed on April 18.
1935 — (20 Adar II 5695) The first branch of Bank Discount opened in Tel Aviv
1937 — (13th of Nisan, 5697) The Palestine Post reported that Petah Tikva had become Palestine’s second purely Jewish town and had been granted municipal status. The newly formed municipal council was to consist of 15 councilors, of whom one was to be mayor and another deputy mayor
1938 — (22 Adar II 5698) A battle between Arabs and the Haganah during the construction of a road to the settlement of Hanita. Arabs attacked workers from Haifa who were building the road from the camp at the foot of the mountain (Lower Hanita) to the settlement on the summit (Upper Hanita). The guard force came to their aid, meeting the partisans with machine-gun fire, along with two field companies attacking from the flanks. The Arabs retreated. After the road construction was completed, the Arabs attempted to attack again but were once again driven off. Soon after, Upper Hanita became a training camp for preparing field company commanders
1942 — (7th of Nisan, 5702) The government of the Slovak Republic began to deport its Jewish citizens today. The Slovak Republic was one of the countries to agree to deport its Jews as part of the Nazi Final Solution. Originally, the Slovak government tried to make a deal with Germany in October 1941 to deport its Jews as a substitute for providing Slovak workers to help the war effort. After the Wannsee Conference, the Germans agreed to the Slovak proposal, and a deal was reached where the Slovak Republic would pay for each Jew deported, and, in return, Germany promised that the Jews would never return to the republic. The initial terms were for «20,000 young, strong Jews», but the Slovak government quickly agreed to a German proposal to deport the entire population for «evacuation to territories in the east»
1942 — (7 Nisan 5702) The Shoah. The last Jews of Nikopol were shot. In 1939, 3,767 Jews lived in the city.
1942 — (7 Nisan 5702) The Shoah. About 1,000 Jews were deported from Drohobych (Lviv region) to Belzec. A ghetto was created in Kolomyia (about 14,000 Jews) in the Ivano-Frankivsk region. The Jewish «aktion» continued in Lviv: 2,254 Jews were seized, of whom approximately 1,200 who possessed work certificates were released. On the same day, about 100 Jews unable to work were likely shot in Toporiv (Lviv region)
1943 — (18th of Adar II, 5703) A second group of Macedonian Jews who had been imprisoned in tobacco warehouses in Skopje was shipped to the Treblinka Death Camp; The Jewish community from Zólkiew, Poland, was marched to the Borek Forest and executed; One thousand Jews are deported from Marseilles, France, to the Sobibór death camp
1946 — (22th of Adar II, 5706) “A shipload of illegal immigrant arrived” off the coast of Tel Aviv tonight. Several of the immigrants evaded capture by the British and reportedly “found shelter” in the homes of Jews living in Tel Aviv
1947 — (4th of Nisan, 5707) A bank in Tel Aviv was robbed today in broad daylight by a gang believed to belong to the Irgun; In what appears to be another example of an on-going conflict among Arabs over the sale of land to Jews, gunmen attacked the home of Fakhri Eddine, a prominent Arab living in Beisan, seriously wounding five men and a girl
1948 — (14th of Adar II, 5708) As fighting continued today “along the Jaffa-Tel Aviv border” ten Jews were wounded when “four mortar shells fired by Arabs fell in southern Tel Aviv and “squads of the Haganah resumed shellfire at dawn” aimed “at Arab positions
1948 — (14 Adar II 5708) War of Independence. A large convoy ascended to Jerusalem. Nevertheless, the «Purim convoy» was a turning point in the struggle: for the first time, part of a convoy failed to break through to Jerusalem. Yaakov Iges: «After this convoy, despair seized the people. They stopped believing in the possibility of supplying Jerusalem. Our ranks were thinning, and reinforcements did not come. Despair destroyed everything.»
1948 — (14 Adar II 5708) A draft agreement was drawn up between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the French Republic and the Irgun (Etzel). The Irgun undertook to «treat with understanding» France’s interests and expressed firm confidence that an effective alliance would be achieved between the French Republic and «Jewish Palestine.» In return, France agreed to allow the establishment of camps on its territory where volunteers would be assembled. It would organize their military training and supply free of charge weaponry for two infantry divisions according to standard establishment. The Irgun, for its part, would provide a ship. It was purchased in the USA for $131,000. It was a World War II landing craft. It was registered in Panama and named the Altalena. The agreement was made possible through the efforts of Dr. Shmuel Ariel, who used his connections with ministry officials, and Claire Vayde, a Jewish woman and one of the most courageous underground fighters in the French Resistance.
1953 — (9th of Nisan, 5713) Dedication of a new road leading to Sodom
1958 — (4 Nisan 5718) The government rejected Ben-Gurion’s proposal to create a «Radio Newspaper» program, suspecting he intended to use it for election campaigning.
1963 — (29 Adar I 5723) Mossad director I. Harel left his post due to disagreements with Ben-Gurion regarding the activities of German scientists in Egypt who were helping the Arabs develop missile weapons. Ben-Gurion believed the weapons being developed by the Germans did not threaten Israel, as they were morally obsolete; Harel held a different view. Furthermore, Harel publicized information about the Arab-German cooperation, while Ben-Gurion opposed this because he trusted Germany.
1970 — (17 Adar II 5730) A quota was established in the USSR for the emigration of Jews to Israel — 3,000 people per year (it had been 5,000). This decision prohibited issuing exit permits to men and women who were recognized as liable for military service under Israeli law. It also introduced a procedure requiring preliminary discussion of references for applicants at general meetings of the workers’ collectives at the applicants’ places of employment.
1975 — (13 Nissan 5735) — The settlement of Kochav ha‑Shahar was established (according to other sources, in 1979, or on 24 August 1980, when a group of ten young families settled on the site of a former military base that had existed there). It is located in Samaria at an elevation of 600–620 metres, 53 km from Tel Aviv, 23–35 km from Jerusalem, in the east of Mateh Binyamin (a regional council comprising 42 settlements and outposts in southern Samaria)
2024 — (15 Adar II 5784) The Gaza War. Day one hundred and seventy-one. The operation in Khan Yunis was completed, during which about 300 militants were detained, dozens were eliminated, and ammunition and weapons were found. Rocket attacks from Gaza targeted Sderot, Ashkelon, and Ashdod
People
1597 — (6th of Nisan, 5357) Rabbi Samuel Judah Katzenellenbogen, known as “Samuel Judah of Padua, the son of Rabbi Meir ben Isaac Katzenellenbogen and the father of Saul Wahl passed away today
1801 — (11th of Nisan, 5561) Joseph Almanzi, bibliophile and poet, born
1873 — (26th of Adar, 5633) Birthdate of agronomist Selig Suskin, a native of the Crimea who was one of the founder of Be’er Tuvia, and a delegate to the Sixth Zionist Congress
1874 — (7 Nisan 5634) Zevulun Kwartin was born — a cantor and liturgical composer. Died October 3, 1952.
1902 — (16 Adar II 5662) Chaim Moshe Shapira was born in Grodno — an Israeli political and statesman, one of the key Israeli politicians in the early days of the State. Died July 16, 1970.
1906 — The writer Lev Sheinin was born — a militia officer and writer. Died May 11, 1967.
1908 — Maria Roszak was born in Poland. In 1929 she took vows in a Dominican monastery in Krakow. In 1938 she founded a new community in Vilnius. During the Holocaust, she hid Jewish families in the Vilnius monastery and smuggled weapons to underground fighters. Among the Jews she saved was Abba Kovner, the leader of the Vilnius Jewish underground. In 1989 she was recognized as Righteous Among the Nations. Died November 23, 2018.
1910 — (14 Adar II 5670) Benzion Netanyahu was born in Warsaw — a historian, Zionist activist, father of Benjamin and Yonatan Netanyahu. Died April 30, 2012.
1921 — Simone Signoret was born — a French film and theatre actress. Died September 30, 1985.
1981 — (19th of Adar II, 5741) Seventy-two year old Uriel Shelach, the Israeli poet who wrote under the pen name of Yonatan Ratosh passed away today