The Battle of Tel Hai

 

Tel Hai was set up in 1905 as a small agricultural courtyard for six workers from its northern neighbor of El Metullah, (which would become the city of Metulla). It was one of four small isolated Jewish settlements in the northern part of the Hula Valley, the others being Metulla, Hamrah and Kfar Giladi. The confrontation at Tel Hai, to which this museum/memorial is dedicated, took place in March 1920 during the Franco-Syrian War.

 

Following the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in World War 1, this area became part of the French Mandate of Syria as agreed upon by the Sykes-Picot Agreement between France and the United Kingdom. This initially secret agreement was intended to define their future spheres of influence. However, the Arabs felt betrayed by this agreement, as they had been promised independence, and a Franco-Syrian War broke out in early 1920 between France and Syrian Arab nationalists under the Hashemite king. Tel Hai was a border outpost , and the Jewish settlements remained neutral in the dispute.

 

The Zionist organization had been divided as to what to do with the isolated settlements in this area. Some advocated that they should hold out at all costs because of their location by the headwaters of the Jordan River. Others argued that they were in an untenable situation. In the end, the Hashemite loyalists were defeated at the July 1920 Battle of Maysalun, and because of the presence of these Jewish settlements it was agreed that this border area would become part of Mandatory Palestine rather than be controlled by France. This is exactly what the Zionists intended, as they considered the British mandate to be the first stage in achieving statehood.

 

We now need to backtrack some years to the formation of the defense organization HaShomer, the Watchman, and the role of Joseph Trumpeldor. HaShomer was formed in 1909 by Socialist Zionists. Its predecessor was a local defense organization called Bar Giora that had been formed two years earlier. However, its members decided to disband to form an organization that would provide protection to the entire Yishuv. Until this time, settlements had often relied upon Arabs as watchmen, basically as a form of protection money. Hashomer never numbered more than 100 members. They were all armed, although they tried to avoid armed conflict whenever possible. They dressed in local garb, and used horses for rapid mobility. HaShomer also established a number of their own settlements, including Tel Hai, Tel Adash and Kfar Giladi.

 

Joseph Trumpeldor was a valiant Russian who had been an officer in the Russian army. During the Russo-Japanese War he lost his left arm to shrapnel but following his recovery decided to complete his service. Following his release from Japanese captivity once the Russians surrendered, he eventually joined a group that immigrated to Palestine. During the First World War he joined the British Jewish Legion and fought in the Battle of Gallipoli with the Zion Mule Corps, which he helped organize. As an experienced military person, he was sent by HaShomer to organize the defense of Kfar Giladi.

 

The Battle of Tel Hai was a confusing conflict since neither party intended for there to be any shooting. It is not even clear who started it. It is likely that whoever did start the shooting was unaware that it could have been avoided.

 

In March 1920, hundreds of local Shi’ite Arabs marched to Tel Hai and demanded that they be allowed to search the compound for French soldiers. Their request was granted. One of the farmers also shot into the air as a warning to Kfar Giladi, and they sent ten men led by Joseph Trumpeldor. This party attempted to persuade the Arabs to disperse. However, a firefight ensued and Trumpeldor and seven others were killed. Trumpeldor was evacuated to Kfar Giladi, but died several hours later. Tel Hai was evacuated and the Arabs burnt it to the ground.

 

There were a number of sequelae from this episode. It was attested by the physician that accompanied him that Trumpeldor's last words were “Never mind, it is good to die for our country.” (A less accepted version is that Trumpeldor, who only spoke broken Hebrew, uttered a Russian curse on his bad luck). Trumpeldor became a national hero of both the right and left and a symbol of Jewish self-defense against tremendous odds. This was germane at this time, since although neither side was then aware of it, this battle marked the beginning of Jewish Arab armed conflict in Palestine, as some years later the Arabs would organize riots in the country.

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The Revisionist Zionist youth movement (the precursor to Likud) named its youth movement Betar, an acronym for "Covenant of Joseph Trumpeldor." The left-wing remembers him as the defender of kibbutzim. Hence, the Gdud HaAvoda, the Joseph Trumpeldor Work and Defense Battalion, was founded in the year he died and its members established several kibbutzim. 

 

A monument in the form of a statue of a defiant lion was constructed to memorialize the death of Tel Hai's eight defendants. The city of Kiryat Shmona, the Town of the Eight, was also named after them.

 

HaShomer would disband in 1920 and the Haganah was formed to deal with the large defense challenges of the Jewish communities in Palestine. The Haganah would become the nucleus of the Israel Defense Forces during the 1948 War of Independence. Tel Hai was resettled in 1921, but was not large enough to become independent and it was absorbed by Kibbutz Giladi. In 2008 the courtyard was restored and a Visitor Center constructed at the site.