A collection of manuscripts and typescripts written by a member of the Revisionist Zionist movement

(ZIONISM.) FRIEDLANSKY, ARYE

Published by Palestine, 1930

About this Item

This collection of essays, letters, and other papers documents a crucial period during the British Mandate in Palestine. The author, Aryeh (Simochony) Friedlansky, was a member of the Revisionist Zionist movement founded by Ze ev (Vladmir) Jabotinsky. These newly discovered documents shed valuable light in the history of Revisionist Zionism. Revisionists produced a rich corpus of writings on a wide range of topics, in the process creating a radical new vision of the Hebrew national revival (Kaplan, The Jewish Radical Right). At its core Revisionist Zionism was nationalist and thus was at odds with Labor Zionism, the mainstream political system dominating Jewish institutions at the time. These papers record Revisionist Zionism s opposition to many of the political developments of the 1930s. Revisionist Zionism was a comprehensive national philosophy that sought to refashion every aspect of Jewish national life in its image, a philosophy whose political and cultural imprint is still very much evident in modern-day Israel (Kaplan). Subjects include: the formation and constitution of Friedlansky s Youth Group Union in Jerusalem in 1930, the Betar youth movement, Herzl, Jabotinsky, A Letter to the High Commissioner of the British Mandate of Palestine, pro-Arab bias among the British, the rise of violence against Jews in Palestine, Arab riots, promotion of sports among Jewish youth, military service, conscription, and the promotion of a national spirit among Jews in Palestine. Many of the Revisionist documents in this collection demonstrate the movement s campaign for militant action. Several papers concern Jabotinsky s Betar, a Revisionist Zionist youth movement intended to abolish the ghetto mentality of the Jewish people and to cultivate a new kind of Jew powerful enough to build the state of Israel. In The Sportive and Cultural Work in Betar, Friedlansky discusses how Jews must become strong and physically powerful in order to protect themselves. The Question of Legion and Betar: A Movement of Liberation oppose the stereotype of Jew as coward, arguing that a positive militaristic spirit must be instilled in Jewish youth. Unlike members of the Labor movement who saw themselves as workers tied to the land, young Revisionists saw themselves as warriors, the leaders in the fight for independence (Kaplan). Friedlandsky s manuscript Since Then and Until Now: A Few Words about Our Political Situation published in Hatikvah in 1932 criticizes political leaders of the Labor movement for advocating restraint as Arabs riot and kill Jewish civilians in Palestine. Mapai, the dominate Labor party headed by David Ben-Gurion, supported Havlaga, a policy of restraint that prevented Jews from retaliation for Arab attacks, the military was to act only in self defense. Revisionist Zionists did not see the Labor movement s purity of arms as an effective means of establishing a Jewish state. Papers in this collection, including The Blood has not Dried and We Exist on a Volcanic Mountain, address the frustration felt by Revisionist Zionists as Jewish people remained vulnerable in the face of Arab attacks. Jabotinsky and his followers believed that Arabs would repeatedly challenge their colonizers until they fought the colonizers and failed. A peace agreement between the Jews and Arabs in Palestine would come about only after repeated defeat of the Arabs in war. This rare survival documents a major force in the development of the modern state of Israel. The Revisionists embodied the dark side of the Zionist dream, and the violent and militaristic element that they represented has been ignored and overlooked by both the Zionist (and Israeli) academic and the political leadership … (Kaplan). This unusual collection merits preservation and scholarly investigation. 31 items comprising 105 pages, 90 manuscript and 15 typescript. Various sizes. Generally in good condition. Seller Inventory # ABE-1725746100045

Bibliographic Details

Title: A collection of manuscripts and typescripts ...

Publisher: Palestine

Publication Date: 1930

Binding: No Binding

Condition: Near Fine