Old Yishuv's Agricultural Aspirations: A Journey to the Land

The Zionist historical narrative often highlights the Old Yishuv as reluctant to engage in agriculture, preferring to live off donations. But historians suggest otherwise: the aspiration for farming was always there, yet it wasn't feasible until the late 19th century.

Professor Eliav notes: "Since the revival of the settlement in the late 18th century, a desire to engage in agricultural work and settlement as part of the vision of the Return to Zion was evident."

Historian Yehoshua Kaniel, while distinguishing between the goals of those who immigrated before 1840 and those after, acknowledges that in the 1860s and 1870s, the Old Yishuv was driven by desires to settle and build the land: "Evidence and signs show a shift in the Old Yishuv, with people aiming to acquire land and earn from agriculture. This process intensified in the 1860s and 1870s, paralleling the building boom of neighborhoods in Jerusalem outside the walls. Besides advocacy by entrepreneurs in Israel, there are numerous accounts of readiness among residents of the land to engage actively in agriculture, expressed through petitions and demands."

What changed, as mentioned in previous chapters, was the Ottoman law allowing foreign subjects to own land in the Land of Israel.

Kaniel describes the ideology behind the Old Yishuv's turn to agriculture: "There were clear ideological motives involved. Purchasing land in Israel by Jews embodied the spirit of loving the land. This spirit was expressed in various ways: 'through construction, land purchase, and a desire to work the land, establishing settlement companies, and a longing for the nation to return to Zion'... Their plans have immediate operational significance, as the 'time to favor' has come. In the preamble to the regulations of the 'Founders of the Settlement Society' established by the devout in the sixties in Jerusalem, it states: 'We will be the first to pave the way for the rest of Hashem's people to return to their border,' meaning they see themselves as a national mission, as pioneers before the great camp expected to follow."

A movement of religious Zionist settlement emerged among the Old Yishuv: "All those signs of awakening found abroad are present in the land of Israel. The idea of settling the land has become a full-fledged movement... Just as attempts and organizations around settlement companies are found abroad in the 1860s and 1870s, seen as the seeds of 'Lovers of Zion' associations from which settlers came in the 1880s, the similar organizations within the 'Old Yishuv' buying land and settling on it should be seen as leading the awakening and practical execution of the idea of settling Israel."

Here are some examples from the timeline of transitioning to agricultural work:

1839 - Jews of Safed submit a memorandum to Montefiore, signed by Rabbi Avraham of Avrutch, leader of the Hasidim, expressing their desire to farm. A similar wish was expressed by the Jews of Tiberias, and Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Tzoref approached him with a detailed memorandum during his visit to Jerusalem.

1855 - Montefiore selects dozens of families from Safed and Tiberias wanting to farm, providing them land, animals, and seeds, but this effort fails.

1860 - The "Settlement of the Land of Israel" society is established by Dr. Chaim Luria and Rabbis Kalischer and Gutmacher.

A first attempt to establish an agricultural settlement in Motza by Rabbi Shaul Yehuda and Rabbi Yehoshua Yellin. The press reported: "They endured great suffering, facing harassment from Arab neighbors and many bureaucratic hurdles in registering the land officially." But they persisted in cultivating the land.

Active among those advocating for settlement in Israel was Rabbi Yehudah Halevy, leader of the Jaffa community. In a published plan, he proposed starting an agricultural settlement near Jaffa. That same year, Georgian immigrants approached the Alliance Israélite Universelle, requesting assistance to settle on the land. Over fifty Jerusalem residents also appealed to the Alliance, declaring their aspiration to work the land and earn by their toil.