Moshe Kagan on "Yosef Trumpeldor"

The pre-state Yishuv (Jewish community) spawned a great number of legendary figures.

Most came from the first and second Aliyot. They were both men and women, from the political leadership of the Zionist movement and some who made their reputation in the Diaspora, in various fields of endeavor. None came close to Yosef Trumpeldor, who died defending the most northern settlement of Tel Chai, during an attack by Arab raiders.

He reportedly died with the words: "Ein davar, tov lamut b'ad artseinu" (Never mind, it is good to die for our land). There wasn’t a child, both in Palestine and the Diaspora, who wasn’t awed by the story of this heroic man.

Yosef Trumpeldor was born in Russia and was a true Russian patriot. During the war with Japan, he joined the Russian army and lost an arm in battle. He was decorated for his courage and obtained the rank of captain, unprecedented achievements for a Jew in the Czarist army. He became a Zionist and in 1912, joined the ranks of young Jews who went to Palestine. As a British officer in World War I, he commanded the Zion Mule Corps at Gallipoli, where he was wounded but again.

He was also a committed socialist who fervently believed in communal living – settling for a time in Deganya, the first kibbutz.

Another leading figure in those days was Vladimir Jabotinsky. In contradistinction to Trumpeldor, he admired Mussolini, but as leader of the Revisionist right wing of the Zionist movement, he couldn’t let the story of Trumpeldor slip away. Being a gifted P.R. man, Jabotinsky fully co-opted Trumpeldor's legacy. The youth movement which he headed became known as Brit Trumpeldor, later to be abbreviated as "Beitar." Members greeted each other ritualistically with "Tel Chai." Their fundraising arm was the Tel Chai Fund. And, of course, their slogan was "Tov lamut b’ad artseinu."

At the 25th World Zionist Congress (my first, I believe), the Mapam delegation had many distinguished personalities. Our faction always sat together, so we would get to know one another. At one session I introduced myself to a man sitting near me. His name, Pinchas Shneiurson, rang a bell, but I wasn’t quite sure why. We started chatting and after a while he volunteered to me that he was one of the defenders of Tel Chai and was with Trumpeldor when he died.

I was in awe of the man who heard Trumpeldor utter those immortal words. Seeing the expression on my face, he turned to me with a smile and asked, "Would you like to know what he really said?"

"Well," said Shneiurson, "Trumpeldor was a man of the people. He loved the language of the people. His last words were, ‘Kibeni mat' – a Russian expletive, roughly translated as beginning with "mother."*

MOSHE KAGAN, a founder and past president of Americans for Progressive Israel/Hashomer Hatzair – a predecessor of Meretz USA – is an elder statesman of American Zionism.

*For readers unaccustomed to expletives, another hint: motherfu****.

Support MERETZ USA or subscribe to ISRAEL HORIZONS to read all IH articles and features.