Third Aliyah

The third Aliyah refers to the third wave of the Jewish immigration to Israel from Europe who came inspired by Zionist motives between the years 1919 and 1923 (from the end of World War I until the start of the economic crisis in the country). A symbol of the start of the third immigration wave is the arrival of the boat "Roselan" in the Jaffa Port on December 19, 1919. The boat had 650 new immigrants and other returning inhabitants on board.During that period about 35,000 new immigrants [ [http://www.moia.gov.il/Moia_en/AboutIsrael/aliya3.htm Israeli government site on the Third Aliyah] ] , arrived in Israel mainly from Eastern European countries - from those about 45% of the immigrants arrived from Russia, 31% from Poland, 5% from Romania and only three percent from Lithuania. Most prominent in this immigration wave is the element of the young pioneers whom arrived the country between the years 1919 until 1921, and after those years their numbers became less amongst the immigrants. The importance of those pioneers was just as great as that of the pioneers of the second immigration wave. Their ideology contributed a great deal to the construction of the country and so they imprinted their mark on Zionism and also on the development of the Jewish settlements in the country of Israel.

Causes of the third Aliyah

* The Balfour Declaration of 1917 inspired hope and opened the way to officially sanctioned colonization in Israel.
* The social concussions in Europe - after World War I a national awakening began amongst the eastern European nations following the birth of nine new countries.
* The revolution and Russian civil war led to a wave of pogroms. An estimated 100,000 Jews were killed and 500,000 left homeless. ["The Pogroms During the Civil War 1918 - 1921 ", http://www.friends-partners.org/partners/beyond-the-pale/english/42.html accessed 22/10/2007 ] The Bolsheviks followed Marxist thinking on the "Jewish Question" and acted against organized Jewish life including Zionist organizations.
* In the new countries which were formed after World War I there was the "problem of the minorities". Battles erupted between small ethnic groups which had cliquish aspirations. With riots in divided countries like Poland.
* The economic crisis in Europe provided an additional motivating factor for Jews leaving with the hope of starting a new life in Israel.
* The closing of gates of the United States for new immigrants.
* The relative success of the absorption of the second immigration wave to Israel and the socialist ideologies of the wave.

In conclusion, the immigrants hung high hopes to the new future in Israel, but more than that they were pushed to immigrate due to the developments in their own countries and the growth of the nationalism aspirations of different minority groups.The official Zionist institutions were opposed to the third immigration wave - they feared that the country would not be able to absorb such a great number of people. They even requested that only the people who have enough economic resources would come to the country. But the harsh reality changed their expectations - the bad economic situation of Jews of Eastern Europe and also the riots, obligated them to emigrate to the countries which opened their gates - United States, Western Europe, and to those who had a pioneering impulse and a Zionist recognition - Israel was suitable as their new home.

References