Long before the establishment of Mikveh Israel, the idea of Jewish agricultural settlements was not new. There were discussions in the local and international media. Various attempts were made to purchase agricultural land and establish farms, small settlements, and programs for the study of agriculture in Eretz Yisrael. 

The person who finally succeeded was Charles (Carl ) Netter a founding member of Alliance Israélite Universelle (AIU), known also as Kol Yisrael Haverim, which was founded to promote education among Jews in the Middle East,  defend Jews from persecution, and improve their welfare.   

Carl Netter; The Leader

In January 1868, AIU requested assistance to purchase land to establish agricultural settlements in Eretz Yisrael. Carl Netter was sent to the region to assess the situation of the Jews in general and explore the possibility of establishing such an agricultural enterprise.  

Netter spent six weeks visiting Jewish communities, especially in Jerusalem, Jaffa, Hebron, Safed, and Tiberias. According to Netter’s report, there were 13,000 Jews living in the Land of Israel.  Most of them in Jerusalem, Hebron, Safed, and Tiberias, in addition to small communities in Jaffa, Tsidon, Acre, Nablus, and Ramla.

Only 2,500 were men, and of these, only 15% worked in manual labor, trade, or as craftsmen. The rest taught or studied in Yeshivas.

In Jaffa and Jerusalem, he found only two Jews engaged in agriculture. Netter did not visit the Jews living in Peki’in and Shafaram but heard of them. He concluded that there was a genuine desire to engage in agriculture and decided that an agricultural school should be established.  On January 1, 1869, AIU adopted this recommendation. 

After failing to enlist the financial support of British Jews for this endeavor, Netter met with the Turkish envoy in Paris, Jemal Pasha. He asked him to appeal to the government in Turkey. Netter’s memo, which was later forwarded to Ali Pasha the Grand Vizier in Turkey, included the following requests:

• allocation of land free of charge;
• the leasing of additional land (exempt from tax for the first decade)
• that the school could use for its needs;
• the exemption from taxes for any movables imported from abroad for the needs of the institution
• and the Sultan’s sponsorship of the institution.

Equipped with letters of recommendation from the ambassadors of France and England, as well as Adolphe Crémieux, Carl Netter arrived in Turkey at the end of August 1869, and on September 1, Netter met with Ali Pasha. The request ultimately landed on the table of Rashid Pasha, the Ottoman Governor of Syria. Netter traveled to Beirut to meet him.  In Beirut, he also met agronomist Bullard. It was agreed that Bullard would travel to Jaffa to find a good place for the school while Neter remained in Beirut.

It took months and much travel between Jerusalem, Syria, and Turkey to complete the negotiations for the land and receive the approval of Sultan Abdul Aziz but the firman (royal decree) was finally issued.  ​​2,600 dunams were transferred to AIU to establish an agricultural school for children in Eretz Yisrael. The firman stipulated that the age of the students would be 13-16, and their number between 30-60; studies would last three years. 

 Netter encountered many difficulties when he began to implement this project.

Some of the residents of the nearby town, Yazur, who had had land confiscated from them for the school were hostile. The budget allocated for construction (about 100,000 francs) was not sufficient. The Franco-Prussian war made it difficult to transfer funds to the school. Reorganization within AIU because of the transfer of Alsace and part of Lorraine to German rule interfered with the fundraising activities of the organization. Thanks to Netter’s efforts, Baron Hirsch donated about 25,000 francs. The Anglo-Jewish Association and American Jews also contributed funds for the school.

Despite these difficulties, Netter managed to dig a well and canals and lay the foundations of the large building for the students. Before the first hut was built,  Netter lived in a cave. When he began to look for students, it soon became clear that despite previous declarations of families in Jerusalem that they wanted to engage in agriculture, they were not keen on sending their boys to study at Mikveh Israel. 

Farming was considered an inferior profession and parents were afraid of the hostility of Arab neighbors.

Despite this, Rabbis Kalisher and Alkalai endorsed the school. In 1871, there were only 10 students. The first student was a 12-year-old boy named Bachor Nissim Alhadif, who even lived in the cave with Netter.

Due to the war, and the situation in France, there was little connection with AIU; Netter operated alone. One of Netter’s ideas for financing the institution was a company that would sell shares.    The name Mikveh Israel was inspired by the weekly Torah portion Parashat Bechukotai, Jeremiah chapter 17 verse 13,  “Those who turn away from you will be written in the dust because they have forsaken the LORD, the spring of living water.”  The dedication ceremony of the school in 1871 was on the 14th of Adar, the year 5630 according to the Hebrew calendar.  

Mikveh Israel developed slowly in its first decades.

Contrary to agricultural schools around the world that educated the children of farmers who are preparing to follow in the footsteps of their parents. Mikveh Israel’s role was to bring about a change in values, convince children to leave the city, and choose a path that was different from that of their parents, at a time when Jewish agriculture did not yet exist. 

The first 50 Years

During its first 50 years, there were only 505 graduates, yet the school left its mark. This was a time when Jewish agriculture was established from scratch. 

In the beginning, most of the students were Mizrahi Jews or Arabs, and this affected the support of AIU and other donors.   Studies were conducted in French. 

After Netter’s death in 1882, Shmuel Hirsch took over. In the summer of 1882, the first immigrants from the BILU organization arrived. They came to train at Mikveh Israel, but Hirsch, not believing in their ability, put them through grueling tests, and in the end, they left. 

A group of farmers from Russia came to Mikvah Israel for a period of training and then established the settlement of Ekron (Mazkeret Batya)).

During the 1880s,  Petah Tikva, Rishon Lezion,  Gedera, Rosh Pina, and other settlements were established.

First Stop: Mikveh Israel

Mikve Israel was the first stop of immigrants of the First Aliyah to Eretz Yisrael. In the decade following, wineries were built, along with a wine cellar, and a 300-seat synagogue with classrooms on its second floor.  In addition, a hospital, a pharmacy, offices, and an apartment for the school principal were constructed. In just over a decade, the number of students increased from 100 to 200. The inhabitants of the moshavot began to send their children to study there. 

In 1898 Benjamin Ze’ev Herzl came to Mikveh Israel. He toured the school, talked to students, and visited the grave of Netter. During the visit, he even walked out to the school gate (Jerusalem Gate) to greet Wilhelm II, Emperor of Germany who was making a pilgrimage to Jerusalem.  

Mikveh Israel: Second Aliyah

The Second Aliyah brought new students to the school. In 1914, Eliahu Krause was named director. A graduate of Mikveh Israel himself, he introduced many changes, including Hebrew as the official language of instruction. Textbooks were translated into Hebrew by the teachers. Jewish laborers were brought to work in the school and in the fields and Jewish guards were also brought in. During this period the school prospered. 

The Third Aliyah brought with it young people who were enthusiastic about agriculture. During this period, the school grew. Existing departments were reorganized, and new branches of agriculture were introduced into the curriculum; the staff expanded.

Mikveh Israel had become a national institution in every sense of the word. The student body grew from 250 students in 1932 to 430 students in 1945. 

The Haganah

In 1926, Mikveh Israel served as a training center for the Haganah.  Students and teachers in the school joined the organization.  David Leibowitch, the agro-mechanics teacher, transformed the blacksmith’s workshop into a lab that repaired weapons and made ammunition.  There he developed the homemade mortar named after him, the famous Davidka.

In 1938, Mikvah Israel received its first religious youth group from Germany at the initiative of Henrietta Szold, director of Youth Aliyah, a Jewish organization that rescued Jewish children during the time of the Third Reich.

Many other religious students followed suit and in 1941, the religious division of the school was established, which still operates to this day. 

Long before the establishment of Mikveh Israel, the idea of Jewish agricultural settlements was not new. There were discussions in the local and international media. Various attempts were made to purchase agricultural land and establish farms, small settlements, and programs for the study of agriculture in Eretz Yisrael. 

The person who finally succeeded was Charles (Carl ) Netter a founding member of Alliance Israélite Universelle (AIU), known also as Kol Yisrael Haverim, which was founded to promote education among Jews in the Middle East,  defend Jews from persecution, and improve their welfare.   

Carl Netter; The Leader

In January 1868, AIU requested assistance to purchase land to establish agricultural settlements in Eretz Yisrael. Carl Netter was sent to the region to assess the situation of the Jews in general and explore the possibility of establishing such an agricultural enterprise.  

Netter spent six weeks visiting Jewish communities, especially in Jerusalem, Jaffa, Hebron, Safed, and Tiberias. According to Netter’s report, there were 13,000 Jews living in the Land of Israel.  Most of them in Jerusalem, Hebron, Safed, and Tiberias, in addition to small communities in Jaffa, Tsidon, Acre, Nablus, and Ramla.

Only 2,500 were men, and of these, only 15% worked in manual labor, trade, or as craftsmen. The rest taught or studied in Yeshivas.

In Jaffa and Jerusalem, he found only two Jews engaged in agriculture. Netter did not visit the Jews living in Peki’in and Shafaram but heard of them. He concluded that there was a genuine desire to engage in agriculture and decided that an agricultural school should be established.  On January 1, 1869, AIU adopted this recommendation. 

After failing to enlist the financial support of British Jews for this endeavor, Netter met with the Turkish envoy in Paris, Jemal Pasha. He asked him to appeal to the government in Turkey. Netter’s memo, which was later forwarded to Ali Pasha the Grand Vizier in Turkey, included the following requests:

• allocation of land free of charge;
• the leasing of additional land (exempt from tax for the first decade)
• that the school could use for its needs;
• the exemption from taxes for any movables imported from abroad for the needs of the institution
• and the Sultan’s sponsorship of the institution.

Equipped with letters of recommendation from the ambassadors of France and England, as well as Adolphe Crémieux, Carl Netter arrived in Turkey at the end of August 1869, and on September 1, Netter met with Ali Pasha. The request ultimately landed on the table of Rashid Pasha, the Ottoman Governor of Syria. Netter traveled to Beirut to meet him.  In Beirut, he also met agronomist Bullard. It was agreed that Bullard would travel to Jaffa to find a good place for the school while Neter remained in Beirut.

It took months and much travel between Jerusalem, Syria, and Turkey to complete the negotiations for the land and receive the approval of Sultan Abdul Aziz but the firman (royal decree) was finally issued.  ​​2,600 dunams were transferred to AIU to establish an agricultural school for children in Eretz Yisrael. The firman stipulated that the age of the students would be 13-16, and their number between 30-60; studies would last three years. 

 Netter encountered many difficulties when he began to implement this project.

Some of the residents of the nearby town, Yazur, who had had land confiscated from them for the school were hostile. The budget allocated for construction (about 100,000 francs) was not sufficient. The Franco-Prussian war made it difficult to transfer funds to the school. Reorganization within AIU because of the transfer of Alsace and part of Lorraine to German rule interfered with the fundraising activities of the organization. Thanks to Netter’s efforts, Baron Hirsch donated about 25,000 francs. The Anglo-Jewish Association and American Jews also contributed funds for the school.

Despite these difficulties, Netter managed to dig a well and canals and lay the foundations of the large building for the students. Before the first hut was built,  Netter lived in a cave. When he began to look for students, it soon became clear that despite previous declarations of families in Jerusalem that they wanted to engage in agriculture, they were not keen on sending their boys to study at Mikveh Israel. 

Farming was considered an inferior profession and parents were afraid of the hostility of Arab neighbors.

Despite this, Rabbis Kalisher and Alkalai endorsed the school. In 1871, there were only 10 students. The first student was a 12-year-old boy named Bachor Nissim Alhadif, who even lived in the cave with Netter.

Due to the war, and the situation in France, there was little connection with AIU; Netter operated alone. One of Netter’s ideas for financing the institution was a company that would sell shares.    The name Mikveh Israel was inspired by the weekly Torah portion Parashat Bechukotai, Jeremiah chapter 17 verse 13,  “Those who turn away from you will be written in the dust because they have forsaken the LORD, the spring of living water.”  The dedication ceremony of the school in 1871 was on the 14th of Adar, the year 5630 according to the Hebrew calendar.  

Mikveh Israel developed slowly in its first decades.

Contrary to agricultural schools around the world that educated the children of farmers who are preparing to follow in the footsteps of their parents. Mikveh Israel’s role was to bring about a change in values, convince children to leave the city, and choose a path that was different from that of their parents, at a time when Jewish agriculture did not yet exist. 

The first 50 Years

During its first 50 years, there were only 505 graduates, yet the school left its mark. This was a time when Jewish agriculture was established from scratch. 

In the beginning, most of the students were Mizrahi Jews or Arabs, and this affected the support of AIU and other donors.   Studies were conducted in French. 

After Netter’s death in 1882, Shmuel Hirsch took over. In the summer of 1882, the first immigrants from the BILU organization arrived. They came to train at Mikveh Israel, but Hirsch, not believing in their ability, put them through grueling tests, and in the end, they left. 

A group of farmers from Russia came to Mikvah Israel for a period of training and then established the settlement of Ekron (Mazkeret Batya)).

During the 1880s,  Petah Tikva, Rishon Lezion,  Gedera, Rosh Pina, and other settlements were established.

First Stop: Mikveh Israel

Mikve Israel was the first stop of immigrants of the First Aliyah to Eretz Yisrael. In the decade following, wineries were built, along with a wine cellar, and a 300-seat synagogue with classrooms on its second floor.  In addition, a hospital, a pharmacy, offices, and an apartment for the school principal were constructed. In just over a decade, the number of students increased from 100 to 200. The inhabitants of the moshavot began to send their children to study there. 

In 1898 Benjamin Ze’ev Herzl came to Mikveh Israel. He toured the school, talked to students, and visited the grave of Netter. During the visit, he even walked out to the school gate (Jerusalem Gate) to greet Wilhelm II, Emperor of Germany who was making a pilgrimage to Jerusalem.  

Mikveh Israel: Second Aliyah

The Second Aliyah brought new students to the school. In 1914, Eliahu Krause was named director. A graduate of Mikveh Israel himself, he introduced many changes, including Hebrew as the official language of instruction. Textbooks were translated into Hebrew by the teachers. Jewish laborers were brought to work in the school and in the fields and Jewish guards were also brought in. During this period the school prospered. 

The Third Aliyah brought with it young people who were enthusiastic about agriculture. During this period, the school grew. Existing departments were reorganized, and new branches of agriculture were introduced into the curriculum; the staff expanded.

Mikveh Israel had become a national institution in every sense of the word. The student body grew from 250 students in 1932 to 430 students in 1945. 

The Haganah

In 1926, Mikveh Israel served as a training center for the Haganah.  Students and teachers in the school joined the organization.  David Leibowitch, the agro-mechanics teacher, transformed the blacksmith’s workshop into a lab that repaired weapons and made ammunition.  There he developed the homemade mortar named after him, the famous Davidka.

In 1938, Mikvah Israel received its first religious youth group from Germany at the initiative of Henrietta Szold, director of Youth Aliyah, a Jewish organization that rescued Jewish children during the time of the Third Reich.

Many other religious students followed suit and in 1941, the religious division of the school was established, which still operates to this day.