Rishonim - to mark the fifth anniversary of the first Hebrew troop in the infantry - first edition

Rishonim - to mark the fifth anniversary of the first Hebrew troop in the infantry - first edition

A rare pamphlet issued by Troop A of the First Hebrew Battalion on the occasion of the fifth anniversary 1940-1945 of the first Hebrew battalion in the infantry (Troop 2, established in September 1940). The pamphlet was written over a few of months and was published in March 1946. In the booklet, detailed historical review from the brigade's soldiers themselves about their service in the Hebrew Brigade. Cover painting by J. Ben Tzur. Hachil printing. (Internal print of the warrior soldier).

The booklet summarizes the history of the Hebrew volunteer movement from its inception in Troop 2 until it grew and became 15 independent Troops of the Jewish Fighting Brigade. The introduction was written by Avraham Akavia Muir, commander of Troop A of the First Hebrew Battalion - the Palestine Regiment - from the place where he was stationed in Eindhoven (Netherlands) on January 27, 1946. It also includes the blessing of Berl Katzenelson and Eliyahu Golomb.

The introduction to the booklet reads: "The path of Hebrew men, who volunteered for the British army in the late 1940s, the urgent order to defend the homeland and fight the Nazis, was fraught with stumbling blocks, countless doubts and disappointments ... We longed for our own national symbols and we were given a shameful name ... ". And goes on to describe how despite the determination of the Hebrew soldiers to fight as a national Hebrew troop with own national symbols, the British did everything to blur their identity and keep them away from the real battlefield, until finally after many struggles it gained overt recognition as a fighting Hebrew brigade, with symbols and demonstrated Jewish characterization.

The booklet contains rare descriptions of the first training camps far away in the desert, vivid descriptions of the soldiers' activities in Egypt, North Africa, and Italy. As well as hair-raising stories about the face-to-face war of the Brigade soldiers against the Nazi soldiers, some of whom were taken as prisoner, and describes how the Germans feared from unbridled revenge by the Jewish soldiers, and more. In the second part, the names of the fallen members who perished in the battle, a brief history of their lives and photos, as well as letters from Brigade soldiers written during their service.

32 p. 24 cm. Stains. Good condition.