Mount Herzl ( he, הַר הֶרְצְל ''Har Hertsl''), also ''Har ha-Zikaron'' ( lit. "Mount of Remembrance"), is the site of
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
's national cemetery and other memorial and educational facilities, found on the west side of
Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
beside the
Jerusalem Forest
The Jerusalem Forest is a municipal pine forest located in the Judean Mountains on the outskirts of Jerusalem. It is surrounded by the neighborhoods of Beit HaKerem, Yefe Nof, Ein Kerem, Har Nof and Givat Shaul, and a moshav, Beit Zeit. The ...
.
It is named after
Theodor Herzl
Theodor Herzl; hu, Herzl Tivadar; Hebrew name given at his brit milah: Binyamin Ze'ev (2 May 1860 – 3 July 1904) was an Austro-Hungarian Jewish lawyer, journalist, playwright, political activist, and writer who was the father of modern po ...
, the founder of modern
Zionism
Zionism ( he, צִיּוֹנוּת ''Tsiyyonut'' after '' Zion'') is a nationalist movement that espouses the establishment of, and support for a homeland for the Jewish people centered in the area roughly corresponding to what is known in Je ...
. Herzl's tomb lies at the top of the hill.
Yad Vashem
Yad Vashem ( he, יָד וַשֵׁם; literally, "a memorial and a name") is Israel's official memorial to the victims of the Holocaust. It is dedicated to preserving the memory of the Jews who were murdered; honoring Jews who fought against th ...
, which commemorates the
Holocaust
The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...
, lies to the west of Mt. Herzl.
Israel's war dead are also buried there. Mount Herzl is 834 meters above
sea level
Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardise ...
.
History
In 1934, Zionist leader
Menahem Ussishkin
Menachem Ussishkin (russian: Авраам Менахем Мендл Усышкин ''Avraham Menachem Mendel Ussishkin'', he, מנחם אוסישקין) (August 14, 1863 – October 2, 1941) was a Russian-born Zionist leader and head of the J ...
organized the re-interment of
Leon Pinsker
yi, לעאָן פינסקער
, birth_date =
, birth_place = Tomaszów Lubelski, Kingdom of Poland, Russian Empire
, death_date =
, death_place = Odessa, Russian Empire
, known_for = Zionism
, occupation = Physician, political activ ...
in
Nicanor Cave
The Cave of Nicanor (; ) is an ancient burial cave located on Mount Scopus in Jerusalem. Among the ossuaries discovered in the cave is one with an inscription referring to "Nicanor the door maker".Clermont-Ganneau, "Archeological and epigraphi ...
on
Mount Scopus
Mount Scopus ( he, הַר הַצּוֹפִים ', "Mount of the Watchmen/ Sentinels"; ar, جبل المشارف ', lit. "Mount Lookout", or ' "Mount of the Scene/Burial Site", or ) is a mountain (elevation: above sea level) in northeast Je ...
in an attempt to build a pantheon for the great leaders of the Jewish nation. Ussishkin was buried there himself in 1941. When Mount Scopus became an enclave, cut off from Jerusalem, the implementation of this plan was no longer feasible.
During summer 1949, Theodor Herzl's remains were reinterred on a hill in
West Jerusalem
West Jerusalem or Western Jerusalem (, ; , ) refers to the section of Jerusalem that was controlled by Israel at the end of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. As the city was divided by the Green Line (Israel's erstwhile border, established by t ...
which faced the Mount of Olives from a distance and renamed in his honour, Mount Herzl.
In November 1949, soldiers who fell during the
1947–1949 Palestine war in the Jerusalem area were buried on the north slope of the hill.
Apart from Theodor Herzl, Mt. Herzl is the burial place of five of
Israel's prime ministers:
Levi Eshkol
Levi Eshkol ( he, לֵוִי אֶשְׁכּוֹל ; 25 October 1895 – 26 February 1969), born Levi Yitzhak Shkolnik ( he, לוי יצחק שקולניק, links=no), was an Israeli statesman who served as the third Prime Minister of Israe ...
,
Golda Meir
Golda Meir, ; ar, جولدا مائير, Jūldā Māʾīr., group=nb (born Golda Mabovitch; 3 May 1898 – 8 December 1978) was an Israeli politician, teacher, and '' kibbutznikit'' who served as the fourth prime minister of Israel from 1969 to ...
,
Yitzhak Shamir
Yitzhak Shamir ( he, יצחק שמיר, ; born Yitzhak Yezernitsky; October 22, 1915 – June 30, 2012) was an Israeli politician and the seventh Prime Minister of Israel, serving two terms, 1983–1984 and 1986–1992. Before the establishment ...
,
Yitzhak Rabin
Yitzhak Rabin (; he, יִצְחָק רַבִּין, ; 1 March 1922 – 4 November 1995) was an Israeli politician, statesman and general. He was the fifth Prime Minister of Israel, serving two terms in office, 1974–77, and from 1992 until h ...
(who is buried beside his wife
Leah
Leah ''La'ya;'' from (; ) appears in the Hebrew Bible as one of the two wives of the Biblical patriarch Jacob. Leah was Jacob's first wife, and the older sister of his second (and favored) wife Rachel. She is the mother of Jacob's first son ...
) and Shimon Peres.
Israeli presidents are also buried on Mt. Herzl, as are other prominent
Jew
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""T ...
ish and Zionist leaders.
Mt. Herzl is the venue for many commemorative events and national celebrations.
The military section was designed and landscaped by two Hungarian-born architects, Asher Hiram and Haim Giladi.
Theodor Herzl's grave
![Jerusalem Herzl's Grave](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e4/Jerusalem_Herzl%27s_Grave.JPG)
In 1903,
Theodor Herzl
Theodor Herzl; hu, Herzl Tivadar; Hebrew name given at his brit milah: Binyamin Ze'ev (2 May 1860 – 3 July 1904) was an Austro-Hungarian Jewish lawyer, journalist, playwright, political activist, and writer who was the father of modern po ...
wrote in his will:
I wish to be buried in a metal coffin next to my father, and to remain there until the Jewish people will transfer my remains to Eretz Israel. The coffins of my father, my sister Pauline, and of my close relatives who will have died until then will also be transferred there.
When Herzl died a year later, he was interred in
Vienna
en, Viennese
, iso_code = AT-9
, registration_plate = W
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code =
, timezone = CET
, utc_offset = +1
, timezone_DST ...
. Forty-five years later, Herzl's remains were brought to Israel and re-interred in Jerusalem. The location of the burial site was selected by a special state commission in the top of a hill in
Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
. He was buried on 17 August 1949. A temporary stone marked his grave for several years until the site was developed into a national cemetery. Sixty-three entries were submitted in the competition for the design of his new tombstone. The winner was Joseph Klarwein's design, consisting of an unadorned black granite stone inscribed with the name Herzl.
The area around his tomb was expanded into the plaza where the first
Independence Day ceremony was held in 1950.
Despite Herzl's wishes, his daughter Pauline and son Hans were not originally buried beside him. Their remains were moved to Mt. Herzl in 2006. A third daughter was murdered in the
Holocaust
The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...
and her place of burial is unknown. The small
Stephen Norman
Stephen Norman, born Stephan Theodor Neumann (1918–1946) was the grandson of the founder of Zionism, Theodor Herzl.
Biography
Stephen Neumann (later Norman) was born in Austria. His parents feared for the safety of their only child as anti-Sem ...
Park, located between the Herzl Museum and the Herzl Educational Center, is dedicated to the memory of Herzl's only grandson, who took his own life in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
in 1946 after learning about the fate of his family during the Holocaust and being confronted with Jewish misery in the
Displaced Persons camps
Displaced may refer to:
* Forced displacement, the involuntary movement of people from their home
* Displaced (2006 film), ''Displaced'' (2006 film), a 2006 British feature film produced by Skylandian Pictures
* Displaced (2010 film), ''Displaced ...
, and was reinterred on Mt. Herzl in December 2007. Herzl's parents and sister are also buried at Mount Herzl.
National Civil Cemetery
Israel's main cemetery for the leaders of the country and people who sacrificed their lives for the country is located on the southern slope of Mt. Herzl, established there in 1952 when Ben Gurion decided to bury the finance minister in Helkat Gedolei Ha'Uma, close to Herzl's grave. The design of the cemetery area was continued over the following years when other famous people from the Zionist movement were brought to be buried there.
Great Leaders of the Nation
The Great Leaders of the Nation's Plot or Memorial Park holds the graves of several
Prime Ministers
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is no ...
,
Presidents
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
*President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
,
Knesset speakers and other chosen national leaders of the State of Israel. It forms a separate section of the Mount Herzl cemetery from that of the leaders of the
Zionist Organization
The World Zionist Organization ( he, הַהִסְתַּדְּרוּת הַצִּיּוֹנִית הָעוֹלָמִית; ''HaHistadrut HaTzionit Ha'Olamit''), or WZO, is a non-governmental organization that promotes Zionism. It was founded as the ...
(after 1960: World Zionist Organization), which is situated nearby.
The Hebrew name Helkat Gedolei Ha'Uma ( he, חלקת גדולי האומה) is used in common parlance either in a narrower meaning, for the State of Israel leaders' section, or in a wider one, which includes pre-state Zionist leaders.
Buried there are Presidents
Zalman Shazar
Zalman Shazar ( he, זלמן שז"ר; born Shneur Zalman Rubashov; be, Шнэер За́льман Рубашо́ў; russian: Шне́ер За́лмен Рубашо́в; November 24, 1889 – October 5, 1974) was an Israeli politician, author ...
and
Chaim Herzog
Major-General Chaim Herzog ( he, חיים הרצוג; 17 September 1918 – 17 April 1997) was an Irish-born Israeli politician, general, lawyer and author who served as the sixth President of Israel between 1983 and 1993. Born in Belfast and ...
,
Shimon Peres and Prime Ministers
Levi Eshkol
Levi Eshkol ( he, לֵוִי אֶשְׁכּוֹל ; 25 October 1895 – 26 February 1969), born Levi Yitzhak Shkolnik ( he, לוי יצחק שקולניק, links=no), was an Israeli statesman who served as the third Prime Minister of Israe ...
,
Golda Meir
Golda Meir, ; ar, جولدا مائير, Jūldā Māʾīr., group=nb (born Golda Mabovitch; 3 May 1898 – 8 December 1978) was an Israeli politician, teacher, and '' kibbutznikit'' who served as the fourth prime minister of Israel from 1969 to ...
,
Yitzhak Rabin
Yitzhak Rabin (; he, יִצְחָק רַבִּין, ; 1 March 1922 – 4 November 1995) was an Israeli politician, statesman and general. He was the fifth Prime Minister of Israel, serving two terms in office, 1974–77, and from 1992 until h ...
and his wife
Leah Rabin
Leah Rabin ( he, לאה רבין, née Schloßberg; 8 April 1928 – 12 November 2000) was the wife of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, who was assassinated in 1995.
Biography
Leah Rabin was born Leah Schloßberg in Königsberg, East Pruss ...
. Other notable graves are those of the first speaker of the
Knesset
The Knesset ( he, הַכְּנֶסֶת ; "gathering" or "assembly") is the unicameral legislature of Israel. As the supreme state body, the Knesset is sovereign and thus has complete control of the entirety of the Israeli government (with ...
,
Yosef Sprinzak
Yosef Sprinzak ( he, יוֹסֵף שְׁפְּרִינְצָק; ) was a leading Zionist activist in the first half of the 20th century, an Israeli politician, and the first Speaker of the Knesset, a role he held from 1949 until his death in 1959. ...
and his wife Hanna, the first
Minister of Finance
A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation.
A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...
,
Eliezer Kaplan
Eliezer Kaplan ( he, אליעזר קפלן; be, Эліэзер Каплан; ) was a Zionist activist, Israeli politician, one of the signatories of the Israeli declaration of independence and the country's first Minister of Finance and Deputy ...
, Jerusalem mayor
Teddy Kollek
Theodor "Teddy" Kollek ( he, טדי קולק; 27 May 1911 – 2 January 2007) was an Israeli politician who served as the mayor of Jerusalem from 1965 to 1993, and founder of the Jerusalem Foundation. Kollek was re-elected five times, in 1969, 19 ...
, and
First Lady Aura Herzog
Aura Herzog (Hebrew: אורה הרצוג) ( Ambache, 24 December 1924 – 10 January 2022) was an Israeli social and environmental activist, who served as the First Lady of Israel from 1983 to 1993; she was the wife of Chaim Herzog, the sixth P ...
. Despite the national significance of the cemetery, some Israeli leaders were buried elsewhere, most notably
Chaim Weizmann
Chaim Azriel Weizmann ( he, חיים עזריאל ויצמן ', russian: Хаим Евзорович Вейцман, ''Khaim Evzorovich Veytsman''; 27 November 1874 – 9 November 1952) was a Russian-born biochemist, Zionist leader and Israe ...
(buried at
Weizmann House),
Yitzhak Ben-Zvi
Yitzhak Ben-Zvi ( he, יִצְחָק בֶּן־צְבִי ''Yitshak Ben-Tsvi''; 24 November 188423 April 1963) was a historian, Labor Zionist leader and the longest-serving President of Israel.
Biography
Born in Poltava in the Russian Empir ...
(buried at
Har HaMenuchot
Har HaMenuchot ( he, הר המנוחות, Ashkenazi Jews, Ashkenazi pronunciation, Har HaMenuchos, lit. "Mount of Those who are Resting", also known as Givat Shaul Cemetery) is the largest cemetery in Jerusalem. The hilltop burial ground lies at ...
Cemetery);
David Ben-Gurion
David Ben-Gurion ( ; he, דָּוִד בֶּן-גּוּרִיּוֹן ; born David Grün; 16 October 1886 – 1 December 1973) was the primary national founder of the State of Israel and the first prime minister of Israel. Adopting the nam ...
(buried at
Midreshet Ben-Gurion
Midreshet Ben-Gurion ( he, מִדְרֶשֶׁת בֶּן גּוּרְיוֹן), also known as Midreshet Sde Boker, is an educational center and boarding school in southern Israel. Located in the Negev next to kibbutz Sde Boker, it falls under the ...
);
Menachem Begin (buried at
Mount of Olives
The Mount of Olives or Mount Olivet ( he, הַר הַזֵּיתִים, Har ha-Zeitim; ar, جبل الزيتون, Jabal az-Zaytūn; both lit. 'Mount of Olives'; in Arabic also , , 'the Mountain') is a mountain ridge east of and adjacent to Jeru ...
) and
Ariel Sharon (buried at his home in the
Negev
The Negev or Negeb (; he, הַנֶּגֶב, hanNegév; ar, ٱلنَّقَب, an-Naqab) is a desert and semidesert region of southern Israel. The region's largest city and administrative capital is Beersheba (pop. ), in the north. At its sout ...
).
![Grave of Ze'ev Jabotinsky IMG 1161](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d1/Grave_of_Ze%27ev_Jabotinsky_IMG_1161.JPG)
Deciding who should be buried on Mt. Herzl has sometimes been controversial. For example, the decision to bury
Ze'ev Jabotinsky
Ze'ev Jabotinsky ( he, זְאֵב זַ׳בּוֹטִינְסְקִי, ''Ze'ev Zhabotinski'';, ''Wolf Zhabotinski'' 17 October 1880 – 3 August 1940), born Vladimir Yevgenyevich Zhabotinsky, was a Russian Jewish Revisionist Zionist leade ...
, who died in 1940, on Mt. Herzl, was fiercely opposed by many
Labour Party stalwarts, who claimed that Jabotinsky was an ultra-right nationalist undeserving of such an honour. Only in 1964 did Prime Minister
Levi Eshkol
Levi Eshkol ( he, לֵוִי אֶשְׁכּוֹל ; 25 October 1895 – 26 February 1969), born Levi Yitzhak Shkolnik ( he, לוי יצחק שקולניק, links=no), was an Israeli statesman who served as the third Prime Minister of Israe ...
decide in favor of burying him there, in the interest of promoting national reconciliation and setting aside political grievances. Soldiers awarded with the
Medal of Valor
This list of medals for bravery is an index to articles about notable medals awarded for bravery or valor.
These medals, usually associated with military forces, police forces, or other public safety entities, are given to personnel who have serv ...
may also be buried at Mount Herzl.
To the north of Herzl's grave is a plot reserved for the leaders of the (World) Zionist Organization, among them
David Wolffsohn
David Wolffsohn ( yi, דוד וואלפסאן; he, דוד וולפסון; 9 October 1855 in Darbėnai, Kovno Governorate – 15 September 1914) was a Lithuanian-Jewish businessman, prominent early Zionist and second president of the Zion ...
,
Nahum Sokolow
Nahum ben Joseph Samuel Sokolow ( he, נחום ט' סוקולוב ''Nachum ben Yosef Shmuel Soqolov'', yi, סאָקאָלאָוו; ) was a Zionist leader, author, translator, and a pioneer of Hebrew journalism.
Biography
Nahum Sokolow was bor ...
,
Simcha Dinitz
Simcha Dinitz ( he, שמחה דיניץ, born 23 June 1929, died 23 September 2003) was an Israeli statesman and politician. He served as Director General of the Prime Minister's office and political advisor to Prime Minister Golda Meir from 1969 ...
, and
Arieh Dulzin
Arieh Leon Dulzin (, 31 March 1913 – 13 September 1989) was a Zionist activist who served as a Minister without Portfolio in the Israeli government between December 1969 and August 1970, though he was never a member of the Knesset.
Biography
Du ...
. In the same section are the graves and cenotaphs of close relatives of Theodor Herzl.
The grave of
Ze'ev Jabotinsky
Ze'ev Jabotinsky ( he, זְאֵב זַ׳בּוֹטִינְסְקִי, ''Ze'ev Zhabotinski'';, ''Wolf Zhabotinski'' 17 October 1880 – 3 August 1940), born Vladimir Yevgenyevich Zhabotinsky, was a Russian Jewish Revisionist Zionist leade ...
and his family is in a separate plot southwest of Herzl's grave.
Victims of Acts of Terror Memorial
![Victims of Acts of Terror Memorial IMG 1245](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a8/Victims_of_Acts_of_Terror_Memorial_IMG_1245.JPG)
The
Victims of Acts of Terror Memorial
The Victims of Acts of Terror Memorial in Israel ( he, אנדרטת חללי פעולות האיבה, ''Andartat Halalei Pe'ulot HaEiva'', lit. "Monument to the Victims of Hostile Acts") is a monument to civilian Jewish and non-Jewish victims of te ...
is the main memorial for all victims of
terrorism in Israel
Palestinian political violence refers to acts of violence perpetrated for political ends in relation to the State of Palestine or in connection with Palestinian nationalism. Common political objectives include self-determination in and sovereig ...
from 1851 until today. The memorial was opened in 1997, and every year a ceremony is held on the plaza, in memory of the victims of terror. The memorial is located in the National Civil Cemetery next to Helkat Gedolei Ha'Uma.
Other memorials
*
Olei Hagardom
Olei Hagardom ( he, עולי הגרדום, lit. "those who ascended to the gallows") refers to members of the two Jewish Revisionist pre-state underground organisations Irgun and Lehi, who were tried in British Mandate courts and sentenced to ...
plot: Jewish underground fighters executed for their activities
* Common grave of the 204
illegal immigrants
Illegal immigration is the migration of people into a country in violation of the immigration laws of that country or the continued residence without the legal right to live in that country. Illegal immigration tends to be financially upwa ...
who went down with the ''Salvador'' in December 1940
* Common grave of the 44 immigrants aboard the ''
Egoz'' (sank in 1961)
* Memorial for the Last of Kin - last
Holocaust
The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...
survivors of their families, who died fighting in the
Israel Defense Forces
* Memorial for the
Jewish immigrants from Ethiopia
National military cemetery
![Flickr - Israel Defense Forces - Remembering the Fallen](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7b/Flickr_-_Israel_Defense_Forces_-_Remembering_the_Fallen.jpg)
The main
Israel Defense Forces cemetery is located on the northern slope of Mt. Herzl. It was established in November 1949, when soldiers who fell in
the Jerusalem area were buried there.
In 1949, the government decided to turn the site into the main cemetery for IDF members who have fallen in the line of duty. The
Israel Police
The Israel Police ( he, משטרת ישראל, ''Mišteret Yisra'el''; ar, شرطة إسرائيل, ''Shurtat Isrāʼīl'') is the civilian police force of Israel. As with most other police forces in the world, its duties include crime fightin ...
cemetery, for police officers who have fallen in the line of duty, is also located there.
There are specific areas or monuments for the following categories of fallen fighters:
* National Memorial Hall For Israel's Fallen
* Garden of the Missing in Action (burial places are unknown)
* Memorial for the Jewish soldiers in the
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army ( Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, afte ...
in
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
* Memorial for the Jewish soldiers in the
Polish Army
The Land Forces () are the land forces of the Polish Armed Forces. They currently contain some 62,000 active personnel and form many components of the European Union and NATO deployments around the world. Poland's recorded military history stre ...
in World War II
* Memorial for the volunteers of the
Yishuv
Yishuv ( he, ישוב, literally "settlement"), Ha-Yishuv ( he, הישוב, ''the Yishuv''), or Ha-Yishuv Ha-Ivri ( he, הישוב העברי, ''the Hebrew Yishuv''), is the body of Jewish residents in the Land of Israel (corresponding to the ...
(Jewish community in Palestine) in World War II
* Memorial for the 140 Jewish Palestinian soldiers who went down with the British ship
SS Erinpura
SS ''Erinpura'' was an E-class ocean liner of the British India Steam Navigation Company, built in 1911. She was the first British India ship built for Eastern service to be fitted with radio. She served in both World Wars. Enemy action in 1943 ...
in 1943 during World War II
* Memorial for the 23 (in Hebrew numerals: Kaf-Gimel)
Palmach sea commandoes who disappeared during
Operation Boatswain
Operation Boatswain was the first of the operational missions carried out by the Palmach as part of the cooperation between the Jewish Yishuv in Mandatory Palestine and the British during World War II. The mission to sabotage oil refineries in Tr ...
under British command in 1941
* Common grave of the
Nabi Daniel Convoy of 27 March 1948 (15 dead)
* Monument for the fallen fighters of the
Jewish Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem (surrendered on 28 May 1948)
* Memorial for the 69 sailors who went down with
the Dakar submarine in 1968 and whose bodies were never recovered
* Common grave of the defenders of
Neve Yaakov
Neve Yaakov also Neve Ya'aqov, ( he, נווה יעקב; lit. Jacob's Oasis), is an Israeli settlement and neighborhood located in East Jerusalem, north of Pisgat Ze'ev and south of al-Ram. Established in 1924 during the period of the British M ...
who fell in 1948
* Common grave of the fighters fallen in the
Battles of Latrun of 1948
* Common grave of the
Radar Hill
Har Adar ( he, הַר אֲדָר) is an Israeli settlement organized as a local council in the Seam Zone and the Maccabim sub-region of the West Bank. Founded in 1986, it had a population of in . It is located near Abu Ghosh and the Green Li ...
fighters
* Common grave of the defenders of
Kfar Etzion
Kfar Etzion ( he, כְּפַר עֶצְיוֹן, ''lit.'' Etzion Village) is an Israeli settlement in the West Bank, organized as a religious kibbutz located in the Judean Hills between Jerusalem and Hebron in the southern West Bank, established ...
who fell in 1948
* Common grave of the
Convoy of 35
The Convoy of 35 (or the Lamed He, which stands for "thirty five" in Hebrew numerals), was a convoy of Haganah fighters sent during the 1947–48 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine on a mission to reach by foot and resupply the blockaded kibbutz ...
of January 1948
* Memorial for the
Jewish Parachutists of Mandate Palestine killed in Europe in World War II
*
Operation Kadesh
The Suez Crisis, or the Second Arab–Israeli war, also called the Tripartite Aggression ( ar, العدوان الثلاثي, Al-ʿUdwān aṯ-Ṯulāṯiyy) in the Arab world and the Sinai War in Israel,Also known as the Suez War or 1956 Wa ...
(1956) plot
*
Operation Peace for Galilee
The 1982 Lebanon War, dubbed Operation Peace for Galilee ( he, מבצע שלום הגליל, or מבצע של"ג ''Mivtsa Shlom HaGalil'' or ''Mivtsa Sheleg'') by the Israeli government, later known in Israel as the Lebanon War or the First L ...
(First Lebanon War, 1982) plot
* Soldiers who fell since 1990
*
Six-Day War
The Six-Day War (, ; ar, النكسة, , or ) or June War, also known as the 1967 Arab–Israeli War or Third Arab–Israeli War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab states (primarily Egypt, Syria, and Jordan) from 5 to 10 Ju ...
, one of several plots
*
Yom Kippur War
The Yom Kippur War, also known as the Ramadan War, the October War, the 1973 Arab–Israeli War, or the Fourth Arab–Israeli War, was an armed conflict fought from October 6 to 25, 1973 between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by E ...
, one of several plots
All soldiers, regardless of rank or unit, are buried side by side. The gravestones are plain and unadorned, only recording name, rank, parents' names, and place and date of birth and death.
Christian, Muslim, and Druze soldiers
The military cemetery also honours the memory of Israel's fallen
Christian
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
,
Muslim
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
, and
Druze soldiers who have served in the Israeli security forces.
Garden of the Missing in Action
The Garden of the Missing in Action is a
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier Memorial and Memory Garden for soldiers of the
Israel Defense Forces and those who fought for the pre-state
Land of Israel whose resting places are unknown from 1914 until today. The garden was established on 29 February 2004 in a ceremony attended by army chiefs, the Israeli
Defense Minister
A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in s ...
Shaul Mofaz
Shaul Mofaz ( he, שאול מופז; 4 November 1948) is a retired Israeli military officer and politician. He joined the Israel Defense Forces in 1966 and served in the Paratroopers Brigade. He fought in the Six-Day War, Yom Kippur War, 1982 Le ...
, and members of the Jerusalem Municipality at the National Military and Police cemetery. The garden also contains memorials to those lost aboard the submarine
INS ''Dakar'' and the
23 Who Went Down at Sea.
An annual memorial service for the Missing Soldiers of Israel takes place in the garden's main plaza on
Seventh of Adar day.
The garden includes "empty graves" and stone monuments to the memory of missing soldiers. At the entrance to the garden, there is a small plaza where memorial ceremonies to the missing are held. On the north side of the plaza there is a memorial to the missing sailors of the
INS Dakar submarine, which sank in the Mediterranean sea. On the north side of the plaza is a memorial wall bearing the names of all missing soldiers and fighters from 1914 until today. On the top of the wall there is a waterfall.
File:Garden of the Missing in Action IMG 1299.JPG, The memorial wall listing the names of the Missing Warriors and Soldiers of Israel
File:Garden of the Missing in Action IMG 1290.JPG, Empty graves with memorial stones.
File:Garden of the Missing in Action IMG 1297.JPG, Memorial for Eli Cohen
Eliyahu Ben-Shaul Cohen ( he, אֱלִיָּהוּ בֵּן שָׁאוּל כֹּהֵן, ar, إيلياهو بن شاؤول كوهين; 6 December 1924 – 18 May 1965), commonly known as Eli Cohen, was an Egyptian-born Israel ...
.
File:PikiWiki Israel 12292 dakar submarine memorial in mount herzl.jpg, Memorials to those lost aboard the submarine INS Dakar
INS ''Dakar'' ( he, אח"י דקר) was a diesel–electric submarine in the Israeli Navy. The vessel, a modified World War II British T-class submarine, had previously been of the Royal Navy. She was purchased by Israel from the Government o ...
File:חניכת היכל הזכרון הממלכתי 1738.jpg, National Memorial Hall For Israel's Fallen
The National Memorial Hall for Israel's Fallen () is a national memorial for all soldiers who gave their lives establishing and defending the State of Israel. The memorial was commissioned by the Israeli Ministry of Defense to provide a central ...
National Memorial Hall For Israel's Fallen
A
national memorial hall was built at the entrance to the National Military and Police cemetery to honour the memory of the 22,684 soldiers and security personnel who have fallen defending the land of Israel since 1860. It is designed in the shape of a torch rising some 18 meters and an
eternal flame
An eternal flame is a flame, lamp or torch that burns for an indefinite time. Most eternal flames are ignited and tended intentionally, but some are natural phenomena caused by natural gas leaks, peat fires and coal seam fires, all of which can ...
burns there all year long. A candle for each soldier is lit twice a year — once on the anniversary of the soldier's death, and on Memorial Day. The cost of the project was NIS40 million.
Gardens
Above the
Herzl Museum
The Herzl Museum is a museum in Jerusalem, which deals with activities and vision of Theodor Herzl. The museum is located at the main entrance plaza to Mount Herzl.
History
Shortly after Herzl's death, the Anglo–Palestine Bank acquired about ...
and the main plaza is the Nations Garden, where trees have been planted by visiting presidents and heads of state. There are two small
observation decks
An observation deck, observation platform, or viewing platform is an elevated sightseeing platform usually situated upon a tall architectural structure, such as a skyscraper or observation tower. Observation decks are sometimes enclosed ...
looking out over Jerusalem. A
menorah sculpture stands opposite the main plaza entrance.
Situated between the Herzl Museum and the Stella and Alexander Margulies Education Center, the Stephen Norman Garden is named for Herzl's grandson,
Stephen Norman
Stephen Norman, born Stephan Theodor Neumann (1918–1946) was the grandson of the founder of Zionism, Theodor Herzl.
Biography
Stephen Neumann (later Norman) was born in Austria. His parents feared for the safety of their only child as anti-Sem ...
. He was the only member of Herzl's family to visit Palestine or to be a Zionist. It is a place for groups and students to gather to hear about Mount Herzl. On one wall of the garden, a quote from Norman, in 1945, is inscribed: "You will be amazed at the Jewish youth in Palestine...they have the look of freedom."
Museums and study centers
Herzl Museum
Herzl Museum
The Herzl Museum is a museum in Jerusalem, which deals with activities and vision of Theodor Herzl. The museum is located at the main entrance plaza to Mount Herzl.
History
Shortly after Herzl's death, the Anglo–Palestine Bank acquired about ...
, an interactive museum at the main entrance to Mt. Herzl, offers a glimpse into the life of Theodor Herzl, the man behind the dream of a
Jewish homeland
A homeland for the Jewish people is an idea rooted in Jewish history, religion, and culture. The Jewish aspiration to return to Zion, generally associated with divine redemption, has suffused Jewish religious thought since the destruction ...
.
Yad Vashem
Yad Vashem
Yad Vashem ( he, יָד וַשֵׁם; literally, "a memorial and a name") is Israel's official memorial to the victims of the Holocaust. It is dedicated to preserving the memory of the Jews who were murdered; honoring Jews who fought against th ...
is in the western region of Mount Herzl on the Mount of Remembrance in
Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
, 804 meters above sea level and adjacent to the
Jerusalem Forest
The Jerusalem Forest is a municipal pine forest located in the Judean Mountains on the outskirts of Jerusalem. It is surrounded by the neighborhoods of Beit HaKerem, Yefe Nof, Ein Kerem, Har Nof and Givat Shaul, and a moshav, Beit Zeit. The ...
. Yad Vashem is complex containing two types of sites - memorial museums and monuments, and a research institute. Memorial sites include the Holocaust History Museum and the Museum of Holocaust Art; indoor memorials such as the Children's Memorial and the Hall of Remembrance; outdoor commemorative sites such as the Valley of the Communities, the Cattle Car memorial and various sculptures; and a synagogue. The Holocaust research facilities are grouped around a research institute and include archives, a library, publishing house and an educational center, The International School for Holocaust Studies. Yad Vashem honours non-Jews who saved Jews during the Holocaust, at great personal risk, as the "
Righteous among the Nations
Righteous Among the Nations ( he, חֲסִידֵי אֻמּוֹת הָעוֹלָם, ; "righteous (plural) of the world's nations") is an honorific used by the State of Israel to describe non-Jews who risked their lives during the Holocaust to sa ...
".
The Memorial Path, leading from the entrance of Yad Vashem up to the Mount Herzl national cemetery, was established in 2003 and includes plaques that mark important events from the beginning of Zionism until the creation of the state of Israel.
Zionism study center
In 2010, work began on a Zionism Studies Center next to the Herzl museum, with the opening scheduled for 2013.
Archaeology
Mitspe Karem () is an
archaeological park
An archaeological site is a place (or group of physical sites) in which evidence of past activity is preserved (either prehistoric or historic or contemporary), and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline of archaeology and ...
located in the
Jerusalem Forest
The Jerusalem Forest is a municipal pine forest located in the Judean Mountains on the outskirts of Jerusalem. It is surrounded by the neighborhoods of Beit HaKerem, Yefe Nof, Ein Kerem, Har Nof and Givat Shaul, and a moshav, Beit Zeit. The ...
on the west side of the Mount of Remembrance, near the Yad Vashem museum. There are finds from various periods, including the Early Bronze Age, Iron Age, possibly Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine period.
Official ceremonies on Mount Herzl
* Memorial Day ceremony for Israel's Fallen Soldiers
* Memorial Day Ceremony for Victims of Terrorism, held at the memorial of terror in Israel
*
Seventh of Adar ceremony for fallen soldiers whose resting place is unknown, held in Garden of the Missing Soldiers
*
Independence Day ceremony
A ceremony (, ) is a unified ritualistic event with a purpose, usually consisting of a number of artistic components, performed on a special occasion.
The word may be of Etruscan origin, via the Latin '' caerimonia''.
Church and civil (secular) ...
, held at Mount Herzl Plaza
*
Holocaust Remembrance Day ceremony at Yad Vashem
See also
*
List of memorials and monuments at Mount Herzl
A list of the monuments and the memorials at the Mount Herzl national cemetery and the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem.
The Garden of the Missing in Action is a memorial garden with memorial board and memory stones. It is planned that ...
*
List of National Cemeteries by country
The following is a partial list of prominent National Cemeteries:
Africa
Algeria
* El Alia Cemetery, Algiers
Burundi
* Mausolée des Martyrs de la Démocratie, Bujumbura
Ghana
* Asomdwee Park, Accra
* Burma Camp Military Cemetery, Ac ...
References
External links
Mount Herzlin "
Commonwealth War Graves Commission
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of Commonwealth of Nations mil ...
" site
Mount Herzlon
WikiMapia
Wikimapia is a geographic online encyclopedia project. The project implements an interactive "clickable" web map that utilizes Google Maps with a geographically-referenced wiki system, with the aim to mark and describe all geographical objects ...
Find a grave on Mount Herzlon
YNET
Ynet (stylized as ynet) is one of the major Israeli news and general-content websites, and is the online outlet for the '' Yedioth Ahronot'' newspaper. However, most of Ynet's content is original work, published exclusively on the website and wri ...
website
Mount Herzl: The Creation of Israel's National Cemetery, Maoz AzaryahuMount Herzl Disasterin
Haaretz site
the memorial of Terror Victimsin "la'ad" website
by the
Israel Postal CompanyIsraeli Soldiers "Missing in Action"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mount Herzl
National cemeteries
Mountains of Jerusalem
Hills of Israel
Jewish cemeteries in Jerusalem
Cemeteries in Jerusalem
Military monuments and memorials
World War II memorials in Israel
Biographical museums in Israel
Theodor Herzl