Robert Weltsch (20 June 1891, in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

– 22 December 1982, in

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

) was a journalist, editor and prominent

Zionist 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 ...

Early life

Robert Weltsch was born on 20 June 1891 in Prague when it was part of

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

. The city had a strong Jewish community which was culturally German. Weltsch fought in World War I on the German side. His cousin,

Felix Weltsch Felix Weltsch (6 October 1884, Prague – 9 November 1964, Jerusalem), was a German language, German-speaking Jewish librarian, philosopher, author, editor, publisher and journalist. A close friend of Max Brod, Ludwig Winder and Franz Kafka, h ...

, was a friend of

Franz Kafka Franz Kafka (3 July 1883 – 3 June 1924) was a German-speaking Bohemian novelist and short-story writer, widely regarded as one of the major figures of 20th-century literature. His work fuses elements of realism and the fantastic. It ...

and

Max Brod Max Brod ( he, מקס ברוד; 27 May 1884 – 20 December 1968) was a German-speaking Bohemian, later Israeli, author, composer, and journalist. Although he was a prolific writer in his own right, he is best remembered as the friend and biog ...

, and Robert was also lifelong friends with the latter; they shared a strong interest in idealistic Zionism. From 1925 to 1933, Robert Weltsch was active in the Zionist organization Brit Shalom which advocated a

binational solution The one-state solution, sometimes also called a bi-national state, is a proposed approach to resolving the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, according to which one state must be established between the River Jordan and the Mediterranean. Proponen ...

Palestine __NOTOC__ Palestine may refer to: * State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia * Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia * Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East ...

, with Jews and

Arabs The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Wester ...

living together. In this cause, he was befriended by

Martin Buber Martin Buber ( he, מרטין בובר; german: Martin Buber; yi, מארטין בובער; February 8, 1878 – June 13, 1965) was an Austrian Jewish and Israeli philosopher best known for his philosophy of dialogue, a form of existentialism c ...

and

Albert Einstein Albert Einstein ( ; ; 14 March 1879 – 18 April 1955) was a German-born theoretical physicist, widely acknowledged to be one of the greatest and most influential physicists of all time. Einstein is best known for developing the theory ...

, among others. After fleeing to Palestine in 1938, he continued asking for accommodation with the Arab population of Mandate Palestine. He was friendly with

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 Israel ...

, later the first president of Israel.

Career

Weltsch was editor of the ''

Jüdische Rundschau ''Jüdische Rundschau'' (Jewish Review) was a Jewish periodical that was published in Germany between 1902 and 1938. It was the biggest Jewish weekly publication in Germany, and was the organ of the Zionist Federation of Germany. History The ''J� ...

'' (Jewish Review), a newspaper published twice a week in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

during the years the

Nazis Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...

were gaining support. The newspaper had a peak readership of 37,000. He edited and wrote for the ''Rundschau'' from 1919 through its demise under the Nazis in 1938. His best-known contribution was a reaction to the April 1, 1933 Nazi-led boycott of Jewish shops when in his editorial Weltsch used the phrase, "Wear it with pride, the

yellow badge Yellow badges (or yellow patches), also referred to as Jewish badges (german: Judenstern, lit=Jew's star), are badges that Jews were ordered to wear at various times during the Middle Ages by some caliphates, at various times during the Medieva ...

."Robert Weltsch
Wear It With Pride, The Yellow Badge.
''Juedische Rundschau'', No. 27, April 4, 1933 This was a call for strength and solidarity, and a lone voice in reaction to the Nazi boycott. It was not a reference to the forced-wearing of yellow armbands, which the Nazis didn't force on Jews until 1941, but rather a call for unity to a German-Jewish community that had until then thought of itself as comfortably assimilated into German life. Weltsch worked for many years as a correspondent for ''

Haaretz ''Haaretz'' ( , originally ''Ḥadshot Haaretz'' – , ) is an Israeli newspaper. It was founded in 1918, making it the longest running newspaper currently in print in Israel, and is now published in both Hebrew and English in the Berliner f ...

'', a major Israeli newspaper. In 1945 he moved to London, becoming Haaretz's London correspondent. In this capacity he covered the

Nuremberg Trials The Nuremberg trials were held by the Allies of World War II, Allies against representatives of the defeated Nazi Germany, for plotting and carrying out invasions of other countries, and other crimes, in World War II. Between 1939 and 1945 ...

. He was a major force in establishing the

Leo Baeck Institute The Leo Baeck Institute, established in 1955, is an international research institute with centres in New York City, London, and Jerusalem that are devoted to the study of the history and culture of German-speaking Jewry. Baeck was its first intern ...

, named for a rabbi and leader of the German-Jewish community during the Nazi years. The Institute is a group dedicated to preserving German-Jewish history and culture and is still active. Weltsch edited the Institute's Yearbook from 1956 to 1978.

Death

Weltsch died on 22 December 1982 in

, Israel.

Notes and references

External links

*
Guide to the Robert Weltsch papers
at the Leo Baeck Institute, New York (digitized) {{DEFAULTSORT:Weltsch, Robert 1891 births 1982 deaths Writers from Prague People from the Kingdom of Bohemia Czechoslovak emigrants to Mandatory Palestine Jews in Mandatory Palestine Israeli people of Czech-Jewish descent Israeli reporters and correspondents Czech Zionists 20th-century journalists Austro-Hungarian Jews Haaretz people Jewish Czech writers