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Hermann Adler Ha
Hermann Adler: Chief Rabbi
Articles on the British Chief Rabbinate
Entry on Hermann Adler in Cassell's Universal Portrait Gallery (1895)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Adler, Hermann 1839 births 1911 deaths Chief rabbis of the United Kingdom Commanders of the Royal Victorian Order 19th-century English rabbis 20th-century English rabbis People educated at University College School Clergy from Hanover German emigrants to England British Orthodox rabbis German Orthodox rabbis Burials at Willesden Jewish Cemetery
Hermann Adler HaKohen
Kohen ( he, , ''kōhēn'', , "priest", pl. , ''kōhănīm'', , "priests") is the Hebrew word for " priest", used in reference to the Aaronic priesthood, also called Aaronites or Aaronides. Levitical priests or ''kohanim'' are traditionally ...
CVO (30 May 1839 – 18 July 1911;
Hebrew נפתלי צבי הירש הכהן אדלר
) was the Chief Rabbi
Chief Rabbi ( he, רב ראשי ''Rav Rashi'') is a title given in several countries to the recognized religious leader of that country's Jewish community, or to a rabbinic leader appointed by the local secular authorities. Since 1911, through a ...
of the British Empire
The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts e ...
from 1891 to 1911. The son (and successor as Chief Rabbi) of Nathan Marcus Adler
Nathan Marcus HaKohen Adler (13 January 1803 – 21 January 1890) (Hebrew name: Natan ben Mordechai ha-Kohen) was the Orthodox Chief Rabbi of the British Empire from 1845 until his death.
Life
A kohen by birth, Adler was born in Hanover, in pr ...
, the 1911 ''Encyclopædia Britannica
The (Latin for "British Encyclopædia") is a general knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It is published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.; the company has existed since the 18th century, although it has changed ownership various t ...
'' writes that he "raised the position f Chief Rabbito one of much dignity and importance."
Biography
Naftali (Hermann) Adler was born inHanover
Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...
. Like his father, he had both a rabbi
A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as '' semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form o ...
nical education and a university education in 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 betwee ...
, and like him he subscribed to a modernised orthodoxy. He attended University College School
("Slowly but surely")
, established =
, closed =
, type = Public schoolIndependent day school
, religion =
, president =
, head_label = Headmaster
, head = Mark Beard
, r_head_label =
, r_he ...
in London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
from 1852 to 1854 and rabbinical college 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 ...
. He graduated from Leipzig
Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...
in 1862 with a PhD. He received his semikha
Semikhah ( he, סמיכה) is the traditional Jewish name for rabbinic ordination.
The original ''semikhah'' was the formal "transmission of authority" from Moses through the generations. This form of ''semikhah'' ceased between 360 and 425 ...
(Rabbinic ordination) from Rabbi Solomon Judah Loeb Rapoport. He later received honorary degrees from Scottish and English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ...
universities, including Oxford
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
.
Rabbinic career
He was head of the congregation of Bayswater Synagogue,Paddington
Paddington is an area within the City of Westminster, in Central London. First a medieval parish then a metropolitan borough, it was integrated with Westminster and Greater London in 1965. Three important landmarks of the district are Padd ...
, during his father's lifetime, and his father's assistant from the time his father's health began to deteriorate in 1879, before succeeding him on his death in 1891.
In 1909 he was appointed a Commander of the Royal Victorian Order
The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, o ...
(CVO).
Once he was having a lunch with British Catholic cardinal Herbert Vaughan
Herbert Alfred Henry Vaughan, MHM (15 April 1832 – 19 June 1903) was an English prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Westminster from 1892 until his death in 1903, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1893. He was th ...
. The cardinal asked the rabbi "Now, Dr. Adler, when may I have the pleasure of helping you to some ham?" The rabbi responded: "At Your Eminence's wedding".
Adler wrote extensively on topics of Anglo-Jewish history and published two volumes of sermons. He was a vigorous defender of his co-religionists and their faith, as well as their sacred scriptures.Jung, Leo (ed.) "Three Chief Rabbis", Cecil Roth in ''Jewish Leaders'', (Jerusalem 1953)
He is buried in the Willesden United Synagogue Cemetery
The Willesden United Synagogue Cemetery, usually known as Willesden Jewish Cemetery, is a Jewish cemetery at Beaconsfield Road, Willesden, in the London Borough of Brent, England. It opened in 1873 on a site. It has been described as the ...
in London.
See also
*List of British Jews
List of British Jews is a list of prominent Jews from the United Kingdom and its predecessor states.
Although the first Jews may have arrived on the island of Great Britain with the Romans, it was not until the Norman Conquest of William the C ...
References
External links
*Hermann Adler: Chief Rabbi
Articles on the British Chief Rabbinate
Entry on Hermann Adler in Cassell's Universal Portrait Gallery (1895)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Adler, Hermann 1839 births 1911 deaths Chief rabbis of the United Kingdom Commanders of the Royal Victorian Order 19th-century English rabbis 20th-century English rabbis People educated at University College School Clergy from Hanover German emigrants to England British Orthodox rabbis German Orthodox rabbis Burials at Willesden Jewish Cemetery