On December 19, 1919, after a long and arduous voyage from Odessa, the ship Ruslan docked at the port of Jaffa.
Carrying approximately 600 passengers, the ship was filled with refugees escaping the ravages of war and pogroms from the Russian Empire.
Among the passengers were also pioneers fervently committed to the Zionist cause and former residents of the Yishuv* who fled the Land of Israel due to war and famine.
Dubbed “the Israeli Mayflower” the Ruslan is renowned for the significant impact many of its passengers had on the development of the Yishuv and the future State of Israel.
Among those passengers were:
Rachel Bluwstein Sela, also known as Rachel “The Poetess”,
The first female Member of the Knesset and one of only two women to sign the Israeli Declaration of Independence Rachel Cohen-Kagan,
Baruh Agadati, a pioneer of modern dance and cinematography in Israel,
Historian Josef Klausner,
Architects Zeev Rechter and Yehuda Megidowich,
Painter Jacob Frenkel,
Composer Shmuel Navon,
Social activist and mother of Yitzhak Rabin Rosa Cohen.
Although other immigrant ships arrived before the Ruslan, it has gained an almost mythical reputation as a herald of the Third Aliyah and a symbol of pioneering immigration.
Its passengers embodied the hope, resilience, and determination that characterized this crucial period in the history of Jewish settlement in the Land of Israel.
Article Written by Sasha Zoiref
Tour Guide in Israel
Contact details: TripAdvisor & Instagram
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