Hartuv
Encyclopedia
Hartuv or Har-Tuv (lit. Mount of goodness) was an agricultural colony in the Judean Hills established in 1883 on land purchased from the Arab village of Artuf
by English missionaries. It was destroyed in the 1929 Palestine riots
but was rebuilt in 1930. In 1948 it was abandoned again. Hartuv was the starting point for the Convoy of 35
during the 1948 war. Hartuv is now an industrial zone near Beit Shemesh.
. After the pogroms against the Jews in Eastern Europe in 1882, the society used some of the money raised to help the Jewish refugees to purchase land in Artuf. Towards the end of 1883, 24 Jewish families were settled there, each receiving 150 dunams of farmland, farm animals and tools. Due to economic difficulties and the lack of water, some of the land was leased to Arabs. After living for some time in tents, a wooden hut was built where all the families lived together. They were obliged to attend Sunday meetings and send their children to the missionary school, but most of the colonists remained practicing Jews.
In 1895, the Bulgarian Hibbat Zion
movement bought the 5,000-dunam farm from the London Jews Society and renamed it Har-Tuv (lit. Mountain of Good). Twelve Jewish families settled there and tried to earn a living from agriculture. Due to the poor quality of the soil, and lack of water, seeds and work implements, life in Hartuv was a struggle. In 1900, one of the settlers inaugurated a carriage service to Jerusalem.
In his 1912-13 literary almanac, Luah le'eretz yisrael, historian Abraham Moses Luncz
wrote: "Artuf (Har-Tuv), founded in 1895, about 10 minutes from D'ieban along the route of the Jerusalem-Yafo railroad, 101 inhabitants, Sephardi Jews of Bulgarian origin."
During the 1929 riots
In 1917, Artuf was the base camp for the 10th Light Horse Brigade that fought in the battle for Jerusalem. Hartuv was destroyed by the Arabs. The Jews fled to Jaffa
by train, watching their homes go up in flames through the carriage windows.
Invoking the Collective Punishments Ordinance, the British Mandatory authorities heavily fined the Arab villages whose residents attacked the Jews of Hartuv.
In 1930 Hartuv was rebuilt and some of the families returned.
truck on its way to Hartuv was attacked and its 3 passengers murdered. Since then all transportation was done in lightly armored vehicles.
On March 18, 1948 a convoy that had just finished resupplying Hartuv was ambushed on its way back to Jerusalem by the forces of Abd al-Qadir al-Husayni
. 11 convoy members were killed in the battle.
The Convoy of 35
left Hartuv in an attempt to resupply and reinforce the Gush Etzion
kibbutzim by foot on January 16, 1948. 35 members of the convoy were killed. According to some reports many of the bodies had been mutilated, some beyond recognition.
since 1985. Excavations in Hartuv revealed an architectural complex dating to the Early Bronze 1 period. The site includes a central courtyard surrounded by rooms on at least three sides. One of the rooms, a rectangular hall with pillar bases along its long axis, may have been a sanctuary with a line of standing stones (massebot). Another hall has a monumental entrance flanked by two monolithic door jambs. The complex appears to have had both religious and secular functions.
In 1987, Beit Or Aviva, Israel's first therapeutic community
was established in Hartuv.
Artuf
Artuf was a Palestinian village in the Jerusalem foothills depopulated in 1948. It was situated west of Jerusalem on a high plateau, surrounded by plains on the south, east, and west...
by English missionaries. It was destroyed in the 1929 Palestine riots
1929 Palestine riots
The 1929 Palestine riots, also known as the Western Wall Uprising, the 1929 Massacres, , or the Buraq Uprising , refers to a series of demonstrations and riots in late August 1929 when a long-running dispute between Muslims and Jews over access to the Western Wall in Jerusalem escalated into violence...
but was rebuilt in 1930. In 1948 it was abandoned again. Hartuv was the starting point for the Convoy of 35
Convoy of 35
The Convoy of 35 refers to 35 soldiers of the Haganah who were killed while attempting to resupply and or reinforce the Gush Etzion kibbutzim by foot on January 16, 1948, after a number of convoys had been attacked during the early stages of the 1947–1948 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine.- Attack...
during the 1948 war. Hartuv is now an industrial zone near Beit Shemesh.
History
In the early 1870s, the Spanish consul in Jerusalem bought over 5,000 dunams of land from the villagers of Artuf, which he sold to the London Society for Promoting Christianity Amongst the JewsChurch's Ministry Among Jewish People
Church's Ministry Among Jewish People is an Anglican missionary society founded in 1809.-History:...
. After the pogroms against the Jews in Eastern Europe in 1882, the society used some of the money raised to help the Jewish refugees to purchase land in Artuf. Towards the end of 1883, 24 Jewish families were settled there, each receiving 150 dunams of farmland, farm animals and tools. Due to economic difficulties and the lack of water, some of the land was leased to Arabs. After living for some time in tents, a wooden hut was built where all the families lived together. They were obliged to attend Sunday meetings and send their children to the missionary school, but most of the colonists remained practicing Jews.
In 1895, the Bulgarian Hibbat Zion
Hibbat Zion
Hibbat Zion may refer to:*Hibat Tzion, a moshav in central Israel.*An alternative name for Hovevei Zion....
movement bought the 5,000-dunam farm from the London Jews Society and renamed it Har-Tuv (lit. Mountain of Good). Twelve Jewish families settled there and tried to earn a living from agriculture. Due to the poor quality of the soil, and lack of water, seeds and work implements, life in Hartuv was a struggle. In 1900, one of the settlers inaugurated a carriage service to Jerusalem.
In his 1912-13 literary almanac, Luah le'eretz yisrael, historian Abraham Moses Luncz
Abraham Moses Luncz
Abraham Moses Luncz was a Russian scholar and editor born at Kovno, Russia. He went when very young to Jerusalem. Luncz, who suffered from early blindness, founded, in conjunction with Dr...
wrote: "Artuf (Har-Tuv), founded in 1895, about 10 minutes from D'ieban along the route of the Jerusalem-Yafo railroad, 101 inhabitants, Sephardi Jews of Bulgarian origin."
During the 1929 riots
1929 Palestine riots
The 1929 Palestine riots, also known as the Western Wall Uprising, the 1929 Massacres, , or the Buraq Uprising , refers to a series of demonstrations and riots in late August 1929 when a long-running dispute between Muslims and Jews over access to the Western Wall in Jerusalem escalated into violence...
In 1917, Artuf was the base camp for the 10th Light Horse Brigade that fought in the battle for Jerusalem. Hartuv was destroyed by the Arabs. The Jews fled to Jaffa
Jaffa
Jaffa is an ancient port city believed to be one of the oldest in the world. Jaffa was incorporated with Tel Aviv creating the city of Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel. Jaffa is famous for its association with the biblical story of the prophet Jonah.-Etymology:...
by train, watching their homes go up in flames through the carriage windows.
Invoking the Collective Punishments Ordinance, the British Mandatory authorities heavily fined the Arab villages whose residents attacked the Jews of Hartuv.
In 1930 Hartuv was rebuilt and some of the families returned.
Attacks on Hartuv
On 20 December 1947, a NotrimNotrim
The Notrim were a Jewish Police Force set up by the British in the Mandatory Palestine in 1936 to help defend Jewish lives and property during the 1936-1939 Arab revolt in Palestine. The force was divided into Supernumerary Police and highly mobile Settlement Police...
truck on its way to Hartuv was attacked and its 3 passengers murdered. Since then all transportation was done in lightly armored vehicles.
On March 18, 1948 a convoy that had just finished resupplying Hartuv was ambushed on its way back to Jerusalem by the forces of Abd al-Qadir al-Husayni
Abd al-Qadir al-Husayni
Abd al-Qadir al-Husayni was a Palestinian Arab nationalist and fighter who in late 1933 founded the secret militant group known as the Organization for Holy Struggle, , which he and Hasan Salama commanded as the Army of the Holy War during the 1936-1939 Arab Revolt and during the 1948...
. 11 convoy members were killed in the battle.
The Convoy of 35
Convoy of 35
The Convoy of 35 refers to 35 soldiers of the Haganah who were killed while attempting to resupply and or reinforce the Gush Etzion kibbutzim by foot on January 16, 1948, after a number of convoys had been attacked during the early stages of the 1947–1948 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine.- Attack...
left Hartuv in an attempt to resupply and reinforce the Gush Etzion
Gush Etzion
Gush Etzion is a cluster of Israeli settlements located in the Judaean Mountains directly south of Jerusalem and Bethlehem in the West Bank, Palestinian territories. The core group includes four agricultural villages that were founded in 1940-1947 on property purchased in the 1920s and 1930s, and ...
kibbutzim by foot on January 16, 1948. 35 members of the convoy were killed. According to some reports many of the bodies had been mutilated, some beyond recognition.
Moshav Naham
After the establishment of the State of Israel, a ma'abara transit camp was set up to accommodate the masses of new immigrants arriving from Europe and Arab lands. In 1950, Moshav Naham was founded nearby.Archaeology
Two archaeological sites nearby are Khirbat Marmita, about 1 km east of the village, and al-Burj, on the site of Hartuv to the southwest. Excavations have been carried out on Khirbat al-Burj by the Hebrew UniversityHebrew University of Jerusalem
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem ; ; abbreviated HUJI) is Israel's second-oldest university, after the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. The Hebrew University has three campuses in Jerusalem and one in Rehovot. The world's largest Jewish studies library is located on its Edmond J...
since 1985. Excavations in Hartuv revealed an architectural complex dating to the Early Bronze 1 period. The site includes a central courtyard surrounded by rooms on at least three sides. One of the rooms, a rectangular hall with pillar bases along its long axis, may have been a sanctuary with a line of standing stones (massebot). Another hall has a monumental entrance flanked by two monolithic door jambs. The complex appears to have had both religious and secular functions.
Today
Today Hartuv is an industrial zone. Nesher Israel Cement Enterprises, Israel's sole producer of cement, maintains one of its three factories in Hartuv.In 1987, Beit Or Aviva, Israel's first therapeutic community
Therapeutic community
Therapeutic community is a term applied to a participative, group-based approach to long-term mental illness, personality disorders and drug addiction...
was established in Hartuv.