ALBERT GOLDSMID was a military officer and ardent early Zionist, a leader of the British Hovevei Zion (Lovers of Zion) movement. He was the highest ranking Jewish officer in the British Army in the 19th century.
Background
Born in Poona, India, he was raised as a Christian and only discovered his Jewish roots after he grew up. He returned to the Jewish faith, assuming the name of Michael, at the age of twenty-four. He viewed himself as a model for Daniel Deronda, George Eliot’s characterization of an assimilated Jew who rediscovered his roots.
Career
Goldsmid enlisted in the British Army in 1866, and was transferred with his regiment to India. He was appointed deputy assistant adjutant-general in 1889, was promoted to colonel in 1894, and gained distinction during the Boer War as a staff officer. He retired from the army in 1903.
Goldsmid was a firm believer in the Jewish settlement of Palestine and in the revival of Hebrew as a living language.
In 1892 he took a year’s leave of absence from the British War Office in order to administer baron de Hirsch's Jewish settlement project in Argentina. He viewed the settlements as a temporary solution to alleviate the Jews’ plight and an opportunity to spread Hovevei Zion ideals and Jewish nationalism.
During his stay in Argentina, large tracts of land were parceled out in Santa Fe and Entre Rios, and approximately seven hundred families were settled in four settlements, the majority untrained in agriculture.
When he returned to England a year later, Goldsmid was elected president of the English Hovevei Zion movement. He was active in the Jewish community, helping to found the Macca beans and the Jewish Lads’ Brigade in 1895.
Views
Quotations:
In an interview on the eve of his departure, Goldsmid declared, “The Jewish question will never be solved until a Jewish state guaranteed by the Powers is established in the Land of Israel.’’