Sejarah Zionisme, 1600-1918/Volume 1/Bab 28

CHAPTER XXVIII.

THE CRIMEAN WAR

Russia and Turkey—A protectorate over the Greek Christians—The question of the “Holy Places”—The Greek Church—Sultan Mahmud II. and the Tsar Nicholas I.—Jurisdiction in Turkey—Prince Menschikoff—The Alliance between France, Great Britain and Turkey—Sardinia—Alexander II.—The fall of Sebastopol—The conclusion of peace in Paris—The question of reforms—The Jewish point of view—The Crimean War and Palestine—Dr. Benisch in the Jewish Chronicle—The Christian Zionist propaganda—Rev. W. H. Johnstone—Mr. Robert Young.

In 1853 a great struggle broke out between Russia and Turkey, the immediate cause of which was the desire of Russia to force a protectorate upon the Greek Christians in the Turkish dominions. This was accompanied by a dispute between Russia and other European powers, especially France, which had arisen over the guardianship of the “Holy Places.” The fate of Palestine was involved in the issue of this struggle.

The pretension of the Greek Church to exercise the right of possession of the “Holy Places” dates back to the early days of Christianity. The Greek Church has always posed as the genuine representative of the Eastern Church, professing to have inherited its claim to the allegiance of the orthodox when the cleavage came, in the second century, concerning the proper season for the celebration of Easter, and divided its community into two distinct sections.

The alleged and proved purpose of the Church was to obtain complete and undisturbed possession of the “Holy Places,” where the Greek Church deems it of vital importance that certain religious ceremonies shall be observed, to which pilgrimages are to be made by its devout members. Some of these members furnished the Russian Government with reasons for its claims, presumably based on facts. At that period the greater part of the Christian Communities in the whole of Syria and Palestine adhered to the Greek Orthodox faith. In the whole Ottoman Empire their number was very considerable; the estimate in 1852‒53 reached as high a total as 11,000,000 members of the Greek Church. In Greece it was the established religion, while throughout the Greek islands its members outnumbered those of any other Christian denomination. North of the Danube, Wallachia and Moldavia were under its sway and were considered to be under the protection of Russia.

The Greek monasteries of the Holy Land were not only under the protection and control of Russia, but were chiefly supported by loans from that country. Under this influence these communities continued to make the greatest progress possible, and put forth every effort to advance themselves step by step, leaving no stone unturned in their endeavour to raise themselves above the other Churches.

Rumours gained currency that a strong Russian propaganda was on foot. It was even said that the late Sultan Mahmud II. gave an assurance to the effect, that at the death of Mehemet Ali, the Holy Land should be given up to Russian dominion on certain stipulated conditions. Imagination had, of course, free scope in inventing myths of this kind. But at any rate there was a general impression abroad that Russia was anxious to conquer and annex the Holy Land.

The unhappy empire for which England and France had shed so much blood and made so many sacrifices continued to give anxiety and trouble to Europe. Turkey had gained much by the war in the way of security from invasion and extension of the central authority to provinces which previously had been partly independent. The Western Powers, and particularly England, waited anxiously for the reforms and progress which were promised by the sanguine friends of the Turkish cause. But Turkey did nothing. Her finances were in confusion. The schemes which English enterprise had kept going were delayed. While the Porte was borrowing at enormous interest the money required for current expenditure, it could hardly be expected to guarantee dividends on many millions sterling, and it would have inspired little confidence if it had done so. This, then, was the time for statesmen to study the question and to elaborate their plans.

Of all the evils with which the Turkish State was afflicted, corruption—in the sense of the denial of justice—seems to have been the worst. Each of the non-Mohammedan nations was permitted to appear before tribunals of its own bishops in matters of litigation in which only its members were concerned. The civil law was administered in the Greek courts; the Armenians were subject to many regulations brought from the interior of Asia. The Turkish courts were presided over by functionaries who had much of the character of priests, and the law founded on the Koran was what might have been expected from a text-book interpreted by such commentators. The literal sense meant one thing, the metaphorical sense another, and the best chance of getting justice was when the judge could find nothing to fit the case and decided according to his own common sense. Both his Scriptural authorities and his private opinions were, however, continually influenced by arguments more persuasive than any pleadings. The corruption of this sort of court was notorious, and the Christian bishops were not considered much better than the believers. As for the Frank jurisdiction, it was chaos, being void of all system. Each man came under the representative of his own nation; through this official or his deputy he had to be sued, and by him he had to be tried for any offence. If a French officer and a German shoemaker had differences concerning a pair of boots, one had to make his application through the Austrian Internunciate, the other had to respond through the French Embassy. The matter was in the first instance referred to the Consuls, who knew little of law, and the appeal came before the Ambassadors, who knew less. Commercial courts existed in some of the chief cities, and exercised a good influence; but as the country was opened more and more to commercial enterprise, and this increased with the progress of the non-Mohammedan populations, these courts became inadequate.

The country was, no doubt, very badly in need of material improvements: roads and canals are generally the initial work of a renewed civilization. But the real basis of improvement is confidence in the Government, and the guarantee of undisturbed ownership of property. Such confidence cannot exist without impartial courts and sensible laws. The most capable judge could not do justice according to the Koran, while the codes of Justinian and Napoleon were unavailing so long as the longest purse was the best argument.

It was therefore the duty of the Western Powers to consider how justice might be administered so as to encourage both the native and the settler to join in the work of amelioration. Few thinking men had visited the East without formulating some plan for supplying this first and greatest want. The general conclusion was based on the supposition of the necessity for continuing the “Capitulations.” It was supposed to be impossible for strangers to submit themselves to the authority of the monarch who ruled the land; and indeed the experience of the native courts, and the fact that no man ventured to undertake any commercial business without security, naturally suggested foreign protection. More than one traveller, therefore, recommended that a code of laws should be agreed to by the Great Powers, and that in every seaport French, English, etc., judges should decide such cases as involved the liberty or property of Europeans. Such a system was regarded as being superior to the earlier ineffective regulations. But, on the other hand, it was held that such an expedient should only be resorted to temporarily.

Turkey had already suffered greatly through the power of European Embassies and their enmity towards one another. The Western Powers did not forget that they had gone to war for the independence and integrity of the Ottoman Empire. They knew that a mixed court sitting in its capital to try foreigners was a thing that no high-spirited nation would permit, and that, if circumstances made it necessary to demand jurisdiction for foreigners in the capital of the Sultan, that could only be until the elements of a better state of things came into being. The Powers had, therefore, to look forward to a time when Turkey would stand alone, and all protection and jurisdiction in the way of Capitulations would cease to exist. A well-framed code of laws suited to all races and religions, administered by well-educated men, and obeyed by native and foreigner alike, was the ideal object for which the supporters of Turkey had to work. The sovereign of the country must be at the head of this system and supreme in his own dominions. Although such a scheme was deemed visionary at that time, and the gap had to be filled by “mixed” courts, yet public opinion in England thought that nothing should be done that could prevent the subsequent establishment of the better system. It was also believed that if a suitable legal system were set up, men might be found in England, France and other countries to administer it successfully. But it was admitted on all hands that the judicial system of Turkey deserved the immediate attention of thinking politicians; that questions of taxation and the tenure of land were especially interesting in view of the increasing commerce with the East and of possible developments in the matter of immigration; that nothing that could throw light on the causes of Turkish decay should be neglected; and that the absence of good laws and security was the first obstacle to improvement, and should therefore be the first thought of the statesman and philanthropist.

Here we see all the elements of the political Zionist problem. All this development prepared the way for the idea of the protection of the Jews in the East, and gave a powerful stimulus to projects for the colonization of Palestine by the Jews.

In the spring of 1853 the Russian Government submitted to the Porte, through Prince A. S. Menschikoff (1787‒1869), an ultimatum in regard to the Greek Christians and other matters. England and France prepared to support Sultan Abdul Medjid against Russia, and stationed their fleets in Bezika Bay. In July the Russian forces advanced into the Danubian principalities. On October 4th, 1853, Turkey declared war. The English and French fleets thereupon passed through the Dardanelles. On March 12th, 1854, France and Great Britain concluded an alliance with Turkey, and two weeks later they declared war against Russia. At the beginning of October the Allies began the regular siege of Sebastopol. Sardinia joined the Allies in January, 1855. Meanwhile the Emperor Nicholas I. died, and Alexander II. acceded to the throne. On November 8th Sebastopol fell into the hands of the Allies.

The Western Powers completed the occupation of Turkey within two years; but the reforms, of which they spoke so much, were still to come. Turkey remained what it was in internal rule and mismanagement. Fear may have controlled the abuses of fanaticism, despair may have destroyed whatever remained of national pride; but the abuses which ages had fostered still prevailed. Now the social regeneration of the Ottoman State was part of the legitimate policy of the Western Powers. The presence of large foreign armies had broken down the pride of the Mussulmans, or enforced its concealment; the Sultan, though less exposed to the vagaries of diplomatists, had become more responsible to the European States and the brotherhood of sovereigns among whom he now held a place; the Turk himself, in spite of courage and a certain amount of dignity, was degenerating day by day, through want of modern culture; the Christian tribes were increasing in numbers and power; the merchants of Constantinople, Smyrna, and Alexandria were growing rich with British gold, while British enterprise seemed to be surely, though gradually, adding the Sultan’s empire to the area of its wide activities.

Justice, humanity, England’s promises, the arguments with which she had opposed her enemies, demanded that her tutelage should not suddenly cease. She and France were now the protectors of the Ottoman territory and its outlying provinces; they were the masters of every military position; every sea was traversed by their fleets; every port was full of the merchandize required for their vast armies. Nor was their supremacy one of force alone. Whatever may have been the feelings aroused by their policy, each class and creed had learned to respect their motives and to acquiesce in their presence. Whatever may have been thought on racial and religious grounds, certainly material interests in the end prevailed over every other. Every business man saw clearly that his own prosperity was enhanced by the presence of two wealthy nations, in need of large and constant supplies, and willing to pay liberally and at once. In their hearts they had no wish to be again reduced to a miserable traffic with their own bankrupt Government, or with the poverty-stricken towns of the Turkish and Persian interior. The peasants who tilled the ground had gained wherever local tyranny did not rob them of the just rewards of their labour. The landed proprietor had also become wealthy, and had no reason to regret the Western crusade, which gave his possessions a fourfold value. So tangible was the advantage, and so soon did the Turks acquiesce in what affected only their patriotism and self-esteem, that it was doubtful whether even the most bigoted Mussulman wanted the evacuation of the country by the Allied armies. Englishmen, of course, looked upon the advancement of Turkey in a different light from that in which it was seen by its own people. Still, even Englishmen could not fail to realize that if they withdrew there was no doubt that the old stagnation would immediately return, and that it would even become worse than before, for old fame and the habit of command kept the Mussulman in his pre-eminence, while the “Rajah” was accustomed to obey, and the foreigner was a mere sojourner, who cared for nothing but his own peace and prosperity. Now all was changed: the Turk was still master, without the authority to rule; the Christian was without rights, but had felt his power; while every country had its adventurers or capitalists in the land, each with his own scheme launched or prospective, and all agreeing in the demand that this rich land should no longer be the heritage of sloth and fatuity.

Peace was signed at Paris—where a Congress of the Powers had been in session—on March 30th, 1856. The integrity of the Ottoman Empire was guaranteed by the Powers; reforms were promised by the Sultan; Russia renounced her protectorate over the Danubian principalities, and ceded a strip of Bessarabia to Moldavia; the Black Sea was neutralized. The Congress united in the “Declaration of Paris,” which laid down some principles of international law.

The question in which the Jews were interested was first of all that of their position in Palestine, as well as in the whole of the Turkish Empire. According to the wording of the treaty the Jews were excluded from the general guarantee and the immunities of the “Rajahs” under the protection of the contracting powers. But, on the other hand, all the rights hitherto granted by the Sultan to his Christian subjects had been extended to the Jews as well; and it was clear that, if Turkey understood her position rightly, this would also be her future policy, seeing that it was in her interest not to create dissatisfaction among a large and loyal body by refusing to one section of non-Mohammedans what had been conceded to another, and thus alienating the only non-Mohammedan section of the population which did not entertain sentiments of revenge, and the only section which was capable of neutralizing any possible machinations on the part of other sections.

The war having on the one hand raised very considerably the prices of provisions, and on the other hand cut off the supplies obtained by the Palestinian Jews in times of peace from those countries in which the masses of Jews reside, an awful famine broke out in the Holy Land, and affected most severely all those who had hitherto depended for their livelihood upon the small pittances doled out to them by the Jews in foreign countries. A pitiable cry of distress was raised in the East and resounded throughout the Western world. Now the right time had arrived. “We find”, wrote Dr. Abraham Benisch (1811‒1878), “no other parallel in Jewish history to it save that offered by some of the events narrated in the books of Ezra (fl. 3413 a.m.) and Nehemiah (fl. 3426 a.m.). The generous Abdul-Medjed has his prototype in the God-fearing Cyrus (ob. 529 b.c.e.); and the pious affection for brethren and country, the devotion and patriotism then kindling in the bosoms of patriots on the shores of the Euphrates have transferred their seat to the banks of the Thames. So far God’s blessing had rested upon the work. But Rome was not built in a day, nor is a nation regenerated within a few years.”

Needless to say, the reference here was to the regeneration of the Jewish nation in Palestine. But for this purpose safety and full security were wanted—the very problem with which modern Zionism was confronted, and which was answered by the Basle programme of 1897. “The Jew, it is true, may now sow and plant. But will he also be permitted to reap? Will not the wild son of the desert trample down and carry off the crop even before it is ripe for the sickle? The Sultan may emancipate his Jewish subjects in the Holy Land, but, in order to be enabled to reap any benefit from the boon conceded, he must give them a government strong enough to protect life and property. The mighty arm of justice must repress lawlessness and strike down the wrong-doer.... Will the Porte as easily be able to establish in Palestine a strong government as it was to bless her with liberal institutions? This is another question which time, and time alone, can answer, and yet upon the reply thereto the success of the agricultural scheme for the Palestinian Jews must depend entirely.”

No doubt 1856 offered a great opportunity, had the legal guarantees been available and the Jews prepared. Unfortunately these essential conditions did not yet obtain at that time, and no practical result was achieved.

The Rev. William Henry Johnstone, Chaplain of Addiscombe, and an author of several theological works, preached the Restoration of Israel to the Holy Land:—

“If political events are hastening a crisis, when it may be desirable to consider what is to be done with Palestine, it behoves the Jews to take earnest heed to their duty.... It is not an extravagant supposition that Palestine may be placed within the grasp of its ancient owners....” “In one matter I feel that the Jews have just reason to complain of many Christians. The Divine Law, of which they have been the guardians, has never been repealed. Jehovah gave it, and Jehovah has never taken it away.” “For the present I waive all consideration of Scriptural predictions. But, without any reference to the Bible, it must be clear to all that the residence of Israel in the Holy Land would be fraught with the greatest blessings to mankind. The Jews, though now scattered over the entire habitable globe, are united by every national tie,... They have connections with all large towns; they possess the moving spring of modern industry and enterprise; and they are renowned for vigour and intelligence. They have that gift, also, which no other nation had since the dispersion of Babel,—they can converse with all people in their own languages. They have naturally, what the apostolic Christians received by miraculous interposition, the gift of tongues. They may, therefore, not only undo the work of Babel, but may carry on the work of the apostles.”

Another religious writer gave poetical expression to this idea.

Arise, great God! and let thy grace

Shed its glad beams on Jacob’s race;

Restore the long-lost scatter’d band,

And call them to their native land.

Their mis’ry let thy mercy heal,

Their trespass hide, their pardon seal:

O God of Israel! hear our prayer,

And grant them still thy love to share.¹