Today, 2 Av, marks 96 years since the Frierdiker Rebbe’s historic arrival in Eretz Yisroel for his first and only visit to the Holy Land. He was the only one of the Rebbeim to have ever set foot in Eretz Yisroel. Presented here is a detailed account of the historic journey to Eretz Yisroel and his first day there.

By Hershel Rosenbluh

Today, 2 Av, marks 96 years since the Frierdiker Rebbe‘s historic arrival in Eretz Yisroel for his first and only visit to the Holy Land. He was the only one of the Rebbeim to have ever set foot in Eretz Yisroel.

After leaving the Soviet Union following Simchas Torah of 5688 (1927), the Frierdiker Rebbe could no longer visit the ohalim of the Rabbeim – whether in Rostov, Lubavitch, Haditch, or Nyezhin. In 5689 (1929), the Frierdiker Rebbe decided to travel to Eretz Yisroel and visit the holy sites there. The eventual trip to the United States had already been planned, but people were unaware of the Rebbe’s intention to travel to Eretz Yisroel.

On Rosh Chodesh Tammuz, the Frierdiker Rebbe received all the necessary documents and visas required for the trip. He had been assisted by many in Eretz Yisroel, including Chief Rabbi Rav Avrohom Yitzchok HaKohen Kook and the rov of Yerushalayim, Rav Yosef Chaim Sonnenfeld. On Shiva Asar B’Tammuz, a letter arrived from the Frierdiker Rebbe addressed to the hanhala of Yeshiva Toras Emes in Yerushalayim, informing them of his intent to visit Eretz Yisroel in two weeks’ time. That was the first they heard of the trip, and they immediately sprang into action, making the necessary preparations for the Rebbe’s visit.

On 23 Tammuz, the Frierdiker Rebbe set out for Berlin, accompanied by the Rashag and others, where he was greeted by the Rebbe and Rebbetzin Chaya Mushka. From there, they all traveled together toward Vienna. Shacharis on the 24th of Tammuz was davened in Prague, where the train had stopped, and later that day, they arrived in Vienna.

The next day, Friday, they traveled to Trieste, Italy. At 5:00 p.m. on Friday, they boarded a ship that crossed the Adriatic Sea and docked in Brindisi, Italy, at noon on Sunday. There, the Rebbe and Rebbetzin bid farewell to the Frierdiker Rebbe. The ship then continued from Brindisi to Egypt, arriving in Alexandria on the 29th of Tammuz.

At the port in Alexandria, they were greeted by local dignitaries from the Jewish community. Also waiting were two visitors from Eretz Yisroel, Harav Shlomo Leib Eliezarov and his brother-in-law Harav Mendel Noeh, who had come to accompany the Rebbe on the final leg of his journey. In Alexandria, the Frierdiker Rebbe visited local dignitaries and Rabbonim, including his cousin Rabbi Dovid Tzvi Aryeh Schneersohn, who was also a brother-in-law to the Rabbonim Eliezarov and Noeh.

On Rosh Chodesh Menachem Av, the procession left Alexandria and traveled by train to Qantara, a border city straddling both sides of the Suez Canal. This seven-and-a-half-hour journey marked the final stop in Egypt. From there, they would take a train directly to Eretz Yisroel. The Frierdiker Rebbe received VIP treatment, with a special dispensation allowing him to bypass customs and proceed directly to the train without being stopped.

At 5:30 a.m. on Thursday, 2 Menachem Av, the train that had left Qantara stopped in Rechovot, then a small settlement. At 6:00 a.m., the train arrived in Lod, its final destination. There, the Frierdiker Rebbe later wrote, he saw the immense excitement his arrival had sparked among the Yidden in Eretz Yisroel.

In a letter dated 14 Cheshvan 5690 (1929) to his daughter Rebbetzin Shaina, HY”D, the Frierdiker Rebbe describes the hundreds who came to greet him at the Lod train station – young and old, many of whom had been Chassidim of his father and zeides. He wrote how many of the older Chassidim saw in him his father, the Rebbe Rashab; his zeides, the Rebbe Maharash and the Tzemach Tzedek; and they longed to be in his presence. The feelings were mixed: the joy of the moment, alongside the bittersweet memories of a distant past. These people had long been removed from the centers of Chassidus in Europe.

It took some time for the Frierdiker Rebbe to make his way from the platform to the train that would take him on to Yerushalayim. The government provided four train cars for the throngs who would accompany him.

Among the Chassidim who came to greet the Frierdiker Rebbe in Lod was the chossid Reb Avrohom Paris. Knowing how expensive the trip was, he sold an orchard he owned in Petach Tikvah and collected additional funds, amassing a tall stack of cash. When the train arrived, he handed the money to the Frierdiker Rebbe. The Rebbe asked what it was, and he replied, “Rebbe, Ma’amad!” That money was of great help to the Frierdiker Rebbe on the journey.

The train soon departed for Yerushalayim, stopping briefly in the Arab village of Batir. At 9:30 a.m., the Frierdiker Rebbe wrote that he saw the holy city and tore his garment, reciting the brochoh Dayan Ha’Emes. Some 5,000 people awaited the Frierdiker Rebbe at the Yerushalayim train station. From there, he traveled to the Hotel Amdursky, where large crowds awaited him as well. At 11:00 a.m., Rav Yosef Chaim Sonnenfeld, accompanied by a delegation of Rabbonim, visited the Frierdiker Rebbe at the hotel.

At 5:00 p.m., the Frierdiker Rebbe went to the Old City to daven Mincha at the Kosel HaMa’arovi. Hundreds accompanied him under heavy police protection. These were tense times in Eretz Yisroel, with the Arab population agitated by the rising Jewish aliyah.

At 6:00 p.m., the Frierdiker Rebbe arrived at the Kosel and barely managed to approach the Wall. He later compared the mood at the Kosel to that of Erev Yom Kippur. Reb Yosef Shmotkin led the davening, and the Rebbe’s emotional cries moved the crowd. After Mincha, Tehillim was recited. The Frierdiker Rebbe then kissed the stones of the Kosel – but not before asking whether this was the minhag. He later said that in those moments at the Kosel, he felt “a tefach higher.”

On the way back to the hotel, the Frierdiker Rebbe visited Rav Yosef Chaim Sonnenfeld at his home in the Old City. The Rov was deeply moved to host the Frierdiker Rebbe, especially since he had no prior knowledge of the visit. He asked the Frierdiker Rebbe to bless two of his eyniklach. After a half-hour visit, the Frierdiker Rebbe returned to his hotel, where he spent the remainder of the evening.

So ended Day 1 in Eretz Yisroel.