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Michael Adler DSO, SCF (27 July 1868 – 30 September 1944) was an English Orthodox rabbi, an Anglo-Jewish historian and author who was the first Jewish
military chaplain A military chaplain ministers to military personnel and, in most cases, their families and civilians working for the military. In some cases they will also work with local civilians within a military area of operations. Although the term '' ch ...
to the British Army to serve in time of war, serving with the British Expeditionary Force on the
Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers *Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a majo ...
during the First World War from 1915 to 1918. He was responsible for the Magen David being carved on the headstones of Jewish soldiers who died in wartime instead of the traditional Cross.


Early life

Born in
Spitalfields Spitalfields is a district in the East End of London and within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. The area is formed around Commercial Street (on the A1202 London Inner Ring Road) and includes the locale around Brick Lane, Christ Church, ...
in London in 1868, one of eight children of Dutch-born Betje (Betsey) née Van Der Poorten (1838–1883) and Abraham Joseph Adler (1828–1900), a Polish tailor,Rev Michael Adler, DSO, SCF, BA - British Jews in the First World War website
/ref> he was not related to the prominent
rabbi A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as '' semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form o ...
s Nathan Adler or Hermann Adler. Michael Adler attended Jews' College and University College London graduating Bachelor of Arts (BA). Adler was appointed minister of the Hammersmith and West Kensington Synagogue, London, in 1890 aged 22. In 1891 in London he married German-born Sophie Eckersdorf (1869-1912) and with her had three children: Sidney Michael Adler (1893-1962), Lilian Rosalie Marion Adler (1895-1970) and Rosalind Sophia Adler (1899-1973). He became honorary chaplain at Wormwood Scrubs Prison, and Senior Master of Hebrew at the Jews' Free School in 1893. At this early stage in his career he wrote ''Elements of Hebrew Grammar'' (1st ed. 1897, 2d ed. 1899), and ''Students' Hebrew Grammar'' (1899). He contributed various articles to '' The Jewish Quarterly Review'' and the ''Transactions'' of the Jewish Historical Society of England. In 1903 he was appointed minister of the Central Synagogue in London W1, a position he held until his retirement in 1934. His book ''The History of the Central Synagogue, 1855-1905'' was published in 1905 by The Jewish Chronicle Office.


Army Chaplain 1904-1915

Jews were only recognised in the British Army as a distinct religious group from 1889. The Visitation Committee of the United Synagogue were responsible for the religious welfare and spiritual needs of Jews in public bodies and it decided to include serving members of the British Forces in its remit and applied to the War Office for the appointment of a Jewish chaplain. This request was granted in 1892 when Rev Francis Lyon Cohen (1862-1934), minister of the Borough Synagogue, became the first minister to serve as a Jewish
chaplain A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a Minister (Christianity), minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a laity, lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secularity, secular institution (such as a hosp ...
to the British Army, holding the position from 1892 to 1904 when he was succeeded by Michael Adler. Adler became a commissioned chaplain with the rank of captain in the Territorial Force (London and Eastern Command),'With the Chaplain to the Jewish Troops (the Rev. M. Adler)' - '' The Jewish Chronicle'', 14 August 1914 attending summer camps on
Salisbury Plain Salisbury Plain is a chalk plateau in the south western part of central southern England covering . It is part of a system of chalk downlands throughout eastern and southern England formed by the rocks of the Chalk Group and largely lies wi ...
where he conducted services for Jewish soldiers. At first the duties of the Jewish chaplains were part-time and included an annual Hanukkah military service initiated by Rabbi Cohen. In 1914 Adler officiated at the funeral of Mrs Minnie Solomon at the
Jewish Cemetery A Jewish cemetery ( he, בית עלמין ''beit almin'' or ''beit kvarot'') is a cemetery where Jews are buried in keeping with Jewish tradition. Cemeteries are referred to in several different ways in Hebrew, including ''beit kevarot'' ...
in Aldershot in Hampshire who had done voluntary work among the Jewish soldiers in that military town.


War Service 1915-1918

When World War I began in August 1914 many young Jews volunteered for the Army ahead of conscription and Adler realised that his chaplaincy had to become full-time so he applied to the War Office to serve on the
Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers *Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a majo ...
with the British Expeditionary Force as a Jewish chaplain. The War Office refused as there had not been a serving Jewish chaplain in wartime before. In the first month of the War Adler wrote a ''Soldiers’ Prayer Book'' which
Chief Rabbi Chief Rabbi ( he, רב ראשי ''Rav Rashi'') is a title given in several countries to the recognized religious leader of that country's Jewish community, or to a rabbinic leader appointed by the local secular authorities. Since 1911, through a ...
Joseph Hertz (who visited France in June 1915) later enlarged. Adler requested the War Office that he be allowed to visit to the Western Front to assess the need of a Jewish chaplain there, which he did in January 1915. After he wrote a report for the War Office he was granted permission to serve on the Western Front, where initially he was the only Jewish
chaplain A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a Minister (Christianity), minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a laity, lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secularity, secular institution (such as a hosp ...
.British Jewish Chaplaincy in the First World War - London Jews in the First World War
/ref> The Chaplain General, John Taylor Smith (1860-1938), suggested that instead of the usual Christian chaplain's badge, the Rev Adler should wear a Magen David to make him easier to identify, and soon after arriving at the Front Adler arranged for Jewish military graves to be similarly marked with a Magen David rather than the traditional Cross. Adler gained the support of Jewish communities in Paris, Havre, Rouen, Versailles and Boulogne. With financial support from Jews in Britain he arranged that the suppliers of matzah for French Jewish soldiers should also supply 1,200 British Jewish soldiers. The matzah did not materialise and three months after Pesach in 1915 he received a letter asking what was to be done with the special food that was awaiting distribution.A Century since WWI: Reverend Michael Adler (1868-1944)
- The United Synagogue website
As there were so few Jewish chaplains often the burial service of a Jewish soldier was conducted by a Christian chaplain. To assist them in this Adler wrote out the Jewish Burial Service in English and sent out copies to the Christian chaplains. Adler quickly realised that more Jewish chaplains were needed at the Front and he claimed that Jewish soldiers often did not receive the services of a chaplain for months, unlike the Christian soldiers who attended a weekly church parade. He persuaded the War Office to provide additional chaplains, and as the area occupied by the British Army overseas increased so did the number of chaplains, so that by the end of the war there was a chaplain attached to each of the five Army areas and three at the Bases. Adler held services in villages several miles from the trenches and men frequently came to these straight from the firing line. He also held services before large battles including a Yom Kippur service at Noeuz-les-Mines in 1915, one week before the Battle of Loos. He kept a register of casualties and sent details of the deaths of Jewish soldiers to their families. As memorials were erected over the graves of Jewish soldiers Adler took photographs to send to their relatives; he travelled long distances to conduct funeral services and visited wounded soldiers in hospitals.A Chaplain in the Trenches
-
Jewish Military Museum The Jewish Military Museum was a museum located in Hendon, Barnet, North London, which featured exhibits about Jews serving in the British armed forces from the 18th century to the present day. It has now closed and the collection was moved to ...
Collection
Adler served for much of World War I as Senior Chaplain to the Forces (SCF) on the Western Front. In July 1918 his health broke and he returned to the UK with the rank of major, commenting to a colleague that after he left the Front the Allies succeeded. His successor as Senior Jewish Chaplain was the minister of Bayswater Synagogue, the Rev. Arthur Barnett. Adler was awarded the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) for his service during WWI. Adler returned to his position as minister of the Central Synagogue in London where he remained until his retirement in 1934.


Later years

In 1920 in Birmingham in England he married Bertha Lorie. Adler undertook the monumental task of recording the names and units of the approximately 50,000 British Jewish soldiers and sailors of the Empire and Dominions who had served, been killed or been decorated during World War I. This was published as the definitive work ''British Jewry Book of Honour'' (1922) with each copy being individually numbered; the book is now a collectors’ item. In his later years Adler was very involved with the Jewish Historical Society of England, serving as Editor, and President (1934-1936). An Anglo-Jewish historian, Adler wrote on the Jews of Medieval England including a biography of the prominent medieval Anglo-Jewish financier
Aaron of York Aaron of York or Aaron fil Josce, was a Jewish financier and chief rabbi of England. He was born in York before 1190 and died after 1253. He was probably the son of Josce of York, the leading figure in the York pogrom of 1190. Chief Rabbi Aar ...
, while his 'History of the Domus Conversorum' put the study of the Middle Period in Anglo-Jewish history on a new basis. These papers were mostly published in his 1939 volume of essays ''The Jews of Medieval England''.Michael Adler, ''The Jews of Medieval Britain'' (Cheshire, Sheratt & Huges, 1939) He was the Chairman of the Jewish Central Lads' Club. Rabbi Michael Adler died in a nursing home in
Bournemouth Bournemouth () is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council area of Dorset, England. At the 2011 census, the town had a population of 183,491, making it the largest town in Dorset. It is situated on the Southern ...
in 1944 aged 76 and was buried in Willesden Jewish Cemetery.


References


External links


Papers of Rev Michael Adler
- University of Southampton Special Collections
Photograph of Herschel Harris and Reverent Michael Adler
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Australian War Memorial The Australian War Memorial is Australia's national memorial to the members of its armed forces and supporting organisations who have died or participated in wars involving the Commonwealth of Australia and some conflicts involving pe ...
Collection {{DEFAULTSORT:Adler, Michael 1868 births 1944 deaths 20th-century English rabbis Alumni of the London School of Jewish Studies Alumni of University College London Royal Army Chaplains' Department officers Modern Orthodox rabbis English Orthodox rabbis English people of Dutch-Jewish descent English people of Polish-Jewish descent Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Burials at Willesden Jewish Cemetery British Army personnel of World War I