TheTemplers are members of the Temple Society (German: Tempelgesellschaft).The word Temple here is derived from the concept of the Christian Community as described in the New Testament, where every person and the community are seen as temples in which God's spirit dwells. Although Templers may believe in different spiritual teachings many of them reject common Christian dogmas. Jesus is rather seen as an example to follow and not as the Son of God. What unites the Templers is their daily wish to work for the Kingdom of God on Earth.
Chirstoph Hoffmann and Georg David Hardegg founded the Temple Society (not to be confused with the Knights Templar) at Kirschenhardthof near Ludwigsburg in 1861. This religious society has its roots in the Lutheran Church. Called "Deutscher Tempel" by its founders, their aim was to promote spiritual cooperation to advance the rebuild of the Temple in the Holy Land, in the belief that their foundation promotes the second coming of Christ. On their course to achieve that goal, their contributions towards raising the standards of agriculture, crafts, scientific research, business and building in an undeveloped province under Turkish rule were significant. Many see them as an indispensable helping force in the early establishment of the Jewish Yeshuv (settlement), and perhaps a role model for the Zionist Movement of the time.
The first place the Templers chose to settle in the Holy Land was Haifa. Hoffmann and Hardegg purchased land on the outskirts of the city at the foot of Mount Carmel and established a colony there in 1868. At the time, Haifa had a population of 4,000. The second colony was built soon after. Hardegg stayed in Haifa, while Hoffmann established colonies in Jaffa a year later, in Jerusalem (now known as the German Colony).
The first agricultural colony created by the Templers was Sarona on the road from Jaffa to Nablus (Today Hakirya Tel Aviv). The colony's oranges where the first to carry a " Jaffa Orange" brand, one of the better known agricultural brand in Europe, used to market the fruits to this day. From the beginning though, trades played also an important role for the Templers. Building construction and road transport became a significant source of income. Coaches as a means of road transport and travel were virtually unknown. The Templers established a regular coach service between Haifa and the other cities, and by 1870 there was a thriving tourist industry, especially in the pilgrim traffic between Jaffa and Jerusalem. Theodor Sandel, an engineer from Jaffa, took control of road construction.
In 1899 in Stutgart, Colonel Joseph Freiherr von Ellrichshausen, initiated the formation of the society for the advancement of the German settlements in Palestine. This initiative was the result of his visit to the region with Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany the same year. The society enabled the settlers to acquire land for new settlements by offering them low interest loans. A second wave of pioneer settlers founded Wilhelma (now Bnei Atarot) (1902) near Lod, Vilhalla (1903) near the original Jaffa colony, followed by Bethlehem of Galilee (1906) and Waldhiem (Alonei Abba) (1907). At its height, the Templer community in Palestine was 2,200 people.
During the 1930s, with the rise of the Nazi party to power, the colonies were also registered as supporters of the new rule. As German citizens they established what can be considered as the first Nazi Party branch outside of Germany. At the outbreak of World War II they were interned by the British in Palestine, and about one third were deported to Australia. The Templers were exiled to Australia by the British Administration during World War II (1939-45). After banishment of the Germans and the capture of the community during the 1948 War of Independence, it was resettled as a semi-cooperative moshav. The Australian government, which wanted to use the proceeds from the sale of the Templers’ property to assist in their resettlement, successfully persuaded Germany to include this restitution as part of the Claims Agreement signed in September 1952. It took a further decade of negotiation before a final settlement was agreed and their property was taken over by the State of Israel.
Although the Templers' chapter in the region is a short, one can say that they left their mark by showing a high strive for excellence, development of agricalture(Jaffa Orange brand), transportaion and banking(The Bank of the Temple Society, formed in 1925 with its head office in Jaffa and branches in Haifa and Jerusalem, became at that time one of the leading credit institutions in Palestine). Some say that they were the example from which the Kibbutz has emerged.
TheTemplers are members of the Temple Society (German: Tempelgesellschaft
Orange" brand, one of the better known agricultural brand in Europe, used to market the fruits to this day. From the beginning though, trades played also an important role for the Templers. Building construction and road transport became a significant source of income. Coaches as a means of road transport and travel were virtually unknown. The Templers established a regular coach service between Haifa and the other cities, and by 1870 there was a thriving tourist industry, especially in the pilgrim traffic between Jaffa and Jerusalem. Theodor Sandel, an engineer from Jaffa, took control of road construction.