Beschreibung:

Collection of handwritten letters by David Ben-Gurion. Sent to Rega Klapholz in Vienna. Jerusalem, Tel-Aviv, Warsaw, Paris, Athens, Alexandria and other cities, ca.1932-1938. Hebrew and Yiddish. An interesting collection of letters sent by David Ben-Gurion to Rega Klapholz, a student of medicine in Vienna, with whom Ben-Gurion had an affair in the first half of the 1930s. The collection comprises nine telegrams and 38 letters handwritten by Ben-Gurion (five letters in Yiddish, the others in Hebrew). In his letters Ben-Gurion tells Klapholz how much he misses her, asks how she was, tells her about his planned trips, tries to set dates with her, and plans her immigration to Eretz Israel. Ben-Gurion wrote the first letters in Yiddish but soon switched to Hebrew and urged Klapholz to learn the language and write to him in Hebrew. The letters reflect the close relationship which developed between the two during the years 1932-1935 and the intimacy between them which grew over time. One of the highlights of their relationship is evident in a letter dated September 1934, in which Ben-Gurion writes: "it is hard for me to accept the fact that I am in Europe – and so far from you. As much as you want me to come to Vienna – I even want it more. It seems that you still do not know how much 'the stupid little girl' is dear to me and how much I would like to see her and be with her… it would have been good if you were in Jerusalem – this might have been too good. It would have been easy to work during hard times and know that not far from here a dear girl is sitting where, for even a few minutes, you can rest and forget everything—and maybe when you come to the country – I will lose you altogether… it does not matter. I shall be able to love you anyway". When Ben-Gurion wrote these letters, he was head of Mapai and one of the foremost leaders of the Jewish Yishuv in Eretz Israel. In many of these letters Ben-Gurion describes his activities during these years (he mentions, among other things, the Zionist Congress and Zionist meetings and conventions in London, Galicia, Warsaw and other places), and shares with Klapholz his achievements and his difficulties. More than once Ben-Gurion mentions his rivalry with Ze'ev Jabotinsky and the Revisionist Movement. In a letter dated July 1933, Ben-Gurion writes: "We had a great meeting today in Warsaw – this was the answer to Jabotinsky's cry for blood… the meeting was very successful. There were no disturbances even though more than two thousand people attended. Some Hooligans outside tried to interfere – and were hit… In three days we will start to publish our daily paper 'Dos Vort', in which we will fight revisionism". Shortly afterwards he writes: "I am working very hard now, but it has been a long time since I felt that I have so much energy as in the war that I lead now, and which I believe is a crucial war which we will win. These days I am totally involved with the daily paper which we publish, ‘Dos Vort’ – I am sending it to you separately – you cannot imagine with how much joy the paper was received by friends…”. Ben-Gurion mentions, among other topics, the political situation in Austria in view of the ups and downs of the state authorities and the rise of Nazis in Germany. In a letter dated February 1933 he writes: “Dear beloved Rega, for the past three days my heart is with Vienna, with concern, sadness and love… and Vienna this time means: Vienna and also you… the Viennese workers revealed the shame of the German defeat – and what will happen?... my heart was with you all these days – even when I did not write – what did you feel – are you well and healthy? ... can you continue with your studies until you graduate? ... or maybe you should hurry up and come here?”. In another letter from 1933 Ben-Gurion asks Rega to send him Konrad Heiden’s book about the history of National-Socialism in Germany. In a letter dated December 1933 he writes: “how much longer will you stay in Vienna with no Naz