Lange Estate

Lange Estate

Lange Estate The exceptional story of this beautiful building in the heart of Zichron Yaakov  In the heart of the former moshava farming village, not far from Ha-Meyasdim St. stands a beautiful building surrounded by a large garden. Many people come here just to hear the fascinating story of the people who lived in this house. This house, which was built in 1912 on the rocky hillside, has had several names: Lange Estate, Carmel Courtyard and Friedlaender House Dozens of workers were hired to build the house, plant the garden and build the road leading up to it. David Remez, who became a cabinet minister in Israel’s first government, was one of those workers.  The house had two stories and a large courtyard. The courtyard had housing for the servants, stables for purebred horses, a dairy barn where cheese was made, a laundry room, flower beds and a vegetable garden. The main estate building combines European and Middle Eastern architectural styles. The front door and all the windows were built with arches and the house had a basement with a wine cellar and a storage room for cheeses. The story of Lange Estate combines the story of the Jewish settlement of Israel in the early years of Zionism with the personal story of two sisters – Lilian and Nita Bentwich. Lilian married Israel Friedlaender, an Orientalist and university teacher who died while on an aid mission to the Jewish community in Ukraine. Lilian remained in Israel with their six children. Nita married Michael Lange, the son of a rich merchant from Germany. On their second trip to Israel, in 1912, Nita and Michael decided to settle in Zichron Yaakov. They named their house Carmel Court, after the family’s home in Birchington, England. During World War I the Friedlaenders lived in England, and when they returned to Zichron Yaakov in 1919, they refurbished and enlarged the estate. In 1922, following Nita’s death, Lilian and her children moved into the estate. Michael Lange died in 1925 and left the estate to Lilian. Nita’s father, Herbert Bentwich (whose last name is apparently based on the Hebrew name Ben-Dov) was an English lawyer who worked for Sir Moses Montefiore in the 1880s and first heard about the idea of settling the Land of Israel from him. Over the years Herbert became an ardent Zionist and settlement advocate. He was the lawyer for the Zionist Movement and was among the drafters of the 1917 Balfour Declaration. In 1897 he visited Israel and fell in love with the country, especially the Carmel landscape. When he returned to London, he decided to call the family’s summer estate in Kent “Carmel Court”. Herbert and his wife Susannah had 11 children, who were raised in a musical and Zionist atmosphere. Thelma Bentwich, the couple’s ninth child, became the world renowned cellist and composer, Thelma Yellin. Michael and Nita came to Israel on their honeymoon and fell in love with the country. When they returned to England they decided to build their home in Zichron Yaakov. Even before their home was completed, Michael and Nita moved to Zichron Yaakov and became close friends with some of the prominent families - the Aaronsohns, Yaffes and Levitas. Nita’s brother Yosef Bentwich eventually married Sarah Yaffe, the daughter of the renowned Dr. Hillel Yaffe. Aharon Aharonson, an internationally renowned agronomist, taught Nita how to grow vegetables. She also thought of ways to develop and improve the moshava. When the Turks joined World War I, citizens of “hostile countries” (including Britain) were ordered to leave Israel. The Langes returned to England in 1914. Michael volunteered to serve in the British army and Nita enrolled in agriculture studies. After the war the Langes returned to their home in Zikhron Ya’akov and Nita planned to build and educational farm for young women on part of the estate, but that plan never came to fruition. Michael and Nita died childless. Nita died on the day after Jewish Arbor day in February 1922, aged 38. She may have died of pneumonia after participating in a Tu b’Shvat tree-planting ceremony in Zichron Yaakov the previous day, in the rain. Another possibility is that she took her own life. Michael killed himself three years later, on 24 August, 1925. The Langes are buried in the Zichron Yaakov cemetery. Nita’s eldest sister Lilian Friedlaender, died on 31 October, 1954, and was buried beside her. While the Langes were in England during World War I, their home was used as an officers club by the Turkish and German forces. In 1919, with the Langes returned to Zichron Yaakov, they discovered that all their furniture and personal belongings had disappeared. They replanted the gardens and expanded the house. The many leaders of the Zionist movement who visited often to enjoy the Langes’ hospitality and the special atmosphere of the estate included Herbert Samuel (the uncle of Nita’s sister-in-law, Norman Bentwich’s wife), Menachem Ussishkin, Chaim Weizmann and Henrietta Szold. A stone bench in the garden at Lange Estate has an inscription: “In memory of the beloved and pleasant Michael Lange and his wife Nita (neé Bentwich), who planted the garden and the trees surrounding their house in 1913-1922”. For many years the estate was used by Beit Daniel, as a hostel for young musicians. Today this building is used by the Open University

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