Zalman Shazar Figurine

Zalman Shazar (1889–1974) Historian, statesman, Israel’s first Minister of Education, and the third President of the State of Israel. Born in the town of Mir in the Russian Empire (now Belarus) to a Hasidic family of the Chabad tradition, he joined the Poale Zion party in his youth. He studied philosophy and history at universities in Germany and later became a prominent activist in the Zionist labor movement. After immigrating to the Land of Israel in 1924, he was among the founders of Mapai, held senior positions in the Zionist movement and the General Federation of Labor, and in 1936 was appointed chief editor of the newspaper Davar. In 1949, he was elected to the First Knesset as a member of Mapai and became Israel’s first Minister of Education and Culture. During his tenure, he initiated the Compulsory Education Law. In 1963, he was elected President of Israel. During his two terms in office, he worked to strengthen ties with Diaspora Jewry and to promote literature and culture. Shazar, who bridged the world of scholarship and practical affairs, is regarded as a model Zionist intellectual who saw education and culture as the foundation for Israel’s future.