The Akko Citadel, in the heart of Akko’s Old City, served as a prison during the British Mandate (1920-1948) and became one of the most significant sites in the story of the Jewish underground’s struggle for independence. The prison held members of the Haganah, the Irgun, and the Lehi, and it was the place where Jewish fighters were executed by hanging, acts that became rallying cries for the Zionist cause and hastened the end of British rule.
Prison
The Citadel was built by the Ottomans in the 18th century over the Crusader fortress (the Knights’ Halls are directly beneath it). The British converted it into a central prison for the northern district, and it held both criminal inmates and political prisoners. The cells, corridors, and execution chamber have been preserved as a museum, and the atmosphere of the prison, with its heavy iron doors, narrow windows, and stone walls, is oppressive and authentic.
Ten Who Went to the Gallows
Between 1938 and 1947, the British executed Jewish underground fighters by hanging at the Akko prison. The prison is associated with the famous phrase “The Ten Who Went to the Gallows,” which refers to ten fighters executed across British prisons in Mandatory Palestine, most of them at Akko. The condemned men went to their deaths singing Hatikvah (the national anthem) and became national heroes. Among the most famous are Shlomo Ben-Yosef, the first Jew executed by the British (in 1938, for an attack on an Arab bus), and the three members of the Irgun, Avshalom Haviv, Meir Nakar, and Yaakov Weiss, who were hanged on July 29, 1947, for their role in the Acre prison break. The execution of these three men triggered a chain of events that contributed to the British decision to withdraw from the land.
Prison Break
On May 4, 1947, the Irgun carried out one of the most daring operations of the underground struggle: a military assault on the Acre prison to free Jewish prisoners. A force of about 40 Irgun fighters, supported by Lehi members, attacked the prison from outside while prisoners inside prepared to escape from their cells. The outer wall was breached with explosives, and 27 prisoners escaped (along with over 200 Arab prisoners who took advantage of the chaos). The operation came at a heavy cost: 9 Irgun fighters were killed, and several were captured and later executed. The Acre prison break became one of the defining events of the underground struggle and was later depicted in the film “Exodus” (1960).
Meir Feinstein and Moshe Barazani
Two of the most famous prisoners, Meir Feinstein (Irgun) and Moshe Barazani (Lehi), were held in the Jerusalem central prison (not Acre) but their story is closely connected to the prison narrative. Sentenced to death, they smuggled a grenade into their cell, hidden inside an orange. On the night before their scheduled execution in April 1947, they embraced and detonated the grenade, killing themselves rather than allowing the British to hang them. Their graves on the Mount of Olives became a pilgrimage site.
The Museum
The Underground Prisoners Museum in the Citadel tells the story of the Jewish prisoners through personal items, photographs, documents, letters, and reconstructions of the cells. The execution chamber, with the gallows mechanism, is preserved. The museum also documents the stories of the guards, the prison routine, and the relationships between Jewish, Arab, and criminal prisoners. A memorial wall lists the names and faces of the executed fighters, and the combination of the physical prison space and the personal stories creates one of the most emotionally powerful museum experiences in Israel.
Gallows Room
The execution chamber is a small, stark room with a trapdoor in the floor and the beam from which the noose was hung still in place. The room has been left as it was, without dramatization or decoration, and the simplicity of the space makes it more powerful: this is where men stood, a rope was placed around their necks, and a lever was pulled. The condemned men’s last words, recorded by the prison officials and preserved in the archives, are displayed in the room. Many visitors find this the most difficult room in any Israeli museum.
Visit with Hoshen Tours
The Akko Citadel prison tells the story of the men who fought and died for Israeli independence. Hoshen Tours visits the cells, the execution chamber, and the escape route, connecting the underground struggle to the founding of the state. The prison visit combines with the Knights’ Halls directly beneath it, where 800 years of history separate the Crusader underground from the British prison above.