Alonei Abba is a small moshava in the lower Galilee with a surprising connection to the German Templar movement. The Templars, a Protestant sect from Wurttemberg who came to the Holy Land in the 19th century to prepare for the Second Coming of Christ, established settlements across Palestine, including colonies at Haifa, Jaffa, and Jerusalem. Their influence extended to the Galilee, where communities like Alonei Abba preserve traces of the Templar legacy.
The Templars
The German Templars (not to be confused with the medieval Knights Templar) arrived in Palestine in the 1860s and built orderly, European-style colonies with stone houses, tree-lined streets, and productive farms. They introduced modern agricultural techniques and infrastructure. During World War II, many Templars were interned or deported by the British due to their German citizenship and, in some cases, Nazi sympathies. Their properties were seized and later used by the new State of Israel.
The Village Today
Alonei Abba today is a quiet residential community surrounded by the oak forests (alonei = oaks) that give it its name. The Galilee countryside around the village is ideal for hiking, and the area’s proximity to Beit She’arim and the Jezreel Valley makes it a pleasant stop on a lower Galilee tour.
Visit with Hoshen Tours
Hoshen Tours includes the Templar story in itineraries that explore the diverse communities that built modern Israel, from German Protestants to Russian Jews to Circassian refugees.