Templers
A German Radical Pietist movement that established Christian agricultural and urban colonies in Ottoman and Mandatory Palestine.
Last updated August 26, 2026
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Overview
The Templers, also called the German Templer Society or Temple Society, were a nineteenth-century German Radical Pietist movement whose members sought to prepare humanity for the establishment of the Kingdom of God. The movement developed in Württemberg around Christoph Hoffmann and Georg David Hardegg after their break with the Evangelical-Lutheran Church. Its name derives from the New Testament idea that individuals and communities are temples of the divine spirit; it has no historical connection with the medieval Knights Templar. Hoffmann believed that salvation required the gathering of committed Christians into a disciplined community and that biblical prophecy pointed toward Jerusalem and Palestine as the earthly center of God's coming kingdom. Hoffmann and Hardegg first organized the movement as the Friends of Jerusalem. In 1856 they moved with other supporters to Kirschenhardthof near Ludwigsburg, where they created a communal settlement, school, and meeting facilities. Disease, internal disagreement, opposition from church authorities, and the practical difficulty of establishing a self-sufficient community shaped the group's early development. After exploratory travel in Palestine in 1858, the leaders organized a planned migration. In 1868 Hoffmann, Hardegg, their families, and fellow Templers arrived in Haifa, then part of the Ottoman Empire. They founded a colony at the foot of Mount Carmel and subsequently established settlements in Jaffa, Sarona near Jaffa, and the Valley of Rephaim outside Jerusalem. Later colonies included Wilhelma, Bethlehem of Galilee, and Waldheim. The settlements combined agriculture, trade, construction, transport, schooling, and community institutions. Templer architecture, road building, coach services, and commercial agriculture contributed to the development of several Palestinian towns. Their citrus exports helped popularize the Jaffa orange name in European markets. The community reached roughly 2,000 members in Palestine at its height. It experienced repeated disruption because its members were German nationals and because its religiously separatist identity increasingly became entangled with German nationalism. During the First World War, many were interned or deported by British authorities, although postwar arrangements restored property rights and compensation. The Bank of the Temple Society, established in 1925, became an important credit institution in Mandate Palestine. During the Nazi period, the community was divided. Some older members resisted the identification of German culture with Nazism, while parts of the younger generation adopted Nazi nationalism; by 1938, a reported 17 percent of Templers in Palestine belonged to the Nazi Party. German state influence also affected the movement's schools and institutions. At the outbreak of the Second World War, British authorities classified German Templers as enemy nationals, interned them, and deported many to Australia. Some were later exchanged in wartime population transfers. After the creation of Israel, the community was not permitted to re-establish itself in the country, partly because of wartime collaboration and the memory of Nazi persecution. In 1946, Gotthilf Wagner, a community leader, was assassinated by members of the Haganah; four other Templers were subsequently killed. The former colonies were resettled or incorporated into Israeli communities. Israel paid compensation for nationalized Templer property in 1962. Sarona, once a Templer agricultural colony, was later integrated into Tel Aviv and eventually redeveloped as a commercial and entertainment district. The Templers therefore survive primarily as a historical and diaspora community rather than as a continuing territorial settlement movement in Israel.
History
The movement emerged in southwestern Germany from the religious and social ideas of Christoph Hoffmann, who argued that Christians should gather into a practical community in preparation for the imminent return of Jesus. Hoffmann met Georg David Hardegg in 1849, and Hardegg adopted the plan for a Christian state in 1853. The group initially called itself the Friends of Jerusalem and later the Temple Society. Its theological language drew on biblical prophecies concerning Jerusalem, Israel, and the Kingdom of God, while its name referred to the believer and the community as a temple of God's spirit. In 1856, Hoffmann, Hardegg, their families, and supporters moved to Kirschenhardthof near Ludwigsburg. The settlement included a school and communal facilities, but disease, including a severe typhoid epidemic, and opposition from Württemberg's established Lutheran church tested the movement. An exploratory journey to Palestine in 1858 examined possible locations and practical conditions. A premature attempt by some members to settle in Palestine in 1867 ended disastrously, with many deaths from disease and hardship. The leadership responded by planning a larger and more selective migration based on needed skills and occupations. On 6 August 1868, Hoffmann, Hardegg, relatives, and fellow Templers left Germany. They reached Haifa on 30 October and purchased land at the foot of Mount Carmel. The Haifa colony developed distinctive stone houses with red-tiled roofs, a broad tree-lined avenue, a school, and a community hall. Hoffmann later founded a colony in Jaffa in 1869, Sarona in 1871, and a settlement in the Valley of Rephaim near Jerusalem in 1873. The colonists introduced European agricultural and construction practices, operated farms and businesses, organized coach transport, and helped improve roads. Their citrus production contributed to the later commercial reputation of Jaffa oranges. A second phase of settlement created Wilhelma near Lod in 1902, Bethlehem of Galilee in 1906, and Waldheim in 1907. The community remained small but economically visible, with urban, agricultural, commercial, and financial institutions. After the First World War, British authorities restored property rights under the postwar settlement and paid partial compensation for losses. The Bank of the Temple Society, founded in 1925, supported the community's economic activities from branches in Jaffa, Haifa, and Jerusalem. The Nazi takeover created a profound political and moral crisis. German governmental institutions pressured German-language schools and associations in Palestine to conform to Nazi ideology. Some Templers joined the Nazi Party or German armed forces, although other members opposed or remained detached from Nazism. The British interned German Templers at the beginning of the Second World War and deported many to Australia. Wartime negotiations also involved exchanges of German residents for Jews held under German control. After 1945, the Templers' German identity, wartime conduct, and association with Nazi sympathizers made their return unacceptable to the new Israeli state. Their settlements were dissolved or repurposed, and several members were killed in attacks, including the assassination of Gotthilf Wagner in 1946. Compensation was paid in 1962. Former Templer buildings remain notable parts of the built heritage of Haifa, Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, and other localities; Sarona in Tel Aviv has been extensively restored and converted into a shopping and leisure precinct.
- 1962
Property compensation paid
[1]Israel paid compensation to former Templer property owners for nationalized assets.
- 1946
Community leadership attacked
[1]Gotthilf Wagner was assassinated and other Templers were killed, accelerating the end of the community in Palestine.
- 1941
Large-scale deportation to Australia
[1]Hundreds of Templers were deported from Palestine to Australia after British internment measures.
- 1938
Nazi affiliation recorded among members
A reported 17 percent of Templers in Palestine were members of the Nazi Party, illustrating the movement's political division.
- 1925
Bank of the Temple Society established
[1]The community created a bank headquartered in Jaffa with branches in Haifa and Jerusalem.
- 1902
Wilhelma founded
[1]A later generation of settlers founded Wilhelma near Lod.
- 1871
Sarona colony founded
[1]The movement established its first agricultural colony in the area later incorporated into Tel Aviv.
- 1868
Migration to Palestine began
[1]The organized migration departed Germany in August and reached Haifa in October.
- 1861
Temple Society formally founded
[1]The movement consolidated in southwestern Germany following its break with the Württemberg church.
- 1858
Leaders conducted a Palestine survey
[1]Hoffmann, Hardegg, and J. Bubeck traveled through Palestine to assess locations for future settlement.
Products and positioning
A separatist Christian communal movement focused on biblical restoration, disciplined community life, and settlement in Palestine in anticipation of the Second Coming.
Controversies
1946
Assassination and killings of Templers
Gotthilf Wagner was assassinated by a Haganah team, and four further members of the community were murdered amid efforts to remove the group from Palestine.
1933
Nazi influence in Templer institutions
Nazi authorities pressured German institutions and schools in Palestine, while members of the Templer community differed sharply over Nazi symbols, nationalism, and political allegiance.
Brand decisions
1939
Accept internment and deportation as enemy nationalsOtherBackground
Britain treated German citizens in Palestine as enemy nationals after the outbreak of the Second World War.
Action taken
British authorities interned Templers and deported many to Australia.
Aftermath
The community was split geographically and weakened before its final removal from Israel.
1925
Establish a community bankOtherBackground
The expanding settlements needed local credit and financial infrastructure.
Action taken
The Bank of the Temple Society opened in Jaffa and later operated branches in Haifa and Jerusalem.
Aftermath
It became one of the leading credit institutions in Mandate Palestine before the community's wartime disruption.
1868
Establish colonies in PalestineStrategyBackground
The movement regarded Palestine, and ultimately Jerusalem, as the geographical center of the anticipated Kingdom of God.
Action taken
The leadership organized a skills-based migration and founded the first colony in Haifa.
Aftermath
Additional urban and agricultural colonies were established, creating a durable German-settler presence in Palestine.
1856
Create a self-sufficient communal settlementStrategyBackground
The founders believed religious renewal required Christians to live together under a common social and spiritual order.
Action taken
Hoffmann and Hardegg moved supporters to Kirschenhardthof and built communal, educational, and agricultural facilities.
Aftermath
The settlement became a base for planning migration to Palestine, despite disease and church opposition.
Sources1 sources
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