Haim Farhi

Haim Farhi
חיים פרחי حيم فارحي
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Born1760
Damascus
DiedAugust 21, 1820 (aged 60)
Acre
Cause of deathAsssassination
NationalityOttoman
Other namesHaim El Muallim
Occupation(s)Chief advisor, financial vizier and de facto ruler of Acre
EmployerAhmad al-Jazzar
Old Yishuv
A sepia photograph shows three elderly Jewish men sporting beards and holding open books, posing for the camera. Against a backdrop of leafy vegetation, the man in the centre sits, wearing a black hat and caftan, while the two others stand, wearing lighter clothes and turbans.
Jewish community in the Land of Israel under Mamluk and Ottoman rule
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Haim Farhi (Hebrew: חיים פרחי, Hayyim Farhiy; Arabic: حيم فارحي, also known as Haim "El Mu'allim", Arabic: المعلم lit. "The Teacher"), (1760 – August 21, 1820) was a Jewish adviser to the governors of the Galilee in the days of the Ottoman Empire, until his assassination in 1820.[1]

Farhi was a chief advisor to Jazzar Pasha, an Ottoman governor based in Acre, whose whims included blinding Farhi and leaving him physically scarred. Until his assassination in 1820, instigated by Farhi's own protege Abdullah Pasha, Farhi was the financial vizier and de facto ruler of Acre. After the murder, Abdullah Pasha ordered Farhi's body cast into the sea and confiscated all his property.[2] Two of Farhi's brothers, Soliman and Rafael, living in Damascus, organized a siege against Abdullah Pasha in Acre to exact revenge.[2]

Revered among Jews as Hakham Haim due to his extensive Talmudic knowledge,[3] Farhi hailed from a prominent family of traders and bankers in Damascus.[1] He extended his protection to the Jewish communities of Palestine, especially those of Tiberias and Safed, who were under the jurisdiction of the governors of the Sidon Vilayet. Revered for his power and wealth, both Jews and European Christians recounted tales of his wealth and influence.[1]

  1. ^ a b c ברטל, ישראל. "הארץ ויהודיה". In בן-נאה, ירון; הלד דילהרוזה, מיכל (eds.). הישוב הישן הספרדי בארץ ישראל (in Hebrew). מכון בן-צבי לחקר קהילות ישראל במזרח של יד בן-צבי והאוניברסיטה העברית. p. 16. ISSN 1565-0774.
  2. ^ a b "Farhi Org Main Page".
  3. ^ Mikhayil Mishaqa, Murder, Mayhem, Pillage, and Plunder: The History of the Lebanon in the 18th and 19th Centuries, tr. W.M.Thackston, Jr. SUNY, Albany New York, 1988 p.49