Mount Herzl - Theodor Herzl's Grave

Theodor Herzl's Grave

In 1903, Theodor Herzl wrote in his will:

"I wish to be buried in a metal coffin next to my father, and to remain there until the Jewish people will transfer my remains to Eretz Israel. The coffins of my father, my sister Pauline, and of my close relatives who will have died until then will also be transferred there."

When Herzl died a year later, he was interred in Vienna. Forty-five years later, Herzl's remains were brought to Israel and re-interred in Jerusalem. The location of the burial site was selected by a special state commission in the top of a hill in West Jerusalem next to Military cemetery of Jerusalem. He was buried in 17 August 1949. A temporary stone marked his grave for several years until the site was developed into a national cemetery. Sixty-three entries were submitted in the competition for the design of his new tombstone. The winner was Joseph Klarwein's design, consisting of an unadorned black granite stone inscribed with the name Herzl. The area around his tomb has been expanded into a the plaza where the first Independence Day ceremony was held in 1950.

Despite Herzl's wishes, his daughter Pauline and son Hans were not originally buried beside him. Their remains were moved to Mt. Herzl in 2006. A third daughter was murdered in the Holocaust and her place of burial remains unknown. Norman Park, a small garden behind the Zionism is dedicated to the memory to Herzl's only grandson, who committed suicide in the United States and was re-interred on Mt. Herzl in December 2007. Herzl's parents and sister are also buried at Mount Herzl.