Jan Gotlib Bloch - Sympathy To Zionism

Sympathy To Zionism

Since 1897, Bloch became involved with Zionist activities in Russia, and became friendly with Theodor Herzl. In June 1899 Herzl arrived at the Hague Peace Conference in an effort to gain an audience with the Tsar, for which purpose he met with Bloch as with other people having access to higher echelons of the Russian government. Bloch supported Herzl's efforts and telegraphed a memorandum of recommendation to the Tsar via Baron de Staal. Bloch noted that Herzl had been active to promote the Hague Conference's aims of international peace, and that among other things he had sent a letter to Frederick I, Grand Duke of Baden calling for a change in Germany's position on the issue of international arbitration.

In June 1899 Bloch, at Herzl's request, lobbied the Russian government to lift a ban on the sale in its territory of shares of the Zionist Jewish Colonial Trust (predecessor of the present Israeli National Bank).