A Man of Curiosity, Mysticism, Luck, and Dedication
Few stories of a lifetime and intensive involvement with history are as adventure-filled and poignant as that of Harold Bernard Shugar. Most of us are prone to letting others take the chances. Not Harold, who made his own lot and decided one day to be a part of history, and not an observer.
Harold Shugar was born in Tarboro, a small agricultural town in North Carolina, on 10th April 1923, the son of an orthodox Jewish family. Although located over 100 miles form the nearest deli, his mother was able to keep a kosher home during the High Holy Days. Both parents had a strong influence on young Harold. At its height, the Jewish community of Tarboro comprised some 15 Jewish families; they prayed, celebrated the holidays and raised their young as Jews. Jews had lived in Tarboro before the civil war, but as the years went by the Jewish community was reduced considerably as the younger generation sought life beyond their hometown.
Harold, tall in build, played basketball and football for Tarboro High School. In 1940 he entered The Citadel Military Academy (the West Point of the South), where he remained for three years. He was a member of the varsity boxing team, welterweight division at 145 pounds, and a member of the International Relations Club, showing his proclivity towards world events. In September 1943, Harold and his entire Citadel class enlisted en masse into service. Harold chose to join the United States Navy, where he served during World War II. After his third year at The Citadel, the Navy sent him to the University of South Carolina for one semester. He was then transferred to Northwestern Midshipman School in Chicago, where in May 1944 he received his commission as an ensign in the Navy. From the time he was commissioned, he served aboard a ship throughout the war.
He was immediately assigned to a patrol yacht with his homeport Boston; its task was to patrol the North Atlantic off the coast of the United States. Immediately after Germany surrendered, he was transferred to the Pacific arena stationed out of Pearl Harbor, where he was promoted to Lt. Junior Grade. When the war ended, his ship took part in bringing the troops home. His last assignment was in 1946, when he volunteered for the atomic bomb tests at Bikini. Shortly thereafter he was decommissioned honorably and meritoriously from the Navy.
Out of the Navy, Harold decided he wanted to be a lawyer. He was accepted at George Washington University Law School and enrolled there. Here is where a major turn in his life would take place, as he witnessed the impending conflict between Arabs and Jews over the Palestine question. Something in him connected with his heritage. It was a most mystical experience, for which he had no reasonable explanation. He questioned himself as to “why he was a Jew,” and experienced a chilling instinct that something monumental was about to happen, and he had to be there when it occurred. He was drawn to Palestine, to be there, as history was surely to be altered. Altered, he hoped, in favor of his people.
Since the British were in control in 1947, the only way to gain entry into Palestine was with a student visa. Harold secured a visa and enrolled at the Hebrew University in early 1947, studying Hebrew and the humanities. He felt that being there was his destiny. A short time after he enrolled at the university, and not far from where he was living, the tragedy at Sheikh Jarrah severely affected him: 50 doctors and nurses on their way to Hadassah Hospital on Mount Scopus were ambushed and killed by Arab militia. This was the same route that Harold took to reach the Hebrew University. The British were duty-bound to separate the Arabs and Jews, and by so doing protect both sides from conflict. However, the British clearly sided with the Arabs. The ambush at Mount Scopus could have been prevented if the British had truly wanted to act impartially. An armored convoy, with the High Commissioner in it, passed within two blocks of the firing and no-one did anything to stop the massacre. When the British finally decided to act, a couple of bursts of machine gun fire stopped the attack.
Riled by witnessing this mass murder of innocent medical professionals, Harold left his studies at the university and joined the nascent Haganah. Jerusalem at the time was divided between the Old City, where Arabs and Jews lived, and the New City which was mostly inhabited by Jews. The Arabs attacked in both cities, and Harold was almost killed when a bomb exploded on Ben Yehuda Street, killing more than 57 Jews. Arabs and Jews lived in separate neighborhoods, and each wanted to protect and expand their areas. Once, his group of eight men heard there was an Arab patrol in their sector; at that time the Haganah worked with small groups. Girls would carry handguns under their skirts to different locales, as men would frequently be searched. Harold and his comrades were deployed in the yard. Harold heard footsteps and observed a group of ten Arabs trotting along the line some ten feet away. He was armed with a Sten (submachine) gun and waited for the order to fire. After the Arabs passed, Harold turned around and found that his group had been recalled into the house and he was alone. He patrolled outside Jerusalem and observed convoys of armored trucks slowly climbing the road while Arabs fired from both sides of the road, with the trucks returning fire. Harold likened the scene to American Indians attacking a wagon train. A memorable experience comes to mind. One Friday evening, on the outskirts of Jerusalem, his group made a campfire and held services, which Harold found very moving. From where they were, he observed Arabs training in their villages below Jerusalem.
Mortar Crew (Harold Shugar on the left)
When the Old City was about to fall, and the evacuation of all its residents was taking place, Shugar observed this sad and perilous event in a place where Jews had lived for over two thousand years. Glubb Pasha, a British officer who commanded the Arab Legion of TransJordan, ordered taking the Old City and directed his troops to seize as many prisoners as possible. A number of Jews escaped across the plain between the Old City and Yemin Moshe. Jordanian Legionnaires fired from the ramparts of the Old City at them, but Shugar observed that no one was hit. On the evening the Old City fell, detonations began destroying the first of 57 synagogues dating from antiquity. With a shortage of manpower, the presence of the British and no heavy weaponry, the Haganah could do nothing.
On April 15th, 1948, the British withdrew from the city of Jerusalem, leaving the Jews and Arabs to fight it out among themselves. The Haganah now came out into the open. They were able to organize companies instead of small groups of men, and could attack the Arab positions. At that time, there were three 81-mm mortars in Jerusalem, the sum total of heavy weaponry. Because of his previous knowledge in this field, Harold was given command of one of the mortars, supporting the attacks and responding to Arab shelling of Jerusalem.
Using archaeological research reflecting back to biblical times, two decisions were made. Since the water pumping station was in the Arab sector, and although the UN guaranteed it would be safeguarded, the Jews wisely did not believe them. Sure enough, the Arabs blew up the pumping station. Before this happened, the underground cisterns, dating from biblical times, were cleansed and filled with water, and this is what saved Jerusalem. Even during the shelling, water trucks distributed water throughout the city. The Jerusalem Brigade of the Palmach, strengthened by the presence of Colonel Mickey Marcus, was able to bypass the Arab forces by building a road into the city, a road that snaked its way through the hills surrounding Jerusalem, while a periodic truce was in place. Without heavy weaponry, the Haganah had made three major attempts to open the existing road without success.
Somehow, the Israelis discovered that Harold had been an officer in the American Navy. At this time, there was no action in Jerusalem. Naval service had always been his favorite calling, and when he was requested to join, he did so gladly. He was now prepared to enter another phase of his service to Israel by enlisting in the embryonic Israel Navy. The Israelis felt that an officer of a rank of Lt. Junior Grade in the United States Navy would surely be welcomed into its ranks.
With Jerusalem liberated, Harold made his way to Tel Aviv via the recently opened but still incomplete Burma Road. Incredibly, he witnessed a terrible tragedy on the shores of Tel Aviv, the battle challenging the arrival of the “Altalena.” This ship was loaded with arms for the Irgun Zvai Leumi, the revisionist sector of the Zionist movement founded by Jabotinsky.
Israel Navy Vessel “Eilat”
In Tel Aviv, Shugar met with Paul Shulman, an Annapolis graduate who was asked by Ben-Gurion to acquire sailing vessels, organize and train the newest navy in the world. Shugar was assigned to the “Eilat” (“Northland”) as a gunnery officer on the first Israeli warship. The “Eilat” had been a U.S. Coast Guard icebreaker and had taken part in Aliyah Bet. On the “Eilat,” he monitored and commanded a 65-mm cannon dating back to World War I. Additional armament included two 20-mm anti-aircraft guns on the bridge, two machine guns over the pilothouse, 40-mm Bofors on the stern, and a quintuple Hispano-Suiza (anti-aircraft gun about 15-mm) amidships. On one occasion, and in a combat mode, Harold had to de-breach his cannon manually catching each artillery piece as it was de-breached, and tossing each dud shell into the sea.
To his knowledge, the “Eilat” was the first Jewish ship to take offensive action since the days of King Solomon. Shugar’s ship shelled the port of Tyre, bombarding the enemy in Lebanon, and then with a flotilla of three ships entered into combat off the coast of the Negev, bombarding the invading Egyptian army. On one occasion, an Egyptian-flown Spitfire over Tel Aviv strafed his ship, and sailors under his command were killed and wounded. With the gunner on the 20-mm killed, Hal personally took over the firing of an anti-aircraft gun. Unhappily, a bullet from the aircraft hit the magazine, disabling the weapon.
After all hostilities ended, Harold received a discharge from the navy and returned to the United States. He then enrolled in law school only to discover, again, that this was not his calling. He then entered the construction field and was known amongst his professional peers for his excellent reputation as a chief estimator and project manager.
Harold Shugar adds the following personal statement:
“Having been overseas, I know the blessings of living in the United States. I have had the privilege of being present at the birth of the State of Israel, a prophesy of the bible fulfilled in our lifetime. I have participated in two wars, World War II and the War for Israel’s Independence. I have been bombed, shelled, machine-gunned and strafed. My mortar exploded on one occasion when I was not present, killing the entire gun crew. My position was destroyed by a car bomb. I have had a loving wife, two wonderful sons who have beautiful families, and three handsome grandsons. I consider myself a most fortunate person and count my blessings.”
Reproduced in part from the article prepared by Ira Feinberg in the American Veterans of Israel (AVI) newsletter of Winter 2006.