Degania Bet was founded in 1920 by immigrants from the Second Aliyah,[2] led by Levi Brevda (Levi Ben Amitai).[3] It was the first planned kibbutz and was designed and built by the German Jewish architect Fritz Kornberg.[4][5] One of its founders was Levi Eshkol. During the 1920 Palestine riots it was attacked and abandoned for several months.[2]
In the 1931 census of Palestine Degania Bet had a population of 138, all Jews, in a total of 39 houses.[6] During the 1936–39 Arab revolt it served as a base for establishing tower and stockade settlements.[7] Its population had increased to 290, still all Jewish, by the 1945 census.[8]
In addition to its 350 cow dairy herd, crop fields, almond orchards, banana, date and avocado plantations, Degania Bet industrialized in the 1960s with Degania Sprayers, now a green industry; in 1984 it opened the Degania Silicone factory. An additional source of income is its kibbutz cottage tourist accommodation, and it specializes in organized bicycle tours.[citation needed]
Notable people
Levi Eshkol (1895–1969), third Prime Minister of Israel (1963–69); Degania Bet member
^Shmuel Burmil, Ruth Enis (2011). The Changing Landscape of a Utopia: The Landscape and Gardens of the Kibbutz. Past and Present. Grüne Reihe - Quellen und Forschungen zur Gartenkunst (Band 29). pp. 154–158. ISBN978-3-88462-284-1.
^Chyutin, Michael and Bracha (2007-04-24). Architecture and Utopia. Ashgate Pub Co. p. 90. ISBN978-0-7546-4831-4.