The extension of Ebenezer Howard's ideas on urbanization outside the British Isles: The example of Palestine

Abstract

The idea of the Garden City, which was initiated by Ebenezer Howard at the end of the last century in England, was extended quickly to other places in the world. While the establishment of Garden Cities encountered many difficulties, there was much success in the establishment of Garden Suburbs. In Palestine, where Jewish immigrants and Zionist leaders brought Ebenezer Howard's ideas from Europe, Garden Suburbs were very successful. Zionism looked upon the Garden Suburb as the model for urban Zionist colonization in Palestine and it intended to establish such suburbs near all the big cities. Only Jews were supposed to live in those suburbs. The first Garden Suburb was Tel-Aviv near the port town of Jaffa. Subsequently, Tel-Aviv became the first Jewish city in Palestine. Following Tel-Aviv Jewish suburbs were established near Jerusalem, Haifa and Tiberias. In Palestine too, as in Europe, there were plans to establish Jewish Garden Cities, but they did not turn out well.