With grateful thanks to the American Veterans of Israel Legacy Corporation (AVILC) for arranging this annual memorial service in the name of Mickey Marcus z”l. Here is a recording of the virtual service in August 2021 which includes important aspects of the Marcus story, one of many heroes of Machal. Please let us know via the form below if you have material to share with us. Visit the AVILC website at http://avilc.org/
On May 10, 1951 Israel’s Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion was in NYS at West Point Military Cemetery to place a wreath on the grave of Colonel David Daniel “Mickey” Marcus. The wreath was a Star of David in blue & white. Ben-Gurion also presented Israel’s Order of Independence posthumously to Marcus.
Mickey Marcus, an American Jew, died on June 10, 1948 from friendly-fire after having helped successfully defend Israel during its War of Independence. Marcus was a Machal soldier; a volunteer from outside Israel. His nom-de-guerre was Mickey Stone. The UN cease fire ending the war, took effect a day after his death.
Among those present at Marcus’s July 1, 1948 burial at West Point were Moshe Dayan. Marcus’ gravestone reads “ Colonel David Marcus- A Soldier for all Humanity”.
Of the then approximately three thousand graves at West Point his is the only one marking the resting place of a soldier killed fighting under a foreign flag.
Born in 1901, he attended Boys High School in Brooklyn; he graduated West Point in 1924. Later he graduated Brooklyn Law School and was an Asst US Attorney in NY fighting the Mafia.
His WWII & Nuremberg activities are for another setting.
• Ben Gurion wrote to Mickey’s widow Emma that Mickey was “the best man we had”
• He was Israel’s first General -“Aluf” in 2000 years- since Judah Maccabbe, serving the IDF from late January to his death in June 1948
• He overhauled the command & control of the Haganah
• He commanded the Jerusalem Front- Operation Nachshon- The Burma Road
From the first meeting between Ben-Gurion & Marcus early 1948:
BG: You know Ecclesiastes?
MM: One of my favorite authors.
BG But I understand you are not a religious man
MM: No not in the formal sense
BG: What about Zionism, is it true that before you came here you never heard of Herzl-
the founder of the movement?
MM: I was at Dachau. The bodies were still piled up like cordwood. After that, I didn’t need any more lessons in the importance of a Jewish homeland.
• Biography by Ted Berkman 1962- “Cast a Giant Shadow”
• Fictionalized movie adaptation 1966 with Kirk Douglas, Frank Sinatra and John Wayne, Yul Brynner
Among the sites named after him was the David Marcus Theater on Jerome Avenue in the North Bronx of my youth (1967-1978) In our youth & total ignorance my friends & I referred to it as the David Mucous Theatre. This brief tribute is my apology.
JOEL G. COHEN
9/9/2020
For full biography of David Marcus – please click here