Sinclair-Thomson was born in Scotland in1913 into a Protestant aristocratic (Church
of England) family. Most of his ancestors served as officers of the
British Crown. His father was the only officer who survived the battle
of Gallipoli in World War I. His father was a high-ranking officer, of
the Essex Regiment, who had privileged access to the British royal family.
Steeped
in the Bible since his childhood, Peter possessed an unshakable and
sustained belief that the Jews of the Diaspora were the successors of
the ancient Jewish Nation, destined to return from their involuntary
exile back to the land of their forefathers, Israel. He had an undying
conviction that the global community must do its utmost to enable the
Jews to return to their Promised Land to settle and build a great
nation.
Peter Sinclair Thomson British Military Academy
After Peter completed the British Military Academy, he joined the Essex
Regiment, following in his father’s footsteps. As a young officer, one
day he attended a military parade, accidentally wore yellow gloves that were not matched by his battalion parade tradition and was punished by being
allocated to the regiment leaving to do service in
Palestine. That was fateful moment. The rest would not have happened if
he had not worn those gloves.
In
Palestine, he felt he could be instrumental in assisting the “Yishuvim”
(Jewish settlements) in their mission to establish a Jewish Homeland; to make
the land productive and to enable them to live in peace with the
neighboring Arabs. In 1936 he was assigned as an intelligence officer, billeted in Nazareth, the north district capital of the British Mandate.
Within days upon his arrival in Nazareth, Sinclair-Thomson
was welcomed by his superior officer, the legendary Major-General Orde Charles Wingate
commander of the Northern District, who was equally a student and
passionate believer of the Bible and its prophesies. At that time Wingate was active in establishing the “Night Squads” (Ploogot Ha’lila),
a “peoples” militia consisting of Jewish pioneers defending their
settlements and farms from Arab murderers mob. Ploogot Ha’lila became the
predecessor of the “Hagana”, which in turn became the forerunner of the
Israeli Defense Force. Wingate deputized Sinclair Thomson in this
venture, in which he later eagerly participated with brilliant
organizational skills and leadership. The two soon became the best of
friends.
Wingate
wanted to introduce unconventional strategies to the Israeli Kibbutz
settlers whose actions were primarily defensive and static. His approach
was, not to wait to be attacked by Arabs, but to go out at night on per-emptive strikes against known aggressors. However, Wingate had
difficulty getting this idea across through the Army hierarchy, to
British Army superiors and without approval; his project was in danger
of never getting off the ground. Sinclair Thomson helped him. He heard
that General Wavell, the most senior British Military officer in
Palestine, was coming north the following day. He rushed to Ein Herrod
to tell Wingate. They both drove to
a
spot on the way between Afula and Nazareth where they stopped the car
and hid it amongst the trees. Soon after the armed escort of the General
came into sight, Wingate stood in the middle of the road, stopped the
convoy, and to everyone’s surprise, including Peter, he opened the door
of the General’s car, got in and sat down with him. As a result of this
unconventional meeting, the project was given the “go ahead” and the
special Night Squads were born. This was an historic moment.
It
was during this development of the Night Squads that Sinclair Thomson,
on many occasions, met and conferred with David Ben-Gurion, Moshe
Sharett and Golda Meir, all of who eventually became Prime Ministers of
Israel. As an intelligence officer he was in close contact with many in
the Hagana field commanders in the Galilee and Haifa, and on many
occasions provided crucial military intelligence regarding Arab
terrorist plans for attacking Jewish transportation infrastructure and
settlements.
During
the Arab revolt in 1936 – 1939 he often provided advanced warning to
Jewish settlements of impending attacks by Arab raiders. His efforts
prevented the shedding of much Jewish blood. When the Night Squads
planned counter attacks in pursuit of the Arab mobs, it was
Sinclair-Thomson who enabled them to successfully accomplish their
missions. Although not widely acknowledged in British Mandate military
circles, Sinclair initiated and participated in many of these forays.
While
he was always busy assisting the Jews, he also wanted to be connected
permanently to the Jewish Nation. When he occasionally met a beautiful
Jewish young woman in Haifa and fell in love with her, he knew that by
marrying her he would not only gain a loving lawful wife, but this
marriage would lead him to be a part of the Jewish nation forever.
Sabina
Wallhandler, a daughter of a religious Jewish father, came from Poland
10 years before, loved Sinclair and met him secretly, but when they
planned to marry, her family strongly objected this impossible marriage,
especially her father David Aharon. When he heard what a great Zionist
Peter was, and what he really did for the Jewish people, he finally
agreed
.
Sabina, Haifa 1935
Sinclair
Thomson had a very clear future with a preplanned guaranteed carrier in the
British Army; he could climb the ladder of ranks. He knew that by
marrying a Jewish woman he would be punished and could lose his
position. But because his love for Sabina was so great he decided to
give up everything for her.
He then went and informed the British Army
officially of his marriage.
His
marriage was not acceptable by the Army and they denied this marriage,
posting him far away from his beloved wife, from his beloved country,
from the Land of Israel, and he was forced to transfer to Sudan.
Sabina
just lost her brother, 24 years old, Sroolik Wallhandler, murdered by
Arab terrorists near Haifa on his way as Hagana member, driving a truck
to bring a Jewish woman to the Hospital to give birth and bring supplies
to the surrounded Kibbutz Bet Oren. Unfortunately Arab terrorists
murdered both on their way back, as well as others, just because they
were Jews.
Sabina then found a way and united with her husband in Sudan.
Sinclair Thomson told his wife that before he left for Sudan, he managed to revenge her brother’s killing in an Army action. The couple meantime moved to Egypt, and their first son Andrew was born.
The Sinclairs with their new baby son moved then to Britain. A second son was born and was named David.
Sabina throughout the Land of Israel
The
independence of The State of Israel and the War of Liberation found
Sinclair Thomson in Britain. Peter wrote letters to the British
Government, and articles published in the media, demanding to help the
newborn small country against Arab terrorist attacks, and Arab countries
army invasion.
All
his life Peter was concerned and was involved with Israel’s struggle. He
wrote many articles for Israel published in the Jerusalem Post, and the
international media, felt his mission is to assist the Zionist movement
publicity.
In
1952 he took his family and made “Aliyah” settling in Haifa on Mount
Carmel, brought with him two trucks he bought in Britain with most of
his savings to help build the country.
The
days of the beginning of the new State of Israel found him trying his
best for his family and for the country. He was invited frequently by
the leaders of Israel to give lectures in many official national
conventions and succeeded to impress his audience with his enthusiasm of
the Zionist cause, and his views. But the poor economy of the new
country made it so hard for him and his family, and they were forced to
move back to Britain with great sadness.
Sabina 2011 Cardiff
Peter
and Sabina never gave up their love for Israel and for their many
friends and family in Mount Carmel (Haifa) and elsewhere in Israel. They stayed
alert to know everything, everyday of the ongoing efforts of Israel to
exist, and they knew everything that was happening in Israel.
His
love for this country made Peter attempt a third time to become a true
Israeli. In 1985, when he was 72 years old, he and Sabina came again to
Mount Carmel, rented an apartment. But their dream to live in Israel for
the rest of their lives was again shattered. They returned to Cardiff with great sorrow.
Peter’s
desire to be in Israel was finally fulfilled by his last will, to
scatter his ashes in the Galilee, to enable his soul to rest in peace in
the country he so loved.
This
great man was my beloved uncle, the husband of my aunt Sabina, sister of my late mother Naomi rip.
I was waiting in Israel to accept Peter’s ashes to be scattered
in the Galilee to fulfill his last will with much pride.
A
few days later, Peter’s son David arrived in
Israel from London.
I met him at the arrivals terminal of the Tel Aviv
airport. David held in his arms a small jar with his father
ashes.
We
drove to Haifa, and on our way many stories were raised about his
father, my uncle’s history, while his ashes in the jar in the car,
hugging with love by David.
We
arrived in my house and left the jar in the spare room surrounded with
candles. After dinner we all went to sleep. I could hardly sleep the
whole night, thinking of my brave uncle, pictured him in his British Army
uniform. I saw in my half awake dream how my uncle holding a blue white star of David flag (Israeli national
flag) in his hands and smiling.
The
next day, David, I and a few family members, including my 4
sons, drove to the Galilee Mountains. I scattered a quarter of the jar
there. I could not think not to leave no remnant to burial at least some of the ash. We asked permission, the rest of the jars contents we buried inside the grave
of my other uncle Avigdor rip, who passed away a few years before and
located in the ancient cemetery of Kibbutz Machaniem, near the Jordan
River, on the way to the Golan Heights.
Peter
loved Sabina’s brother, his brother in law Avigdor, he never
stopped speaking about him and praised him. On the grave we put a black
murmur granite stone with a script saying: "Here are buried the ashes of Major Peter
Sinclair Thomson 1913 - 2002, a great Zionist and a true friend of
Israel". We gathered there surrounding the
Grave
and I read words of good-bye. It was a monologue about Peter’s
history and his life. At the end I said with much pride: "We fulfilled
your last wish to scatter your ashes in the Galilee Mountains you so
loved. We also fulfilled your life’s wish to be one of us, an Israeli. I
know your soul is now with the Angels up in Heaven, looking down upon
us and smiling with great happiness".
Epilogue
My favorite aunt Sabina Sinclair Thompson passed away peacefully in Cardiff South Wales, UK, on September 2013. Sabina was 98 years old. I loved her all my life, as long as I can remember my self. Despite her passed away at so old age, living such great fullest life, her death leaves a sadness and emptiness in my heart and thoughts.
My relationship with Auntie Sabina were very close. I will miss her endearing and captivating laugh, hours of intimate conversations and those phones I called her before every holiday, birthday, before any family event that in many of them Sabina participated. Sabina was not only my aunt, my mother's sister Naomi RIP, but a role model throughout my life.
Not surprisingly, until few weeks before she passed away, in spite of her old age, Sabina use to go out of her house, where she lived for years with her late husband Peter and remained there after he passed away. She use to take the bus to Cardiff's city center to a seniors club where she met every day of the week with friends for breakfast or lunch, returned home by cab. She didn't use a cane, nor a walker, she walked fast, straight and always with a smile on her lips. A very independent woman. Until her last day her mind was clear.
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