Haim Palachi ( ; Acronym: MaHaRHaF or HaVIF) (January 28, 1788– February 10, 1868) was a Jewish-Turkish chief rabbi of Smyrna (İzmir) and author in Ladino and Hebrew. His titles included Hakham Bashi and Gaon. He was the father of grand rabbis Abraham Palacci and Isaac Palacci (Rahamim Nissim Palacci) and rabbi Joseph Palacci. He was a member of the Pallache family.
(Alternative spellings include: Hayim Palachi, Hayyim Pallache, Hayyim Palache, Haim Palacci, Hayim Palacci, Hayyim Palaggi (and Falaji), Chaim Palagi, and Haim Palatchi.) He died on 17 Shevat 5628, according to the Jewish calendar. His mother's name was Kaden.
Background
Pallache was born in İzmir, Turkey, then known internationally as Smyrna, part of the Ottoman Empire. His parents were Jacob Pallache (a rabbi and kabbalist) and Kali Kaden Hazan. His maternal grandfather was Joseph Raphael ben Hayyim Hazzan (1741–1820), chief rabbi of İzmir. He studied under his grandfather and also Isaac ben Elyakim Gatigno.
Career
Early years
By 1813, aged 25, Palacci was already a rabbi. In 1828, aged 40, he became head of the Bet Yaakov rabbinical seminary.
In 1837 or 1838, he became head of a religious court and then became dayan (jurist), marbiš torah (teacher of Torah), and rav korel (head rabbi).
By 1854 or 1856, he had become Hakham Bashi or Chief Rabbi of Smyrna, appointed by Sultan Abdülmecid I during the Tanzimat period. He served as chief rabbi until his death in 1868.
In 1864, he received the award of Mecidiye Order, third class.
In 1867, he received a Greek Orthodox delegation: SMYRNA.—Interchange of Visits.—We are happy to learn that a most friendly feeling prevails at Smyrna among the ecclesiastical heads of the several religious bodies. The Greek Archbishop, accompanied by his clergy, lately went to pay a visit to the Chief Rabbi, Haim Palacci. He was received with all the honors due to his rank. The Archbishop told the rabbi that a similar visit would be paid by the Greek Patriarch of Constantinople to the Chief Rabbi of the capital. This friendly understanding was brought about by the generous act of the Jews who bought six bells carried away by the Turks from Candia and presented them to the clergy of Smyrna, with the request to restore them to the churches whence they had been carried away.
Murder (1859) Following a murder on March 17, 1859, local police apprehended a Greek meat butcher and Jewish broker as suspects. Rav Hayim Palaçi (as his name appears in modern Turkish) wrote to Baron Lionel de Rothschild for support and protection. He also wrote a liturgy, in which he stated "Müslüman Türkler Yahudilere inanıp güveniyorlar." ("Muslim Turks believe and rely on Jews.").
"Haim Palacci Dispute" By 1865, attempts by secular leaders of Izmir's Jewish community to exploit Palachi's declining health led to communal conflict.
Historian D. Gershon Lewental describes the conflict as follows. In November 1865, an administrative committee forced Pallache to accept its oversight, after which a group of lay leaders purchased at reduced cost the concession for the gabelle tax on kosher food and alcohol. The concessionaires refused audit; Pallache repealed the tax completely. The concessionaires went over Pallache as Izmir's hakham bashi to the regional head (hakham bashi kayakami), whose representative conducted an investigation that recommended Pallache's removal in favor of himself (the representative). The Ottoman government accepted the recommendation. Widespread opposition to the Ottoman decision led to delay, repeal, and finally reinstitution of Pallache by October 1867. Pallache agreed to some reforms but died before they took effect.
Historian Stanford J. Shaw describes the conflict in his book The Jews of the Ottoman Empire and the Turkish Republic (1991). He recounts that Palacci was more conservative than other religious leaders during the Tanzimat period. However, the dispute started in November 1865, when other members of the Jewish religious council speculated on the gabelle (food tax) on wine, alcohol, and salt; Palacci annulled the tax. In December 1866, Yakir Geron, grand rabbi of Adrianople, intervened by sending an emissary, rabbi Samuel Danon to resolve the matter; he recommended that Geron dismiss Palacci (and appoint himself, Danon, instead). Jewish members of the Izmir community asked their vali (governor) to hold off, while they sent a mission to Istanbul. The decision that came back was to appoint Palacci as chief rabbi for life. (A longer description appeared in the French L'Histoire des Israelites de l'Empire Ottoman by Moïse Franco in 1897.)