"The army's archive will draw materials not only from the IDF and its predecessors in Israel, but on the history of Jewish self-defense in the Diaspora, the participation of Jews in national and international liberation wars, and on Jewish participation in developing military art and technics."
David Ben Gurion, December 1948
Following the establishment of the archive in July 1948, David Ben Gurion instructed its managers to address the documentation of the military organization that preceded the IDF, as well the military service of Jews in other armies and their contributions to the development of the art and means of war in their countries.
In the spirit of this instruction, the IDFA includes archival documentation of entities and organization active in defense of the pre-state Yishuv, including the pre-IDF organizations: the "Haganah," "Palmah," "IZL," and "Lehi." In addition it includes most documentation of the transition period from the undergrounds to the IDF, during The War of Independence.
Thus, the IDFA includes, alongside IDF documentation, complementary materials from the pre-state period, and special collections:
A. The "Haganah Historical Archives" located in Beit Eliyahu Golomb, 23 Rothschild Boulevard, Tel Aviv.
B. The "Palmah" archive, in the IDFA. The "Palmah House" in Tel-Aviv stores a complementary collection of photographs, audio-visual documentation, and information about members of the Palmah and of those who died in action.
C. "Lehi" archive is preserved in the IDFA; other materials, not yet prepared for storing in the IDFA, can be found in The Lehi Museum, also known as Beit Yair.
D. The Jewish Combatant Collection, in the World Armies and Undergrounds.
The "Haganah Historical Archives"
The "Palmah" archive
"Lehi" archive
The Jewish Combatant Collection
To search in Lehi Archive and in The Jewish Combatant Collection, in the World Armies and Undergrounds – enter the catalog on the present site, or fill a scrutiny request form.