The Seventeenth of Tammuz in History

 1  Tammuz

• Yaakov and family went down to Mitzrayim (according to one source. This would be the establishment of the first voluntary Jewish settlement outside of Eretz Yisrael).

3 Tammuz

• Yehoshua “commanded” the Sun and the Moon to stand still.

5 Tammuz

• Yechezkeil’s first prophecy, 502b.c.e.

9 Tammuz

• Nevuchadnezer’s army breached the walls of Jerusalem, 586bce.
• Pompey captured Jerusalem and killed 12,000 Jews, 63bce.

10 Tammuz

• Tzidkiyahu HaMelech was captured by the Babylonians, 586bce.

15 Tammuz

• Chur, son of Miriam was killed attempting to dissuade the people from demanding the golden calf. As such he is the first Jew to die “Al Kiddush HaShem”, in defense of his faith.

16 Tammuz]

• The golden calf emerged from the fire into which gold of Bnei Yisrael was thrown.

17 Tammuz - 

Shiva Asar B'Tammuz: Fast Day and beginning of "The Three Weeks"

The fast of Shiva Asar B'Tammuz: Declared by the Neviim / Prophets, that marks the beginning of "The Three Weeks," a period of mourning for the destruction of Yerushalayim / Jerusalem and the Beit HaMikdash / Holy Temple, culminating in the fast of Tisha b'Av.

17 Tammuz 1656 - 2105 B.C.E.:

On this day, Noach sent out the dove the first time to see if the waters of the Mabul / Great Flood have receded; (according to Rab' Eliezer) "But the dove found no rest for the sole of her foot and she returned to the ark..." (Bereishit / Genesis 8:9). Some say that was a sign that Bnei Yisrael (who are compared to the dove - Shir HaShirim, 2:14) won’t find rest on this day when the walls of Yerushalayim were breached….. See Da’at Zekeinim (Bereishit, 8:3)  

The Talmud (Taanit 28b) lists five tragic events in Jewish history that occurred on the 17th of Tammuz, on account of which a fast was instituted on this day:

1) Moshe came down from Har / Mt. Sinai with the first stone Luchot / Tablets, inscribed with the Aseret Hadibrot / Ten Commandments. Moshe broke the Luchotwhen he saw the Bnei Yisroel / people of Israel worshipping the Egel HaZahav / Golden Calf (2448/1313 B.C.E. or 2449/1312 B.C.E.) 

2) The walls of Yerushalayim were breached in 3339/422 B.C.E. before the destruction of the  Beit HaMikdash / First Temple and in 3829/69 C.E. before the destruction of the Second Beit HaMikdash, according to the Talmud Yerushalmi, Taanit 4:5 The city of Yerushalayim / Jerusalem is conquered. 
According to the literal meaning of the verse in Melachim / Kings, during the first churban (destruction) this actually took place on 9 Tammuz. [The Yerushalmi states that the wrong date was recorded due to the enormity of the tzarot (troubles).]

3) The korban tamid (the daily sacrificial offering) in the  Beit HaMikdash was discontinued, three weeks before the Babylonians' destruction of the First  Beit HaMikdash in 423 BCE.

4) King Menashe placed an idol in the heichal of the (first) Beit HaMikdash. 

5) Apostomus, a Greek officer who ruled Eretz Yisrael before the destruction of the Second  Beit HaMikdash, burned a sefer Torah in public (3823/63 B. C.E.), setting a precedent for the horrific burning of Jewish books throughout the centuries. According to some, it was he who placed the idol in the Beit HaMikdash at the same time he burned the sefer Torah.

The fighting in Yerushalayim / Jerusalem continued for three weeks until the 9th of Av, when the Beit HaMikdash was set aflame.

17 Tammuz - 1099:

Crusaders captured Yerushalayim. 

17 Tammuz - 1148:

Anti-Jewish riots in Cordova, Spain. 

17 Tammuz - 1388:

The Jews of Lithuania received a Charter of Privilege.

17 Tammuz 5151 - June 20, 1391:
:
While the Jews of Toledo, Spain were commemorating the fall of the Beit HaMikdash, their Christian neighbors, incited by the archdeacon of Ejica, Ferrand Martinez, attacked. 4,000 Jews were massacred in Toledo, Spain, sparking pogroms in other Spanish Jewish communities, leading to widespread poverty and deaths. Rabbeinu Yehudah of Toledo, the son of the Rosh, (Rabbeinu Asher), his wife (the daughter of the Baal Haturim), and his mother-in-law were killed al kiddush Hashem. Hy"d.
This followed massacres in Seville, where 4000 Jews were murdered. Hy"d, and many others were forced to convert, as well as in Cordova. 
On Tisha B'Av 5252/1492, 101 years later, the extinction of Spanish Jewry was completed with the mass expulsion.

Our sages found a hint to the tragedies of the seventeenth of Tammuz in the
story of Noach and the dove which took place on this day, as mentioned
above. The dove's not finding a "resting place" alludes to the trials
which the Bnei Yisroel / people of Israel, which are likened to a dove, experienced on
this day many generations later.

17 Tammuz 5536 - July 4, 1776:

The Declaration of Independence was announced in the "new" country of America promising religious freedom for all. The Declaration of Independence eventually provided the basis for religious tolerance in most other countries. While there were less than 2,500 Jews within the colonies, approximately 600 Jews participated in the revolution including 24 officers (and the great-grandfather of Supreme Court Justice Cardozo). Isaac Franks, David Salisbury Franks and Solomon Bush all attained the rank of lieutenant colonel. One company in South Carolina had so many Jews that it was called the “Jews Company”. 

17 Tammuz 5558 - July 1, 1798:

· Special taxes on Jews were finally abolished in Switzerland.

17 Tammuz 5701 - July 12, 1941:

4000 Jews of the Bialystoker ghetto were shot al kiddush Hashem. Hy"d..

17 Tammuz 5701 - July 12, 1941:

Several hundred Jewish women and girls were abducted from their houses, raped and shot by the S.S. during the night in Khotin, Ukraine. Hy"d.

17 Tammuz 5730 - July 21, 1970:

All Jewish property was confiscated in Libya.

17 Tammuz 5762 - June 27, 2002:

In a landmark church-state decision, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that tuition vouchers were constitutional.

17 Tammuz Yahrtzeits

Rabbeinu Yehudah of Toledo, the son of the Rosh, (Rabbeinu Asher), his wife (the daughter of the Baal Haturim), and his mother-in-law were killed al kiddush Hashem. Hy"d. (1391). See above.

HaRav Yitzchak Hakohen Rappaport, zt”l, (1680 - 5515 / 1755), author of Batei Kehunah
He learned in Yerushalayim in Yeshivat Beit Yaakov, but due to the difficult situation in Eretz Yisrael was sent as an emissary to Turkey and the Balkans to raise money.  In 1714 he was invited to be the Rav in Izmir, where he served for 36 years. He returned to Yerushalayim in his old age in 1749 and became the Chief Rabbi. 

HaRav Chaim Tzvi Mannheimer, zt”l, (5574 / 1814 - 5646 / 1886), Rav of Ungvar and author of Ein Habdolach.
Harav Chaim Tzvi was born in 5574/1814 to Harav Dovid Leib Mannheimer and Rebbetzin Sheindel.
In his youth, Reb Chaim Tzvi learned under Harav Yaakov Koppel Altenkonstanst, also known as Reb Koppel Charif, mechaber of Chiddushei Yaavetz. From this yeshivah, Reb Chaim Tzvi went on to Toplatchon, to the yeshivah of Harav Binyamin Zev Lev, the author of Shaarei Torah. After that, Reb Chaim Tzvi moved on to the yeshivah of the  Chatam Sofer — all before he became bar mitzvah!
The Chatam Sofer arranged a shidduch for him with the daughter of a naggid from Grupe who was willing to support a chattan dedicated to learning. Following his wedding to Gittel in 5592/1832, Rav Chaim Tzvi settled near his father-in-law.
A few years later, the Chatam Sofer told him that the time had come to not rely fully on his father-in-law and advised him to take up a Rabbinic position. Reb Chaim Tzvi said he did not feel worthy. The Chatam Sofer told Reb Chaim Tzvi that if he wouldn’t take the Rabbanut by choice, it would fall on him anyway.
Reb Chaim Tzvi went to work for his father-in-law by day and dedicated the nights to Torah learning. Once, on a business trip, he was robbed and badly hurt. When he returned home, he saw a letter from the Chatam Sofer. “I told you to take up a Rabbinic post by choice…” It was then that Reb Chaim Tzvi finally agreed to become a Rav. He accepted an offer from Shutelsdorf, the first kehillah that offered him a position.
Since the city was relatively small, Reb Chaim Tzvi found time for learning and opened a small yeshivah in the city as well. Later, he became Rav in Verboi, after their Rav, Harav Shmuel Zomer, moved to Pupa. In Verboi, Reb Chaim Tzvi also opened a yeshivah.
After the petirah of Harav Meir Asch, the city of Ungvar was without a Rav, and the Haskalah movement was making inroads there. The leaders of the Torah community of the city all agreed that the best person to fill the post was Reb Chaim Tzvi. Thus he became Rav in Ungvar in 5621/1861. Reb Chaim Tzvi also had an impressive yeshivah in Ungvar.
Rav Chaim Tzvi was niftar on 17 Tammuz 5646/1886 and was buried in Ungvar.
A few years before the outbreak of World War II, his talmidim published some of his responsa in Shu”t Ein Habdolach.

HaRav Avraham Tzvi ben Harav Chaim Ungar, zt”l, Hy”d, (5658 / 1898 - 5704/1944), Rav of Kapawar, Hy”d. Born in Tzehelem, (now Deutschkreutz), in Burgenland, Austria, he was a sixth generation descendant of the Panim Me’irot and a descendant of the Arizal. 
As a young child he spent many hours of the day learning. Before his bar mitzvah, he was accepted to the yeshiva of his uncle, Harav Eliezer Dovid Greenwald, the Keren L’Dovid, in Tzehelem. 
When the Keren L’Dovid left Tzehelem, Reb Avraham Tzvi moved to the yeshiva of Harav Shmuel Rosenberg, the Be’er Shmuel, in Unsdorf. After several years in Unsdorf, Reb Avraham Tzvi returned to Tzehelem. He was given semichah by the Keren L’Dovid in 5674/1914. 
During World War I, Reb Avraham Tzvi fled to Vienna, where he became close with Harav Moshe of Shinev, who was also in Vienna. 
After his marriage, Reb Avraham Tzvi settled in Beled, where he plumbed the depths of Torah together with his close friend, Harav Yoel Pelner. 
Later, he moved to Kapawar, (Kapuvar, a suburb of Shofron, Hungary), where he served as Rav. He opened and developed mosdot of chinuch — a Talmud Torah and a yeshiva — realizing this was the future of Klal Yisrael. He was met with fierce opposition, but Reb Avraham Tzvi did not waver.
Reb Avraham Tzvi was close with many Rebbes, notably the Minchat Elazar of Munkacz.
He was noted for his avodah in tefillah.
When the Nazis reached Hungary in the summer of 5704 / 1944, Reb Avraham Tzvi was not spared. The Nazis deported the Ungar family to the Shopron ghetto near the Hungarian border. From there they were taken to Auschwitz, where the father, mother and five younger children were murdered. Hashem yinkom damam. All five elder brothers survived. Reb Avraham Tzvi was killed on Shabbat, at the age of 46. His five elder sons survived. 
His son, Rav Yitzchak Shlomo, related that his father was a mohel, and he took his knife with him even to Auschwitz. On the last day of his life, as he was being transported to his death, he met a lady from his kehillah who had an eight-day-old infant with her. On the train, Reb Avraham Tzvi performed the emotional brit, adding that the baby will now be a Yiddishe boy being mekadesh Shem Shamayim. 
After the war, Reb Avraham Tzvi’s son Harav Yitzchak Shlomo moved to Eretz Yisrael and became a Rav in Bnei Brak. He established Yeshivat Machaneh Avraham Chug Chatam Sofer, named in his father’s memory, in 5722 / 1962. He also published his father’s works, Machaneh Avraham on masechtot Mikvaot and Beitzah. 

HaRav Yaakov Yosef Herman, zt”l, (1880 - 5727 / 1967). A native of Slutsk, Russia, he immigrated with his parents and younger sister to New York City at the age of 8 and was left on his own five years later after his family returned to Russia. Following his marriage, Herman's home became known for hachnosat orchim - feeding and lodging dozens of people in his home, including visiting European rabbonim seeking kosher meals. He displayed a staunch commitment to mitzvah observance at a time that many abandoned their faith, and urged promising young Jewish men to pursue advanced Torah study in the great yeshivot of Europe, including his own son-in-law, HaRav Chaim Pinchas Scheinberg, (1910–2012). For his promulgation of Torah values to his co-religionists, Herman was called the "Chofetz Chaim of America" by Rab' Boruch Ber Leibowitz, the Kaminetz rosh yeshiva, who lived with the Hermans for two years while he was fundraising in the United States. Herman's youngest daughter, Ruchoma Shain (died March 2013), immortalized his exploits in "All For The Boss: The life and impact of R' Yaakov Yosef Herman, a Torah pioneer in America" - An affectionate family chronicle, first published by Feldheim in 1984.

HaRav Salman Mutzafi, zt”l, (1900-1975). Born in Baghdad to Rav Tzion Meir, descendant of an illustrious family of Torah scholars who first arrived in  Baghdad during the Spanish expulsion. The person who had the greatest influence on Rav Salman during his childhood was the Ben Ish Chai. Every Shabbat, the young Salman accompanied his father to Baghdad’s main shul to hear the Ben Ish Chai’s drasha, which lasted for two hours and was attended by over 2,000 people. In 1934, he moved to Eretz Yisrael. For two full years, he studied the nine volumes of Siddur Harashash, with all of its kabbalistic kavanot. It is said that his prayers have successfully saved the Jewish people on many occasions.

HaRav Shimon Biton, zt”l, (5742 / 1982), Rav and head of the Beit Din of Marseilles and author of Shalmei Shimon.

HaRav Shmuel Yaakov Weinberg, zt”l, (1923 - 5759 / 1999), Rosh Yeshivat Ner Yisrael of Baltimore, the only son-in-law of Harav Ruderman, the founding Rosh Yeshiva.
The Weinberg family is from the Slonimer chasidic dynasty, a Lithuanian chassidut. The approach and relationship of the Slonim chasidim to Torah has been similar to the classical Litvishe approach. The founder of the dynasty was Rav Avrohom ben Yitzchok Mattisyohu Weinberg, the author of Chessed L’Avraham. As a youth, Rav Weinberg studied in the Rabbenu Chaim Berlin yeshiva in New York City under Rav Yitzchok Hutner, a talmid of the Alter of Slobodke. Rav Weinberg married the only daughter of Rav Yaakov Yitzchok Ruderman, the rosh yeshiva of Ner Yisroel of Baltimore and another talmid of the Alter. In 1964, Rav Ruderman sent him to Toronto, to preside as the rosh yeshiva of a branch that Ner Yisroel had established there several years earlier. Eight years later, when the yeshiva in Toronto decided to become independent, he returned to Baltimore. Shortly before the petirah of his father-in-law in 1987, Rav Weinberg was asked to preside as the rosh yeshiva of Ner Yisroel in Baltimore. He was a member of the Moetzet Roshei Hayeshivot of Torah Umesorah for many years, and was very active in expanding the projects of this important organization.

HaRav Yaakov Yitzchak Spiegel, zt’l, (1937-2001), Rav of the Romanian shul Khal Shaarei Shomayim, son of Rav Moshe Menachem Spiegel, the Admor of Ostrov-Kalushin (formerly of Brownsville, later of the Lower East Side), and the grandson of Rav Naftali Aryeh Spiegel, the former Rav of Ostrov-Kalushin in Poland; a talmid muvhak of Rav Aharon Kotler.

HaRav Benyamin Mekeketz Didi, zt"l, author of Yad Benyamin on Pirkei Avot. (year??)

HaRav Shlomo Shemamso, zt"l, author of Shoresh Yishai. (year??)

Also Note:  17 Tammuz:

• Fast day and beginning of the Three Weeks.
• The first Luchot were broken.
• King Menashe placed an idol in the Beit HaMikdash.
• The Korban Tamid was discontinued in the second Beit HaMikdash.
• 4000 Jews were killed in Toledo, Spain, 1391. The riots spread to many other Spanish Jewish communities bringing death and poverty in its wake.
• The destruction of Spanish Jewry began on the 17th of Tammuzand was completed (so to speak) 101 years later on Tish’a b’Av.
• The American colonies declared their independence, 1776.
• 4000 Jews of the ghetto in Bialystok were shot, 1941.