Fresh out of the U.S. Navy in 1946, 20-year-old William Millman was looking for his next adventure on the high seas. The 6'4" Jewish sailor- dubbed "Big Bill" by his friends- didn't like what he saw and read about what the Nazis had done. "I decided I would do something about it," he recalled years later. The determined young man headed to the Weston Trading Company in Boston- a front for the Haganah, a group buying ships to carry Jewish refugees from Europe to the Land of Israel. His assignment: to pilot a rickety ship named the President Warfield that had been saved from the scrap heap for the historic task of picking up 4,500 Jewish war refugees waiting in France and carrying them illegally to the Land of Israel.

The Journey Begins

When Big Bill and the 34 other crew members arrived in Sete, France, they realized the true importance of their task. In shocked disbelief, the sailors watched the weary passengers stream onto the ship. Many of the refugees had walked across Europe, out of the horrifying nightmare of German anti-Semitism, fortified by the dream of living free and dignified Jewish lives in Eretz Yisrael.

Teenager Aliza Cohen was among the thousands of refugees. During the war, she had escaped from a Polish ghetto, where Jews were forced to live, and disguised herself as a German, hiding in stairways at night and stealing bread to survive. After the war, she walked to Italy and then traveled to France on foot and by truck. Now 17, she joined the 1,561 men, 1,282 women, 1,106 adolescents, and 655 children from Poland, Russia, Lithuania, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, and Romania as they packed onto the President Warfield, built to hold only 400 people. On the first day of the voyage, July 11, 1947, Aliza met a 20-year-old artist named Yosef. The two soon became friends, and the warmth of their new friendship stirred the embers of hope that had kept them alive during the war.

Could this be a new beginning? Like everyone aboard the ship, they understood that their future lay in Eretz Yisrael. Like everyone aboard the ship, they viewed Yossi Harel, the ship's Jewish commander, with hope, pride, and renewed strength. Like everyone aboard the ship, they placed their destiny in the hands of Big Bill Millman and the other members of the ship's young American crew.

Trouble at Sea

What was supposed to be the last leg of a long journey for Aliza, Yosef, and the other refugees, proved to be anything but smooth sailing. The British- who controlled the Land of Israel at the time- limited how many Jews could immigrate there. They closely guarded the seas to prevent illegal immigrants from entering.

Once in the open seas, a British reconnaissance plane circled the President Warfield. Two days later a destroyer and cruiser appeared, signaling that they would not allow the ship to enter the Land of Israel. The British reinforced their message with four more destroyers on July 17.

The perilous journey seemed to be nearing completion as the ship sailed within 25 miles of Eretz Yisrael. Then it happened. At 2 a.m. on July 18, the British began their attack. Searchlights flooded the ship, illuminating the blue-and-white Magen David flags flying high above the ship's masts, and a sign- painted just the day before- revealing the ship's proud new name, Exodus 1947. But the Exodus was no match for the state-of-the-art destroyers that rammed it from both sides, splintering the ship. The British opened fire and threw tear-gas bombs. British sailors leaped onto the Exodus' deck. Big Bill grabbed a British sailor by the seat of his pants and tried to throw him overboard. But another British sailor aimed his pistol at point-blank range and shot Bill, shattering his jaw.

Having no weapons onboard, passengers and crew fought back by throwing potatoes, tins of kosher beef, bottles, and fruit. In a four-hour battle, at least 200 passengers were wounded, 70 seriously, and three were killed.

The destroyers circled the wobbly ship. Water poured into the engine room. The ship was in danger of sinking. Still, Commander Harel remained determined. "Full speed ahead toward Haifa," he ordered the crew.

Sending Out an SOS

In the early morning, as the ship teetered toward Haifa, the ship's doctor approached Commander Harel. Several injured passengers needed immediate blood transfusions to survive. Surveying the wounded, Harel took a deep breath and decided to surrender to spare the lives of his passengers. "We had to resist, and we did," he said many years later. But Harel's task was to bring the immigrants safely to the Land of Israel. "I did not accept command... to bring in a group of casualties."

True to their word, the British prevented Aliza, Yosef, and the other Jews aboard the Exodus from immigrating to the Land of Israel- allowing them only a glimpse of the Promised Land. On July 19, tears streamed down the faces of the defiant refugees as they sang "Hatikvah" while sailing into the port of Haifa. From there, British soldiers herded them onto three prison ships headed for France. Hearing about the passengers' plight, several journalists joined them on these ships, spreading their story worldwide and arousing public sympathy.

Refusing to disembark anywhere but Eretz Yisrael, the passengers remained onboard in the French port for 24 days, enduring a heat wave and abominable sanitary conditions. Finally, the British transported the would-be immigrants to Germany- the land where their families had perished- forcing them to go to two former concentration camps, Poppendorf and Amstau. But this time, the Jewish refugees were armed with new hope and determination, knowing that they could be free, not victims.

Small groups of refugees found ways to escape the camps. Within just a few months, the majority of the Exodus passengers left Germany and traveled once again to secret ports in Italy and France. Meanwhile, the extensive media coverage of the plight of the Exodus and her brave passengers opened the world's eyes to the unfair policies that guided Britain's control of the Land of Israel. In November 1947, the public outcry led the United Nations to vote to end the British Mandate and partition the land, creating separate Jewish and Arab states. Less than a year later, the British left the country, and Aliza and Yosef- now married- and many other Exodus passengers proudly witnessed the birth of the State of Israel on May 14, 1948.

Freedom- and the price paid for it- now had a face: the tear-stained faces of the more than 4,500 homeless immigrants aboard Exodus 1947, the ship that helped launch a nation.

Modern Day Exoduses
Jewish refugees have fled many countries, seeking freedom in the State of Israel.
Arab Countries—Since 1948, more than 782,000 Jews from Arab countries have fled religious persecution, making aliyah. Many arrived in Israel soon after the nation’s founding. Operation Magic Carpet airlifted 48,000 Jews from Yemen to Israel between 1948 and 1951. At the same time, 104,000 Jews were evacuated from Iraq in Operations Ezra and Nechemia.
Argentina—Under Argentina’s military regime from 1976 to 1983, anti-Semitic attacks flared up. The Israeli government rescued thousands of Jews through a special agreement with the Argentine government that allowed Jews arrested for political crimes to immigrate to Israel. More recently, thousands of Jews have made aliyah to free themselves from Argentina’s oppressive economic situation.
The former Soviet Union—Following years of religious persecution, Jews were free to leave the former Soviet Union after the country’s  Communist government began to crumble in 1989. Since then, more than 700,000 Jews have made aliyah.
Ethiopia—In the mid-1980s, 8,000 Ethiopian Jews were airlifted into Israel in Operation Moses. Unfortunately, another 4,000 lost their lives in the desert and refugee camps of Sudan as they tried to make their way to Israel. In the 1990s, Operation Solomon brought 15,000 more Ethiopian Jews to Israel, further enriching Israel’s diverse society.