R. Abraham Palache (1809–1899), son of R. Hayyim, was also a distinguished rabbinical scholar. Four months after R. Hayyim Palache's death the hakham bashi of Istanbul appointed R. Joseph Hakim, chief rabbi of Manissa, as hakham bashi of Izmir. This was done in order to satisfy the demands of the older generation, but Hakim was elected by only a small minority. Three-quarters of the Jews of Izmir opposed him, and their objections were intensified by his opposition to the teaching of languages in Jewish schools. Many people in Izmir then approached the local ruler, Ishmael Pasha, to appoint R. Abraham Palache to the post of hakham bashi, but their request was rejected. Several French, English, and Italian Jews who were in Izmir then turned to their local consuls, asking that a request, signed by 15,000 Izmir Jews, be sent to the sultan demanding, among other things, the appointment of Palache as hakham bashi. The Italian consul took the necessary steps with his ambassador in Istanbul, as well as with Ishmael Pasha, and succeeded in having the request fulfilled. In August 1869, according to a supreme order, R. Joseph Hakim was removed and the following year, 1870, R. Palache was appointed as hakham bashi of the Izmir community and served in this post for almost 30 years. R. Palache wrote numerous works in Hebrew and one in Ladino: Shama Avraham (Salonika, 1850), responsa; Berakh et Avraham (Salonika, 1857), homilies; Shemo-Avraham (2 vols., 1878–96), ethics and homilies; Va-Yikra Avraham (1884); Va-Yashkem Avraham (1885), studies in Psalms; Va-Ya'an Avraham (1886), responsa; Avraham Anokhi, studies on the Torah (1889); Avraham Ezkor and Yemaher Avraham (1889): Ve-Avraham Zaken (1899), homilies: and in Ladino, Ve-Hokhi'ah Avraham (2 vols., 1853–62).