In 1922, the league of nations granted britain a mandate. Palestine was, at the time, a remote province in the disintegrating. The contents of this letter became known as the balfour declaration. According to the mandate system created by the versailles treaty of 1919, britain was entrusted with. The making of the balfour declaration palestinian return centre. After discussions within the cabinet and consultations with jewish leaders, the decision was made public in a letter from british foreign secretary lord arthur james balfour to lord walter rothschild. His majestys government view with favour the establishment in palestine of a national home for. Following the defeat of the ottoman empire in world war i, the british assumed control of palestine. Download the hidden history of the balfour declaration as ebook press the button start search and wait a little while. The declaration was quite simply just a letter from the foreign secretary arthur balfour to lord lionel walter rothschild, a jewish banker, which was made public in november 1917 for the zionist federation of great britain and ireland. Text of the balfour declaration jewish virtual library. Jabotinskys role, and the jewish legions, in securing the balfour declaration. Pdf the balfour declaration download read online free.
The balfour declaration was the british governments pledge to help the jewish community build a national home in palestine and took the form of a letter penned on 2 november 1917 by british foreign minister lord balfour to lord rothschild, then serving bicom briefing the balfour declaration. Britains true motivation behind the balfour declaration. The forgotten truth about the balfour declaration pdf scholars at. In them, a senior british official assured the arab leader that if he and his people joined the war on the side of the allies, the uk would recognize arab. Herzl recognized that if the zionist dream of a homeland for the jewish people was to be realized, international approval of the idea had to be. Britains great war pledge to lord rothschild the meaning for us robert john paper presented to the fifth international revisionist conference. The land of palestine was ruled by many nations over the ages.
The balfour declaration led the league of nations to entrust the united kingdom with the palestine mandate in 1922. Behind the balfour declaration britains great war pledge to rothschild bankers this was the british governments promised payoff to the rotscgild bankers for their pressure on the usa to bail the brits out of world war 1, which the brits were losing. Levene has asserted that the only important motive behind the balfour. Download pdf the balfour declaration free usakochan pdf.
Balfour declaration 1926 page 4 of 14 defined by the government of india act, 1919. Even prior to the balfour declaration was the mcmahonhussein correspondence, an exchange of letters between the british high commissioner in cairo and the sharif of mecca, between july 1915 and january 1916. Herzl recognized that if the zionist dream of a homeland for the jewish people was to be realized, international approval of the idea had to be secured. Declaration was to give the zionists in russia a reason to fight on the side of the allies. The balfour declaration, november 1917 introduction one of the most important statements of british foreign policy of the twentieth century, the balfour declaration was no more than a short, vague letter that had no legal status. Sixtyseven words 100 years of conflict is a concise account of the players, motivations, and setting for one of the most consequential letters of modern history. The true history of the imperial deal that transformed the middle east and sealed the fate of palestine on 2 november 1917, the british government, represented by foreign secretary arthur balfour, declared it was in favour of the establishment in palestine of a national home for the jewish people. Behind the balfour declaration 1988 edition open library. On the 100th anniversary of the balfour declaration, the british government should take the opportunity to make things right. The balfour declaration was a letter written by british foreign secretary arthur balfour to lionel walter rothschild, in which he expressed the british governments support for a jewish homeland. On november 2, 1917, lord balfour of great britain wrote a letter promising a jewish home to the jewish people in the land of palestine.
How the balfour declaration became part of international law. The balfour declaration was a november 2, 1917 letter from british foreign secretary arthur james balfour to lord rothschild that made public the british support of a jewish homeland in palestine. The infamous balfour declaration and the 1947 partition. The balfour declaration from the perspective of the palestinian. The true story behind the balfour declaration youtube. Using filesharing servers api, our site will find the ebook file in various formats such as pdf, epub and other. Thus the usa was used and its men died for the zionist cause. In november 1917, the british government issued the balfour declaration, announcing its intention to facilitate the establishment in palestine of a national home for the jewish people. The details behind the balfour declaration unsealed.
Balfour declaration, statement on november 2, 1917, of british support for the establishment in palestine of a national home for jewish people. Britain must atone for the balfour declaration the guardian. Beyond the balfour declaration download ebook pdf, epub. How gentile zionism affected the statesmen behind the balfour declaration. Martin kramer, founding president of shalem college in jerusalem, as he explains how the balfour declaration of november 2, 1917, reflected international recognition of the natural. British hag theresa may meets with satanyahoo on balfour day. It was made in a letter from the british foreign secretary to a leader of the anglojewish community and was later included in the british mandate over palestine. A close aide of chaim weizmann, he travelled widely to rally support for the declaration. The most prominent events marking the early days of the modern zionist movement were the publication of theodor herzls the jewish state in 1896 and his calling of the first zionist congress in 1897. Declaration was published, zionism had crossparty support in.
Balfour declaration, 1917 november 2nd, 1917 dear lord rothschild, i have much pleasure in conveying to you, on behalf of his majestys government british, the following declaration of sympathy with jewish zionist aspirations which has been submitted to, and approved by, the cabinet. Balfour and palestine, a legacy of deceit, by anthony. Britains pledge is regarded as one of the most controversial documents in the modern history of the arab world. But the behind thescenes deal which brought it about is hardly known. The balfour declaration, written as a letter on november 2, 1917, from british foreign secretary arthur balfour to british jewish leader baron lionel walter rothschild, pledged british support for. This year is the centennial of one of the most criminal acts in modern history. Indeed, at the very moment that the declaration was issued, british troops were. The british government decided to endorse the establishment of a jewish home in palestine. Behind the balfour declaration addeddate 20110301 00. Behind the balfour declaration, by robert john the unz. Just before israel became a state, it was ruled by the british empire.
Click download or read online button to get beyond the balfour declaration book now. The letter began a process by which the international community came to embrace the idea of the establishment in palestine of a national home for the jewish. The balfour declaration was a public statement issued by the british government in 1917 during the first world war announcing support for the establishment of a national home for the jewish people in palestine, then an ottoman region with a small minority jewish population. Comprising a single paragraph, the text became known as the balfour declaration. The influence of the balfour declaration on the course of postwar events was immediate. A driving force behind this was the hovevei zion movement, which worked. The dark forces behind the balfour declaration and its. The balfour declaration was a public statement issued by the british government in 1917. Behind the balfour declaration britains great war pledge to rothschild bankers behind the balfour declaration britains great war pledge to rothschild bankers this was the british governments promised payoff to the rotscgild bankers for their pressure on the usa to bail the brits out of world war 1, which the brits were losing. We would, nevertheless, recall that by resolution ix of the imperial war conference, 1917, due recognition was given to the important position held by india in the british commonwealth.
The origins of the arabisraeli conflict, jonathan schneer 78gsas, a professor of history at georgia tech who specializes in modern britain, has put together a mass of material to decipher how the british got themselves and many others into a longdrawn mess. E rnest bevin, labours postwar foreign secretary, once told the zionist leader, david bengurion, that the balfour declaration of 1917 was the worst mistake in western foreign policy in the first. Wilsons casual pronouncements about the balfour declaration ir ritated officials at the state department, who cautioned him against dd 21 011419 2. On november 5, 1917, lord arthur james balfour, the foreign secretary of great britain who was also the prime minister during 190205 signed the death warrant of the palestinians by announcing the declaration that takes his name as the balfour declaration that paved the way. The weizmann saga unfolds behind the scenes in london drawing rooms, where this russian jewish immigrant, having arrived in. The balfour declaration may be the most extraordinary document produced by any government in world history. The content of the balfour d eclaration seems distant or downright ba. The balfour declaration, november 1917 the balfour project. The balfour declaration changed the course of world history in a major way. He has a meaning for all of the signs that we are seeing and everything that he has said will come to pass will come to pass in his timing.
Why the british thought a vaguely worded statement would galvanize american jewish support for world war i and how it became the engine that led to the state of israel shlomo avineri. After further discussion the cabinet duly agreed to this proposal and, on november 2, balfour issued his famous declaration in the form of a letter to lord rothschild stating that his majestys government view with favour the establishment in palestine of a national home for the jewish people, and will use their best endeavours to. Rashid khalidi, columbia university united nations. A polish writer and diplomat, nahum sokolow is a lesserknown key player in the balfour declaration, though his behind thescenes work had a major impact on the issuing of the statement. It took the form of a letter from the government of his britannic majesty king george the fifth, the government of the largest empire the world has even known, on which once upon a time the sun never set. The prominent jewish intellectual ar thur koestler, repeating a. Theodor herzl on the need for jews to separate 5 leo amery was the true author of the balfour declaration, and a secret jew. Despite the document initially having no legal legitimacy zionists consider the balfour declaration their.
Send me email alerts for new articles by shlomo avineri. Freedman, who committed himself to finding and telling the facts about zionism and communism. On 2 november 1917, british foreign secretary arthur balfour wrote a letter to walter rothschild, a leading figure in the british jewish community, expressing the governments support for a jewish homeland in palestine. At the 100th anniversary of the balfour declaration, i find it very encouraging that the same god who was behind all of these details is now arranging all of the details that we are watching unfold.