Session 24|The British Mandate
#95-100
#95. Introduction
The British gained control of Palestine during the latter part of World War I. Subsequently, they oversaw the political affairs within this region until the years just after World War II. This period is known as the British Mandate (1917-1948) (see Map). During this time disagreements arose between the Arabs living in Palestine and the Jews who emigrated there through European support. This lecture and the accompanying readings will explore the cultural complexities in Palestine under British rule.
#96. Theodore Hertzl
Zion is one of the names associated with the city of Jerusalem in the Bible. Within 19th century Jewish circles Zion came to represent a grandiose notion of an autonomous Jewish state on the soil of Palestine. Theodore Hertzl was the primary proponent of Zionism at this time. The following is an excerpt from his seminal piece on the subject entitled Der Judenstaat (The Jewish State), which was published in 1896.
Question
What benefits to the Ottomans and the Europeans does Hertzl suggest would arise out of the establishment of a Jewish state in Palestine? How does Hertzl articulate the right of Jews to have their own land?
#97. Balfour Declaration
The Balfour Declaration served as the impetus to a great deal of change within Palestine. It was written in a letter by Arthur James Balfour, the British foreign secretary, and sent to a British Zionist by the name of Lord Rothschild (cf. attached bibliography, p. 28-29). Note the significance embodied in this brief note written on November 2, 1917.
#98. British Mandate
The Council of the League of Nations (cf. Timeline) passed the Mandate for Palestine on July 24, 1922. This act of legislation served as the basis for the style of British rule in Palestine until 1948. It is fully reproduced below.
Question
How does this mandate assist the Jews in the establishment of a homeland and how does it benefit the local inhabitants of Palestine? Are both parties treated equally in this document? Support your answers by citing the appropriate lines in the document.
#99. Anglo-American Committee
“With the end of World War II, the Palestine problem took on new and urgent dimensions. The United States and Britain now saw the issue from different perspectives. An Anglo-American Committee of Inquiry was established to study the issue and to seek to establish a common approach to Palestine” [B. Reich (ed.), Arab-Israeli Conflict and Conciliation: A Documentary History, Westport, CT and London 1995, p. 59]. Provided below is a copy of an Arab and a Jewish appeal to this committee as well as the committee’s proposal for a resolution to the Palestine problem; all of which were written in the spring of 1946.
Question
Based upon these three texts, what were the primary difficulties that were hindering the establishment of an Arab and a Jewish state in Palestine?
#100. Amitsur Ilan
A. Ilan discusses the reasons for American involvement in the affairs of British Mandate Palestine. Originally written in Hebrew, his work appears below in translation. Note Ilan’s examination of some of the documents provided above.
A. Ilan, America, Britain and Palestine (The Origin and Development of American Intervention in British Policy in Palestine, 1938-1947, Y.I. Ben-Zvi, Jerusalem 1979), pp. 328-335 in The Jerusalem Cathedra, Vol. 1, Jerusalem 1981.