The balfour declaration 2 november 1917 hurewitz, j. 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. 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. The balfour declaration led the league of nations to entrust the united kingdom with the palestine mandate in 1922. Dear lord rothschild, i have much pleasure in conveying to you, on. As we proudly approach the celebrations of the 100th anniversary of the balfour declaration on 2nd november, rabbi sacks has recorded a short video reflecting on what this declaration meant in 1917, and what it means for us today. Allenby were approaching jerusalem, which eventually fell on 9 december.
In 1917, balfour was foreign secretary to prime minister david lloyd george at a point, in the great war, when general edmund allenbys army was poised to take jerusalem from ottoman forces. It was the arab activist george antonius who famously wrote of sykespicot that it was the product of greed at its worst. The declaration was contained in a letter dated 2 november 1917 from the united kingdoms foreign secretary arthur. Allenby entered the holy city alqudsjerusalem on foot as a victor of the last. Pdf turks and arabs welcomed the balfour declaration.
This year is the centennial of one of the most criminal acts in modern history. Balfour declaration 1926 page 4 of 14 defined by the government of india act, 1919. The balfour declaration why thank the british, given. And then when the british issued their outline for how palestine would be governed, the contents of the balfour declaration were found in the league of nations july 1922 ratification. Chaim weizmann and the balfour declaration science, scientists and propaganda pdf. The balfour declaration of 1926, issued by the 1926 imperial conference of british empire leaders in london, was named after lord president of the council and former prime minister of the united kingdom arthur balfour. The balfour declaration may be a century old, but its effects are as firmly entrenched as ever. The british government decided to endorse the establishment of a jewish home in palestine. Gods modern timeline for israel converging in 201718.
The declaration also said that britain supported plans for a jewish homeland in palestine. The mandatory should be responsible, the preamble stated, for putting into effect the declaration originally made on november. Encyclopedia of jewish and israeli history, politics and culture, with biographies, statistics, articles and documents on topics from antisemitism to zionism. The statement came in the form of a letter from britains then foreign secretary, arthur balfour, addressed to lionel walter rothschild. Vintage photo of left to right viscount allenby field marshal edmund henry hynman allenby, 1st viscount allenby, earl balfour arthur james balfour, 1st earl of balfour and sir herbert samuel later to become 1st viscount samuel. The contents of this letter became known as the balfour declaration. The balfour declaration was a public pledge by britain, declaring its aim to establish a national home for the jewish people in palestine. The balfour declaration was the first time in almost two millennia that a powerful empire had issued public support for the concept of a jewish homeland in their ancestral region. Dear lord rothschild, i have much pleasure in conveying to you, on behalf of his majestys government, the following declaration of sympathy with jewish zionist aspirations which has been submitted to, and approved by, the cabinet.
Balfour declaration, jules cambon, ecretarygeneral of the french foreign ministry, s issued a letter on prime minister ribots authority that endorsed the national rebirth of the jewish people in its ancestral homeland. In 1917, when the balfour declaration was made, he was foreign secretary this was the partnership that eventually led to the letter known to this day as. To understand that, all one has to do is look carefully at the map. Ii of the balfour declaration were written into the mandate. But it was a product of fear as much as of greed, if. A century on, the balfour declaration still shapes. The making of the balfour declaration palestinian return centre. Looking back, balfour s declaration has rightly been viewed as a. General allenbys capture of jerusalem, along with the balfour declaration in november 1917, set in motion gods prophetic time clock which is active right down to today. 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.
Pdf on dec 1, 2018, efraim karsh published turks and arabs welcomed the balfour declaration find. According to the mandate system created by the versailles treaty of 1919, britain was entrusted with. Balfour declaration of 1917 simple english wikipedia. Britain must atone for the balfour declaration the guardian. This video explores the factors that led jewish leaders in the beginning of the 20th century to seek support for the zionist movement from britains government. Balfour became mp for manchester east where he first met weizmann in 1885, and was prime minister from 190205. The british peer arthur balfour barely makes an appearance in uk schoolbooks, but many israeli and palestinian students could tell you about him. The balfour declaration dated 2 november 1917 was a letter from the united kingdoms foreign secretary arthur james balfour to baron rothschild walter rothschild, 2nd baron rothschild, a leader of the british jewish community, for transmission to the zionist federation of great britain and ireland november 2nd, 1917. Clearing up some misconceptions about sykespicot on its. Sir edmund allenby invaded palestine, capturing jerusalem in december.
In the corridors of whitehall, britains colonial legacy is a ghost but for palestinians, it. It declared the united kingdom and the dominions to be. Allenby was born in 1861, the son of hynman allenby and catherine anne allenby nee cane and was educated at haileybury college. 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. Britains secret reassessment of the balfour declaration. Edmund allenby, 1st viscount allenby 18611936, british field marshal by henry walter barnett. 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. British antizionist jews reject the balfour declaration 8. Balfour declaration to the palestine mandate martin gilbert on 22 july 1922, when the league of nations announced the terms of britains mandate for palestine, it gave prominence to the balfour declaration. But the balfour declaration has another, less regarded, aspect it decided the future of the palestinian people. 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 to create the state of. The balfour declaration is a model of manipulation of people in power, of leverage, of the subvention of national policies to serve special interests that is demonstrated repeatedly, and often clandestinely, in public affairs. Allenby 1861 1936 was a british soldier who led the egyptian expeditionary force to notable victories in the middle east during ww1.
A decade later, as british foreign secretary, he wrote the document known as the balfour declaration, which. 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 text itself is only a paragraph long, part of a letter from great britains foreign secretary arthur balfour 18481930 to lord walter lionel rothschild 18681937. The letter, known as the balfour declaration became the basis movement to create a jewish state in palestine. British officials in palestine, including general edmund allenby, who. The influence of the balfour declaration on the course of postwar events was immediate. For the jewish people, it represented the beginning of the end of 2,000 years of statelessness.
The making of the balfour declaration springerlink. Allenby, commander of the egyptian expeditionary force that had driven the ottoman forces from the levant, and the emir hoped to expand this opening into a fullfledged empire with u. Messianic bible when they are in the land of their enemies, i will not reject them, nor will i so abhor them as to destroy them, breaking my covenant with them. Balfour declaration, statement on november 2, 1917, of british support for the establishment in palestine of a national home for jewish people. The issuance of the declaration had many long lasting consequences, and was a key moment in the leadup to the arabisraeli conflict, often referred to. A century old and as disputed as ever researchers at the shalom hartman institute dive into what the media is and isnt saying about the british letters meaning and.
You consider that, circumstances permitting, and the independence of the holy places being safeguarded on the other. General sir edmund allenby enters jerusalem in december 1917, a month after the balfour declaration. Balfour declaration international encyclopedia of the. Looking back, balfours declaration has rightly been viewed as a. 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.
Zionist jews sanction to populate palestine the british government first had contact with the zionist movement 1 in 1902, but the first murmurings about the idea of the restoration of the jews to palestine had surfaced some 60 years earlier. Pdf this article considers the theological influences on the balfour declaration. The life and times of fieldmarshall viscount allenby 18611936 london. See matthew hughes, allenby and british strategy in the middle east 19171919 london.
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. The balfour declaration, issued on 2 november 1917, is one of the most influential documents leading to the establishment of the state of israel. The infamous balfour declaration and the 1947 partition. Hulton archivegetty images published on wed 1 nov 2017 02. Prestate israel table of contents jewish virtual library. Any event touching jerusalem always is significant. The balfour declaration was a public statement issued by the british government in 1917. The balfour declaration, november 1917 the balfour project. Deklarasi balfour adalah pernyataan terbuka dari pemerintah inggris raya yang dikeluarkan semasa perang dunia i untuk menegaskan dukungannya terhadap penciptaan kediaman nasional di palestina bagi orang yahudi, manakala palestina masih menjadi bagian dari wilayah kedaulatan kekaisaran turki osmanli, dan masyarakat yahudi masih tergolong kaum minoritas di palestina. The middle east and north africa in world politics, a documentary record. At the time, britain was eager to win jewish support for its war goals and for a british takeover of palestine from the ottoman empire. The balfour declaration was a statement of support made by the british government for the establishment of a national home for the jewish people in eretz. December 1917 general sir edmund allenby and his officers entered the holy city of jerusalem at the jaffa gate, on. He had no great desire to be a soldier, and tried to enter the indian civil service but failed the entry exam.
Today marks the 100th anniversary of the balfour declaration. For wwiera british policymakers, the balfour declaration was a matter of national interest, balanced by a desire to foster a jewish national home while ensuring arab civil and religious rights. For them, this statement was a gun pointed directly at their heads. The balfour declaration was coauthored by lord balfour and andrew bonar law, both men were from scotland and greatly influenced by their biblical upbringings. The balfour declaration an early step toward the creation of the nationstate of israel occurred in 1917, during world war i. Themandate wasintended toencourage the development of selfgovernment. I have much pleasure in conveying to you, on behalf of his majestys government, the. The balfour declaration this letter to lord rothschild, by the british foreign secretary arthur james balfour, was aimed at jewish support for the allies in the first world war. But before that, a word on the purpose of sykespicot. The balfour declaration was discussed at the 1919 paris peace conference and again when the future of the middle east was ratified in the 1920 san remo treaty. The balfour declaration may be the most extraordinary document produced by any government in world history. When general allenby captured beer sheba on the 31st of october 1917 he sent a cable to. The balfour declaration was a 67word statement contained within a brief letter attributed to lord arthur balfour, the british foreign secretary, dated november 2, 1917.
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