The Balfour Declaration, Jonathan Schneer
The Balfour Declaration, Jonathan Schneer
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The Balfour Declaration
The Origins of the Arab-Israeli Conflict

Author: Jonathan Schneer

Narrator: Nicholas Guy Smith

Unabridged: 18 hr 22 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 07/11/2017

Synopsis

Issued in London in 1917, the Balfour Declaration was one of the key documents of the twentieth century. It committed Britain to supporting the establishment in Palestine of “a National Home for the Jewish people,” and its reverberations continue to be felt to this day. Now the entire fascinating story of the document is revealed in this impressive work of modern history.

With new material retrieved from historical archives, scholar Jonathan Schneer recounts in dramatic detail the public and private battles in the early 1900s for a small strip of land in the Middle East, battles that started when the governing Ottoman Empire took Germany’s side in World War I. The Balfour Declaration paints an indelible picture of how Arab nationalists, backed by Britain, fought for their future as Zionists in England battled diplomatically for influence. Meanwhile, unbeknownst to either side or even to most members of the British government, Prime Minister David Lloyd George was telling Turkey that she could keep her flag flying over the disputed territory if only she would agree to a separate peace.

The key players in this watershed moment are rendered here in nuanced and detailed relief: Sharif Hussein, the Arab leader who secretly sought British support; Chaim Weizmann, Zionist hero, the folksmensch who charmed British high society; T. E. Lawrence, the legendary “super cerebral” British officer who “set the desert on fire” for the Arabs; Basil Zaharoff, the infamous arms dealer who was Britain’s most important back channel to the Turks; and the other generals and prime ministers, soldiers and negotiators, who shed blood and cut deals to grab or give away the precious land.

A book crucial to understanding the Middle East as it is today, The Balfour Declaration is a rich and remarkable achievement, a riveting volume about the ancient faiths and timeless treacheries that continue to drive global events.

About Jonathan Schneer

Dr. Jonathan Schneer, who received his BA from McGill University in 1971 and his PhD from Columbia University in 1978, is the modern British historian at Georgia Tech in the school of history, technology, and society. He is a coeditor of two books and the author of six more, including London 1900; The Imperial Metropolis, The Thames: England’s River and most recently The Balfour Declaration: The Origins of the Arab-Israeli Conflict which won a 2010 National Jewish Book Award.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Mark on December 09, 2023

I confess when I picked up Jonathan Schneer’s 400-page book about this subject, I only had a vague notion of what the Balfour Declaration was. Nevertheless, I expected the declaration itself—given its almost seismic significance—to be a formal, detailed, multi-page document. After all, it was statin......more

Goodreads review by Ramil on July 12, 2020

Orta Doğuda Arap ve İsrail halkları arasında yaşanan çatışmanın kökenlerini araştıran yazar bu kökenin 3 kasım 1917 yılında İngiltere hükümeti tarafından kabul edilen Balfour deklarasyonu olduğunu gösteriyor. Bu deklarasyonla "majestelerinin Hükümeti Yanudi halkı için Filistinde ulusal bir vatan olu......more

Goodreads review by Louise on August 19, 2010

It’s common knowledge that the British were responsible the divisions of the Middle East after WWII but the machinations, maneuvers and manipulations truly began at the turn of the 20th Century. The Zionist movement was founded in 1897 in Switzerland and grew and spread very slowly. Over the next fe......more

Goodreads review by T on December 07, 2017

This is an excellent book about a very narrow timeframe in history - WW I. It traces the developments in Britain, the Ottoman Empire and the Middle East that lead to Britain endorsing the formation of a Jewish nation. There are dozens of characters interacting and often double-dealing. It’s no wonde......more

Goodreads review by Vittorio on May 24, 2022

If I could say 4.5 I might but 4 is unfair. This book is excellent. Coherent, interesting, left me with many answers but more questions. One useful fact I learned was that not only were the British promising the Zionists, the Arabs, and the French shares of the spoils of the Ottoman Empire—before th......more

Quotes

"In November 1917, the British government stated that it would “view with favour the establishment in
Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people.” It was, in retrospect, a startlingly brief statement,
which received little attention at the time. Since then, Zionists have regarded it as a declaration of the
Jewish right to create an independent Jewish state; for Arabs, it is viewed as an outrageous case of
imperialist manipulation and betrayal. Schneer writes a fascinating and scrupulously balanced account of
the events and intense maneuvers that led to the issuance of the declaration. He superbly navigates
between the various conflicting interests and lobbying efforts of Zionists, Arabs, and opposing elements
within the British government. There are no heroes here; one is left with the impression that the Zionists
“won” simply because they were more relentless and ruthless than their opposition, which included many
non-Zionist Jews."—Booklist

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