Balfour Declaration: The Origins of the Arab-Israeli Conflict

by Jonathan Schneer

Winner of the National Jewish Book AwardIssued 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, Jonathan Schneer recounts in dramatic detail the public and private fight for a small strip of land in the Middle East, a battle that started when the Ottoman Empire took Germany's side in World War I. The key players in this conflict are rendered in nuanced and detailed Sharif Hussein, the Arab leader who secretly sought British support; Chaim Weizmann, the Zionist "folks-mensch" who charmed British high society; T. E. Lawrence, the legendary British officer who "set the desert on fire" for the Arabs; 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 riveting volume about the ancient faiths and timeless treacheries that continue to drive global events.

Genres: History, Middle East, Nonfiction, Politics, Israel, Religion, World History

472 pages, Paperback

First published August 10, 2010

About the author

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.

Reviews

[Jill H. · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book that needs to be read to provide some understanding of the establishment of "a homeland for the Jewish people" (as stated by British PM Lloyd George). It all sounds like such a wonderful and beneficent action from countries concerned about the future of those people in the Diaspora. To be concise, it was a political maneuver by the British, the Ottoman Empire and the Arabs in an attempt to protect their own empires.

In 1917, the Balfour Declaration committed the British to the Jewish/Zionist homeland in Palestine. As Lord Rothschild, the unofficial head of the British Jewish community stated, "We are met with the most momentous occasion in the history of Judaism for the last eighteen hundred years....the Jewish people have received their proper status by the declaration of one of the great Powers.". But few of the joyous crowd who celebrated knew that Britain's prime minister and his agents were engaged in secret meetings to detach the Ottoman Empire from the Central Powers by offering, among other inducement, that the Turkish flag could continue to fly over Palestine. Thus began the Arab-Israeli conflict that continues to rage to the present day.

This is a detailed history of the run-up to the Balfour Declaration and the role of the many players in this potentially tragic situation. It could have been rather pedantic book but the author wrote with such clarity that the reader will be entranced by this crucial moment of the last century which reverberates in today's history. Recommended.

[Colleen Browne · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book provided a lot of information about the process of bringing about the Balfour Declaration. However, I was hoping for a better explanation of Zionists and the so-called assimilated Jews. One can gather from the names of the latter that it is much to do with how fully these Jews were and wished to become and the Zionists who did not wish to become assimilated and who believed that in a homeland they would be favored. There has to be more to it than that, but this book did not provide what that might be. Without a fuller knowledge, it isn't easy to understand the difference fully. One might think that there would not be much difference between the two, but they did not think so, resulting in a strong dividing line between them.

Schneer delves into great detail about the negotiations between all sides in this issue which included the British, the Turks, the French, the Zionists (who pushed strongest for Palestine to become their undisputed homeland) and the assimilated Jews.

I have studied World War I, but in my studies, the Ottoman Empire was simply on its last legs and collapsed with the war. It becomes apparent that the Turks were unwilling to give up their empire without a fight. Of course, Gallipoli, where the Turks defeated the Brits humiliatingly, which should provide a strong clue that that was not the case but in most research on the war with which I was familiar, Gallipoli is mentioned but almost glossed over. Moreover, they were strongly involved in the negotiations about the Middle East.

Another of the weaknesses that I saw was the lack of understandable maps. Although there were some maps included, the author spoke of zones that were color-coded but did not color-code the maps making it more confusing. I do not regret reading the book. The information provided was important but in a book like this, the aforementioned information should have been provided, in my opinion.

[Vanessa M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good and incredibly detailed history of Zionism in the twentieth century and of the 1917 Balfour Declaration. It's a complicated history--one that I need to research more in order to grasp a better understanding.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an excruciatingly detailed account of British meddling in the Middle East around the time of the First World War, which was less to do with oil (the main focus of American interests today) and more to do with the maintenance of trade routes to Asia, especially India, the "jewel in the crown" of the British Empire. The Declaration set the groundwork for the formation of a Jewish state in Palestine, which finally happened some 30 years later.

I read this book because I wanted to learn more about what has caused all the turmoil in the Middle East. While I knew a few of the names involved, I am no academic historian, so I hadn't quite realised the full extent of the French and British involvement in the region, and the complexity of the political manoeuvring and diplomatic incompetence that ultimately precipitated the unrest the region is still suffering today. While I enjoyed the book, the text is heavy-going, and probably only of real interest to history buffs, politicians, and career diplomats.

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

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 stating the post-World War I disposition of several Middle East nations. Imagine my surprise to find the declaration to be nothing more than a brief letter in 1917 from Britain’s Foreign Secretary Arthur James Balfour to Lord Rothschild, unofficial leader of the Jewish community in England.

Wrapped in simple perfunctory opening and closing sentences (not shown), here is the critical verbatim text of the single-sentence, single-paragraph Balfour Declaration:

His Majesty’s Government view with favor the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavors to facilitate the achievement of this object, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine, or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country.

This single sentence paved the way for influential Zionist organizations, and indeed, Jews worldwide, to realize their dream of establishing a formal, recognized Jewish homeland in Palestine. But if ever there was a need to read between the lines, the Balfour Declaration was certainly such an instance.

The complicating factor was that the promise being made to Zionists with the declaration wasn’t the only promise Britain made. Separately but simultaneously, Britain also led the Arabs to believe that they could enjoy self-rule over the entire Arabian Peninsula…if they could execute a successful revolt against the Turks, who also had a widespread presence in the Middle East at the time. Yet another promise to the French would give them a foothold in Syria. And Turkey, quickly realizing it had allied with the wrong partner (Germany), let it be known that it would exit the war for the right price. Finally, Britain’s ally, Russia, had designs on the warm-water port of Constantinople.

The Balfour Declaration: The Origins of the Arab-Israeli Conflict is a must-read for anyone wanting to be better informed about the shaping of the Middle East over the last century, and anyone desiring a deeper understanding of the current (2023) bloody conflict between Israel and Palestine. There are many moving parts and a fair number of players in this extensively-researched narrative. Fortunately, Schneer provides a dramatis personae at the front of the book, and a splendid bibliography that will inevitably entice readers to learn more about this subject. There is also a number of accompanying maps showing imagined outcomes of various post-WWI options entertained by Britain and others. (One criticism: on none of the maps was there a geographical area labeled “Palestine”—why not?).

Some might argue that the words “origins of” in the book’s subtitle might not be as accurate as, say, “twentieth-century influences on,” or, that legitimatizing the title might require a journey that traces this conflict much further back, even into biblical times. Nevertheless, The Balfour Declaration: The Origins of the Arab-Israeli Conflict is a solid work of history about a critical event.

[Dan Sasi · Rating 4 out of 5]

In 1917, the seeds were planted for more than a century of bloodshed in historic Palestine with the signing of the Balfour Declaration. Jonathan Schneer authored a meticulously researched, comprehensive study of the British, Arabs and the Jews including both the Zionists and the assimilationists as the parties battled for the spoils of victory coming out of the Great War.

I found the detailed discussion and debates amongst the British Zionists and non Zionist or assimilationists Jews to be fascinating. Edwin Montagu, the Secretary of State for India and the most senior Jewish member of Parliament was a stanch anti Zionist. He he saw Zionism as both un-British and dangerously separatist. His opposition was rooted in a mix of personal identity, political philosophy, and concern for the status of Jews in the diaspora. He thought the logical conclusion of Zionism would be more rather than less antisemitism. He feared the Balfour Declaration (1917) would label Jews everywhere as “aliens” or foreigners, loyal not to their country of birth or citizenship, but to an external Jewish state. There was a lot of back and forth in here between Edwin and Chaim Weizmann, among others.

The book also goes into great detail around the Hussein-
-McMahon Correspondence which was a secret exchange of letters between Sir Henry McMahon, the British High Commissioner in Egypt, and Sharif Hussein bin Ali, the Emir of Mecca and a leading Arab figure that led the Arab Revolt against the Turks, with TE Lawrence. McMahon had promised Hussein Arab independence after the war, and that independence included the regions of modern day Syria and Israel.

Sykes Picot, the secret agreement between the French and British was also covered. They agreed to divide the future conquered Ottoman Territories in the Middle East amongst themselves, once they won the war.

Throughout the narrative, you see the evolution of British support for a national home for the Jews in Palestine which eventually led to the Balfour Declaration. There were also many potential peace overtures with the Turks that were covered in great detail. These potential peace plans could have saved a lot of bloodshed but likely would have led to the Balfour Declaration never being issued. The minute Chaim Weitzmann caught wind of these discussions, he did all that he could to successfully sabotage discussions.

Really interesting book if you are a student of the modern day Israel/palestine conflict specifically or the modern Middle East more generally. The British come out looking poorly, reneging on promises left and right and complete disregard to the future chaos they would cause.

[Ramil Kazımov · Rating 4 out of 5]

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 oluşturulmasını olumlu görmekte olub, bu amacın gerçekleştirilmesj için elindeki tüm imkanları kullanacaktır; ancak Filistinde mevcut, Yahudi olmayan toplumların ya da herhangi bir başka ülkedeki Yahudilerin medeni ve haklarına halel getirebilecek hiçbir girişimde buluulmayacağı açıkça anlaşılmalıdır". Tüm sorunlar bu sözlerle başladı ama konu basit olarak anlaşılmamalıdır. İlk siyonist kongresinden (1897) beri siyonist yahudiler kendileri için ulusal bir vatan arayışına girdiler. Tabii her zaman gözleri Filistinde olmuştur zira burayı kendileri için tarihi bir vatan olarak düşünmüş ve her hamursuz bayramında "Seneye Kudüste" duasını etmişler. Ama onlara (Theodore Herzl) ilk olarak önerilen Uganda olacaktır. Burada bir Yahudi ilulusal vatan oluşturulması fikri siyonistleri kızdırmış, bunu kabul etmemiş ve Herzl-i kongreden ihraç etmişler. Herzl ölünce de yerine Chaim Weisman geçer. İki defa Osmanlı sultanı 2. Abdülhamitle görüşen ve Osmanlı borçlarının ödenilmesi karşılığında Filistinde yahudi yerleşimleri kurulması teklifini sunar ama sultan teklifini geri çevirir. Bundan sonra siyonistler Britanya hükümeti ile şanslarını deneyeceklerdir. Birinci Dünya Savaşının çıkması siyonistlerin şansını artırır zira Osmanlının Almanya tarafında savaşa girmesi İngilizleri Osmanlının parçalanması için çalışması yönünde politikalara sevk eder. Amma ve lakin sorunlar burada da bitmez. İngilizler Filistini bir çok tarafa söz verer. Siyonist yahudilere, Osmanlıya ihanet eden ve başkaldıran araplara (Şerif Hüseyin), Uluslarası denetime (Sykes-Picot anlaşması ile Fransa ve Britanya arasında kararlaştırılır) ve Teslim olması karşısında Osmanlıya. İngilizler bu üçüncüsü istisna diğerlerini birbirinden habersiz kendi ulusal çıkarları için aynı anda kullanacaklardır...

Bu kitap Orta Doğuda yahudi sorununun kökenine ilgi duyanlara tavsiye olunur

[Louise Leetch · Rating 5 out of 5]

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 few years, Jews bought up large tracts of land in Palestine in an effort to establish a substantial minority. The emergence of Chaim Weizmann as the Jewish leader expanded their efforts to seek more than that; a Jewish nation was now the goal.

Up until the outbreak of WWI, England had little use for either the Jewish requests or the petitions from the Arabs to establish an Arabian nation. When Turkey entered the war on the side of Germany, the British began to listen to both. Hussein Ibn Ali aligned with many of the Arab tribes looking to break away from the Turks and their Ottoman Empire and establish an Arab nation. In 1916 the French and English together wrote the Sykes-Picot agreement, eventually the Tripartite Agreement, dividing up the Arabian Peninsula. There was no input from either Arabs or Jews.

The maps that author Schneer provides in this eye-opening book make it perfectly clear that the parties involved in the break up of the Arabian peninsula had very different images of the final divisions. The Arabs had no idea the British were promising land to the Jews. The Jews thought they would be taking over Palestine as an English Protectorate and the French assumed that Syria and most of Northern Arabia would be under their governance. The English set aside the southern half extending East to Bagdad for themselves. Anatolia and Constantinople were to be reserved for Russia, though she was not informed of the agreement until some time later.

This is a must read for a clearer understanding of the vast changes that took place on the Arabian Peninsula in such a relatively short period of time and the impact of Foreign Secretary Balfour’s declaration of support for the establishment of a Jewish nation. It really gives you a complete background for the ill feelings on all sides. We also realize the very simple concessions that could have avoided a great deal of grief and bloodshed.

[T B · Rating 4 out of 5]

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 wonder that the Middle East is a mess. The characters and their offices and responsibilities are confusing at times partly because they are manipulating one another with partial truths and downright deception.

[Sebastian Heinrich · Rating 4 out of 5]

I recommend listening to this book after exploring other works from the same period, as it primarily focuses on the Arabs and Zionists. Having some additional background knowledge is helpful for context. "The Line in the Sand" is an excellent precursor, as it covers roughly the same timeline and issues, highlighting the struggle between the UK, France, the Arabs, and the Jewish settlers in Palestine/Israel. While that book provides a broader perspective, this one focuses more on the British side and less on the Middle Eastern context.

This book provides a fascinating insight into the inner workings of the predominantly British government during the First World War. It also explores how the Zionist movement managed to secure British support. It's an intriguing and informative read for anyone interested in this era.

The narrator does a good job, making it a pleasant listening experience.

[Lars · Rating 3 out of 5]

The subtitle of Jonathan Schneer's book "The Balfour Declaration" is "The Origins of the Arab Israeli Conflict". This book isn't about that conflict, nor is it really about The Balfour Declaration. This book is about the fall of the two history's largest empires, the Ottoman and the British empire.

The book recounts the story of the Zionist movement in the period around the first World War. During the Great War, the British government envisioned the collapse of the Ottoman empire and together with the other Allied governments were deviding the spoils of war even before the war had been won. Zionists saw an opportunity to reclaim Palestine after 2,000 years of exile and started garnering political support in Britain. At the same time the British government also promised Palestine to Grand Sharif Hussein of Mecca if they helped Britain mount an insurrection against the Turks.

The British government's double dealings and backstabbery created a political explosive situation. We all know that the Zionist movement achieved its goal. But the false promises made during this time in history "sowed dragon's teeth" as the author puts it. It started a bloody conflict between Jews and Muslems in Palestine/Israel that still continues to this day. Not only that, as the situation destabilized, it signalled the end of British control in that region.

Schneer's book is well researched and well written but loses its momentum at times. While some chapters are rivetting, others (mostly those about Britain's attempts at a seperate peace with Turkey) didn't feel that relevant to Balfour Declaration. Still, this is an accesible book, even for readers who have only a casual interest in Middle Eastern history and politics.

[Vittorio Lino · Rating 5 out of 5]

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 they had been conquered—but also promising them to themselves & even seeking out feelers toward the end of the war to make a separate peace with the Ottomans. Perfidious to the last. Many cogent passages so my book is underlined throughout and covered with annotations!

Figures and movements were fairly (and seemingly accurately) represented, regardless of motives or allegiance. For anyone interested in how the Zionist movement got its legs, Chaim Weizmann’s diligent petitioning of the British being fairly well-known, this book will tell you how.

How the British Mandate came to be deserves its own volume but for the period of 1914-1918, with some necessary details mentioned from the periods before and after it, this book will do you wonders without beating you over the head on WWI history, while still giving you again, only necessary, overviews from time to time of various theatres of the war and key figures in the British government (and not in it) who shape the history of the Balfour Declaration’s creation. Highly recommend for anyone interested in the event and context surrounding it.

[Andy Hart · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a minutely detailed account of the political and diplomatic shenanigans that led to the 1917 'declaration' by British Foreign Secretary, The Earl of Balfour, which articulated the British government's intent to 'use their best endeavours to [establish] in Palestine ... a national home for the Jewish people.'

Always human but tedious at stretches, this is a staggering account of diplomatic duplicity on a vast scale. Not only did the British secretly bargain away Palestine for the simultaneous support of both Arab and Jew, they did so with the at best only half-informed connivance of their French ally.

There is a superbly ironic quote that perhaps sums up the heinous arrogance of the still imperialist European powers during the Great War. Having laid out their plans for post-war partition of the middle east (The Sykes-Picot Pact) to the Russians, 'Thus did the Triple Entente divide the prospective Ottoman carcass even before they had skinned it, even before it was dead; thus in the Spring of 1916 did they fight the war to end all wars, on behalf of small powers, nationality, liberalism and the like.'

What a bloody mess they made!

[Lump · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very boring (let’s be honest - all too often in the middle of a dense chapter on Zionists in Britain I caught myself drifting off thinking about what I would have for dinner, or what would I say to Natalie Portman if I ran into her on the street, or what do you call those toothpicks with cellophane that come stuck in club sandwiches?) BUT a very important book, very well researched and told from a fair and objective perspective. Three stars for enjoyment, 4.5 for value and importance.

[Jeff Sedlak · Rating 3 out of 5]

Extremely informative....maybe a bit too much for the average person just wanting to know about the creation of the nation of Israel. I'm a pretty literate person and have a large vocabulary but found myself constantly looking up words (common meaning words) that i had to look up their meaning. To me this is bad writing as you need to write to your readers so they don't have to look things up. Overall it was an ok book.

[Jack · Rating 5 out of 5]

I should have read this book many, many years ago. I find Middle East history to be a very fascinating subject. However, I did not have the foundation for the formation of Israel firmly in my mind. The Balfour Declaration provided me the understanding of Zionism and how WWI led to the Balfour Declaration. A must read for someone needing to understand the Israeli-Arab conflict.

[Fredrick Danysh · Rating 3 out of 5]

At the end of the Crusades Israel no longer existed as a Jewish state, it was Muslim territory. In 1917 the British established a Jewish homeland in Palestine. This book is a record of the political and military struggle to create that Jewish homeland in the face of Arab opposition, a world war, and general anti-Sematic feelings.

[Alexandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wish this had been told with dates and simultaneous story lines more emphasized - it was hard to follow along and see which things were happening at the same time. But the author was careful not to dive into beliefs that could explain open questions or make characterizations - I liked how even handed it was.

“In 1911 [Jerusalem’s] 60,000 inhabitants included 7,000 Muslims, 9,000 Christians, and 40,000 Jews.”

“In 1914 Jews represented perhaps 1/9th of the Palestinian population.”

“That antisemitism existed in pre-1914 Palestine is indisputable. That it was as widespread, vicious, and dangerous as the Eastern European and Russian is impossible or else the Jews would not have continued to come.”

“Some Arabs emphasized that Islam would confront the European threat; they became pan-Islamists. Others stressed that Arabs within pan-Islamism would not merely participate in the Ottoman revival but would repossess the Caliphate from Turkey. A few preached the unity of all Arabs within the empire, regardless of religion.” All of these are Ottomanism (effective return of the Ottoman Empire) Arabism - states within a larger Arab state. Support for individual countries came after 1914.

“Let us pursue this ambiguity.”

“Grand Sharif Hussein had insisted upon British backing for an independent Arabia under his leadership. But to the extent Britain acceded to this demand she must deny herself territory in the region.”

“In the end his religious beliefs proved decisive, or that is how he presented it afterward in a typically convoluted justification.���

“Christians, Druze, and Niria [sic?] would have the same rights as Muslims in the new state he promised but the Jews would be governed by a special law.” (in Hussein’s Arab state, as promised to the British)

“Some [British Jews] were generous in their support but they did not wish to live there themselves. And they did not believe that establishment of a larger Jewish presence there would contribute much to a solution of the ‘Jewish Problem’ in Russia or Romania or lead to the reduction of antisemitism more generally. That a latent sympathy for Zionism underlay this prewar indifference became apparent only a few years later. WWI changed everything including the attitude of the British Government toward both the so-called Zionist dreamers and the Ottoman Empire.”

“Troubled, [Lucien] Wolf sought to justify his self-imposed silence, to himself perhaps as much as to anyone else.”

“Where opposition to the Ottoman regime constituted a bedrock of liberal foreign policy therefore, willingness to overlook Ottoman force constituted the conservative.”

“Had Weizmann’s gamble failed, had Britain lost the war, the history of Zionism and of the world would be very different.” (Ottomans getting their own deal and claiming much of the Middle East)

“This erstwhile tout for Constantinople brothels craved respectability or at least its trappings and not merely the kind that could be bought in a store and displayed in a house - of those he had already a plentitude.”

“He would have to overcome his own growing desire to escape from their ceaseless carping by simply throwing up his hands and walking away.” (Chaim Weizmann of the British Zionists)

“He was, he added, strongly pro-British and also pro-Arab. But he increasingly came to realize that he could not be both. And the realization wore him down.”

“Implicit here is the wildly unrealistic estimate of a power and unity of world Jewry that we have seen such British officials… to have displayed.”

“British leaders overestimated German influence upon Constantinople and Jewish influence everywhere. In this sense the Balfour declaration sprang from fundamental miscalculations about the power of Germany and about the power and unity of Jews.”

“Weizmann and Hussein were more alike than they ever knew. And strange to say of such experienced and sophisticated men, in this one respect perhaps they were equally naive.” (Ottomans keeping Palestine)

“Palestine was not a twice promised land, as some have written then, but rather a thrice promised one: to the Arabs, or at least the Arabs thought so; to the Zionists; and to a prospective international consortium whose members had yet to be determined.”

“Nevertheless it seems right to suggest that Palestine was not thrice promised, really. It was promised (or at any rate dangled as bait) four times: before the Zionists and the Arabs, before Piko by Sykes in the shape of an as yet unformed international consortium, and before the Turks who would otherwise lose it as a result of the war. Of course during most of that period, for Imperial economic strategic reasons Britain meant to keep the primary governing role in Palestine for herself. The Balfour Declaration was the highly contingent product of a torturous process, characterized as much by deceit and chance as by vision and diplomacy.”

“An equally consequential result of the process was the development of profound mistrust of all parties by all parties and growing from that mistrust a bitterness that would lead to the spilling of much blood.”

[Jurij Fedorov · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great audiobook, but not for all. The reader is excellent, the historical research is very detailed.

The history is top-notch in that the author does not reveal a bias and carefully goes over letters and meetings during WW1 that amounted to the creation of Palestine. A Jewish state ruled by Britain. We go over small meetings with a ton of different people largely Britain leaders and the Zionist community in Britain and then an Arab they picked out to fight the Ottoman empire that was on the side of Germany. Since WW1 on the West was a stalemate from start till finish Britain needed to get a win over Turkey to get any wins in the war. It was crucial to get a better deal post the war. And supporting a new Arab state seemed as the way to go to put pressure on Turkey and Germany. The Arab they picked didn't have that much power or influence, but he lied and said he did. The skirmishes led by small groups of Arabs and Lawrence of Arabia were too much to handle for the Ottomans. Similarly he demanded a ton of territory like Syria, the place where Israel is, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and more. Basically he wanted to rule a giant state and refused any other deal. The guy he wrote with from UK didn't tell him no outright even though this would be impossible conditions for Britain who also wanted to give Jews promises to get them into the war too. Plus Britain wanted access to the sea and keep France at bay in the Middle East. So the Arab leader was not overly happy with Israel being ruled by Britain. The Young Turks who wanted to create a Turkish nation also wanted that area.

The Zionist in Britain were seen as a powerful people who could turn the war by making Zionists all over the world support Britain. This was an old Jewish conspiracy about Jewish power. So Britain was eager to give them a semi-nation where Muslims would also be welcome to stay and not be discriminated against. Other Jews didn't see the need for a nation as then many Jews would move away from the Western world. And it was also predicted that Muslims would start to attack them if they were a state and not just a people without a state in various nations. But of course Britain was wrong. Lenin took power in Russia so the anti-semitic zar was killed and furthermore Russian Jews didn't want to join any war anyhow as they had little to gain from it. The Jews living in Western nations supported the state they lived in. German Jews fought for Germany, French Jews for France. The Zionist movement trying to create a Jewish state in Uganda and then Israel were not controlling all Jews across nations or even in any single nation.

The book is unfortunately not always fun to explore. It's too many people and too many small debates about small arguments in single letters. The author for example brings up the expectations of the letter to the Arab leader maybe 10 times over without telling us WHY he is bringing it up. We just know it's important. But the book gets too repetitive this way focusing on minor statements that are extremely clear and transparent first time around and don't need this much space. Rather I would like an explanation for why it's important which could only be possible if we went over the history of Palestine from the creation to WW2 and then the creation of Israel and maybe even the Muslim wars where all Muslim nations around Israel got together and tried to wipe out Israel again and again. It's clear the author is constantly referring to some future debate about the letters and what they imply. Yet we don't understand what he is referring to.

I like the unbiased storytelling and the deep historical research. But overall it just covers a too narrow a historical scope considering the page count. At least for my liking. Maybe if it never repeated arguments this would not be the case. But this is a book for history nerds not just for laymen readers who only read a few books each year. This a good book to pick up if you read 40 books a year and are really interested in this specific topic. Or if you are really eager to read neutral Israel history no matter how narrow the scope.

[Preetam Chatterjee · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a deeply researched examination of one of the most consequential documents of the twentieth century.

Rather than treating the 1917 declaration as a brief diplomatic note, Schneer reconstructs the political, ideological, and personal forces that produced it, arguing that the document emerged from confusion, contradiction, and imperial opportunism rather than coherent strategy.

Schneer situates the declaration firmly within the context of World War I. Britain, struggling to maintain imperial dominance, sought support from global Jewish communities while simultaneously making promises to Arab leaders to undermine Ottoman control.

The book meticulously traces how these competing commitments—the McMahon–Hussein Correspondence, the Sykes–Picot Agreement, and the Balfour Declaration—were not accidental inconsistencies but reflections of imperial pragmatism and arrogance.

One of the book’s greatest strengths is its focus on individual actors. Schneer brings to life figures such as Arthur Balfour, David Lloyd George, Chaim Weizmann, and Mark Sykes, showing how personal beliefs, antisemitism, Christian Zionism, and imperial calculation shaped policy.

Particularly striking is Schneer’s portrayal of British officials who supported Zionism not out of concern for Jewish self-determination, but because they believed Jews constituted a powerful, unified global force.

Schneer does not shy away from exposing the declaration’s moral blindness. Palestinians—who formed the overwhelming majority of the population in Palestine—were reduced to the vague phrase “existing non-Jewish communities.”

Schneer demonstrates that this was not a linguistic oversight but a deliberate marginalization. The absence of Palestinian political rights from the declaration, he argues, laid the groundwork for decades of conflict.

The book also interrogates the myth of inevitability. Schneer shows that the declaration faced internal opposition within the British government, including from Jewish officials who feared it would fuel antisemitism or destabilize the region.

That the declaration nonetheless prevailed reflects Britain’s imperial mindset, which prioritized strategic advantage over democratic principle.

Stylistically, the book balances scholarly depth with narrative clarity. Schneer’s use of archival correspondence gives the work credibility, while his storytelling keeps it accessible.

Critics from pro-Zionist perspectives argue that Schneer underplays Jewish desperation after centuries of persecution; others feel he remains too restrained in condemning British duplicity. Nonetheless, his analysis remains measured and persuasive.

Ultimately, The Balfour Declaration reframes the Arab–Israeli conflict as originating not in ancient hatreds but in modern imperial decision-making.

It is essential reading for understanding how a short letter helped institutionalize injustice and conflict whose repercussions continue a century later.

Recommended.

[Sandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book wasn't exactly what I thought it would be. I was hoping for a wider overview of the events that led up to the current conflict between Palestinians and Israelis. This book focuses primarily on how Zionism came to be a movement that was supported by the British government, and the promises made to prominent Zionists in their effort to get European countries to support their establishment of a Jewish state in Palestine. It also covers the diplomatic conversations that were happening with Arabs who wanted to revolt against the Ottoman Empire and establish their own kingdom in the region. The Arabs were made vague promises and it was interesting to find out that they were strung along for a time because Britain and France wanted their support against the Ottoman Empire during WWI. But in the end it was the Zionists who succeeded in getting what they wanted mainly due to the fact that they had better access to more powerful men and also due to timing - the Arab Revolt took a little too long and the promises made to the Zionists were already set in motion.

I would say that this book is about secret diplomacy - promises made behind doors and whispered into ears and written in secret correspondences. Every player had an agenda they wanted to achieve and there was a constant shift in who had the upper hand or whose wishes were being considered more seriously. The irony of Britain and France's roles (especially Britain's) is that they were fighting WWI to defend the rights of small nations like Belgium, yet they were basically planning to divide the Middle East and dole it out to each other, to those they made promises too, or to whoever had the strongest influence as they made their case (for example, Zionists). It was imperialism 2.0, with many of these diplomats hoping to set up a situation where the Jews or Arabs established their countries but Britain and France would basically serve as Suzerains to these new states. This did not match well with the spirit of time, the idea of fighting for freedom and countries' right to rule themselves.

I'm giving this three stars because while I did get some very detailed information about the beginning stages of the creation of the Jewish state in Palestine, and I did get an idea of why there are so many disagreements about the promises made to both sides, I didn't get the whole story that I was hoping to get. I also found it difficult to get through some of the chapters, and felt myself getting frustrated that I had to slog through three chapters about the machinations going on to try to establish a separate peace with the Ottoman Empire (one chapter would have been plenty).

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

***.5

The actual Balfour declaration is a single paragraph, so my first question is why is this book so long. The second question is why is it being blamed for the origins of the Arab-Israeli conflict, which the previous book I read on the subject (Jerusalem 1913) clearly demonstrates that the tension was already well underway by that point. That book focused on the relations between the Jewish and Arab residents of Palestine under Ottoman rule at the time. This one starts out with a broader view, going in depth into the Arab politics in the larger region and their relations with the Ottomans and British, against the backdrop of WWI.

It really gets deep into the weeds of British foreign policy, diplomacy with France, profiles of a bevy of minor historical figures, a ton of correspondence, and reams of documentation. The sorts of minutia that would really only be interesting to a history of political science major. For everyone else, a stripped down version with just the salient points would have been more interesting and enjoyable.

The TL;DR version is that Britain was still in full Evil Empire Mode, leveraging its power to simultaneously appease and exploit the Jews and the Arabs, maintaining British influence in the region while thwarting France and Russia and using them all as pawns to fight against the Ottomans in WWI. Palestine, being somewhat in the middle of all that double, triple, and quadruple dealing, was setup to be a nexus of conflict that still hasn’t been resolved a century later.

Audiobook: Serviceable stuffy high-brow British accent, the sort you'd picture narrating a 14-part BBC lecture series about WWI, predictably committing the oratory equivalent of a war crime on every foreign name and word.

[Peter · Rating 5 out of 5]

“His Majesty’s Government view with favor the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavors to facilitate the achievement of this object, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice and civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine, or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country.”

Thus reads the Balfour Declaration, published in November 1917 after years of lobbying and negotiations by various Jewish organizations and individuals. The background to which was World War I and the weakening of the Ottoman Empire, which eventually collapsed at the end of the war. The Balfour Declaration is considered to be the cornerstone of what eventually became the state of Israel.

Ronald Schneer has managed a huge amount of data to present a clear picture of the events surrounding the issuing of the above statement. It is not a subject for every person––even those interested in world history––as a result of the incredible level of details necessary to understand and communicate the story. Schneer does yeoman’s work and created a text that is eminently readable.

[Fernando Pestana da Costa · Rating 5 out of 5]

As is well known, the Balfour Declaration is a short statement signed by Britain's foreign secretary Alfred Balfour in November 1917 and addressed to the head of the British branch of the Rothschilds, in which he pledges the support of the British government to the Zionist goal of establishing a Jewish state in Palestine, or, as Arthur Koestler famously stated, was an instance of one nation promising to another nation the land of a third nation. The history of the Balfour Declaration is the topic of this book. It turns around four different but interrelated subjects: the Zionist's dealings with the British government and officials in London, the British dealings with sharif Hussein of Meca, the Anglo-French negotiations about post World War I arrangements in the Middle East, and, finally, the contacts aiming at a separate peace with the Ottoman Empire. The main topics, however, are the relations between the Zionists and British officials in London, on one hand, and between the Arabs and the British officers in Cairo, on the other hand. An extraordinarily interesting book about the origins of the Arab-Israeli conflict and Britain's role in it before the beginning of the Mandate.

[joe · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the most engaging, intriguing, and dramatic takes on WWI-era history I have ever read. At first, I thought this would be an account of events in Palestine leading up to the war from primarily the perspective of Zionists in Britain. But that was hardly the case. The author paints a beautifully detailed and coherent picture of the each of the powers at play—most notably the Arabs, Turks, British, and the French—as they bicker, betray, and manipulate each other in the fight for control over Palestine. Schneer offers excellent insight into Britain’s shameless manipulation tactics, detailing how it lied to the faces of Zionists, Arabs, allies, media outlets, and members of its own government, as well as how ignorant the rest of the world was to its behavior. I highly recommend this book to anyone who seeks a deeper understanding of early 20th century history in the middle east.

[Ed · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is fitting that this is a complex book since the subject, the Middle East, is complex. The book's goal is to shed light on how that complexity came about during and after WWI when English, French, Turkish, Jewish, etc interests tried to control/influence that area of the world. At some points I felt that having one of those crime drama white boards with photos of all involved and lines connecting them would have been helpful.

It has all the ingredients for a good Masterpiece Theater series; War, spies, counter-spies, politicians, lobbyists and even Lawrence of Arabia. Get the book! Find a quiet place to concentrate and try to unravel the web of characters whose actions can, as the book indicates, be best described as "sowing dragon's teeth!" Their actions set the groundwork for the Middle East we have today.

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent and well referenced. To win World War I, England promised Palestine to pretty much anybody who would help them win. At points, they promised it to Turkey, if it would leave the war; to the Jews, if "World Jewry" would help them win the war by bringing in America and undermining the Central Powers as a fifth column; and to the Arabs in the Hejaz, if they would rise up against the Ottoman Empire, opening another front. In the end, the Arabs did rise up, Turkey did not drop out of the war, and the Jews were of questionable help, but British Jews managed to get the government to declare Palestine would be their homeland. The degree to which different groups within the British government were negotiating at cross purposes with different groups accounts for some of the confusion, but the author shows fairly convincingly that deceit played a role as well.

[Kerem · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not only a really detailed account of the years that put Zionism on the world stage but also a very well written book with a smooth, novel-like flow. It doesn't only cover milestones like the Sykes-Picot agreement or key developments in the area such as the Arab uprising or plenty of secret diplomacy and sneaky deals, also it portrays a good number of the key people in British diplomacy and military, the key Arab uprisers, the Zionist and anti-Zionist jews in high places, and the Ottoman officials looking for secret deals. strongly recommend to anyone for a good perspective of early 1900's and why Middle East is the mess it is now.

[Jimmacc · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book. The author does a great job weaving the varied paths involving Palestine during ww1. The conclusion touches on the immediate (1920-48) aftermath in the region. The author details backgrounds of the varied characters and the region. I learned a lot from this book.

[Josiah Morgan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unfortunately the opening skews heavily the on-the-ground history in Palestine away from the Yishuv and toward the orientations of leadership structures which seems unnecessary to me. The best book on this matter is about the map, and the pulling down of certain borders.