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A History of Zionism
s/t: From the French Revolution to the Establishment of the State of Israel
Discusses the European background, the prehistory of the movement, five decades of Zionist activities, and ends with the establishement of the state of Israel.
Discusses the European background, the prehistory of the movement, five decades of Zionist activities, and ends with the establishement of the state of Israel.
688 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1972
82 people are currently reading
1304 people want to read
About the author
Walter Laqueur
145 books46 followersWalter Ze'ev Laqueur was an American historian, journalist and political commentator. Laqueur was born in Breslau, Lower Silesia, Prussia (modern Wrocław, Poland), into a Jewish family. In 1938, he left Germany for the British Mandate of Palestine. His parents, who were unable to leave, became victims of the Holocaust.
Laqueur lived in Israel from 1938 to 1953. After one year at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, he joined a Kibbutz and worked as an agricultural laborer from 1939 to 1944. In 1944, he moved to Jerusalem, where he worked as a journalist until 1953, covering Palestine and other countries in the Middle East.
Since 1955 Laqueur has lived in London. He was founder and editor, with George Mosse, of the Journal of Contemporary History and of Survey from 1956 to 1964. He was also founding editor of The Washington Papers. He was Director of the Institute of Contemporary History and the Wiener Library in London from 1965 to 1994. From 1969 he was a member, and later Chairman (until 2000), of the International Research Council of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Washington. He was Professor of the History of Ideas at Brandeis University from 1968 to 1972, and University Professor at Georgetown University from 1976 to 1988. He has also been a visiting professor of history and government at Harvard, the University of Chicago, Tel Aviv University and Johns Hopkins University.
Laqueur's main works deal with European history in the 19th and 20th centuries, especially Russian history and German history, as well as the history of the Middle East. The topics he has written about include the German Youth Movement, Zionism, Israeli history, the cultural history of the Weimar Republic and Russia, Communism, the Holocaust, fascism, and the diplomatic history of the Cold War. His books have been translated into many languages, and he was one of the founders of the study of political violence, guerrilla warfare and terrorism. His comments on international affairs have appeared in many American and European newspapers and periodicals.
(Wikipedia)
Laqueur lived in Israel from 1938 to 1953. After one year at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, he joined a Kibbutz and worked as an agricultural laborer from 1939 to 1944. In 1944, he moved to Jerusalem, where he worked as a journalist until 1953, covering Palestine and other countries in the Middle East.
Since 1955 Laqueur has lived in London. He was founder and editor, with George Mosse, of the Journal of Contemporary History and of Survey from 1956 to 1964. He was also founding editor of The Washington Papers. He was Director of the Institute of Contemporary History and the Wiener Library in London from 1965 to 1994. From 1969 he was a member, and later Chairman (until 2000), of the International Research Council of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Washington. He was Professor of the History of Ideas at Brandeis University from 1968 to 1972, and University Professor at Georgetown University from 1976 to 1988. He has also been a visiting professor of history and government at Harvard, the University of Chicago, Tel Aviv University and Johns Hopkins University.
Laqueur's main works deal with European history in the 19th and 20th centuries, especially Russian history and German history, as well as the history of the Middle East. The topics he has written about include the German Youth Movement, Zionism, Israeli history, the cultural history of the Weimar Republic and Russia, Communism, the Holocaust, fascism, and the diplomatic history of the Cold War. His books have been translated into many languages, and he was one of the founders of the study of political violence, guerrilla warfare and terrorism. His comments on international affairs have appeared in many American and European newspapers and periodicals.
(Wikipedia)
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
August 25, 2013
This is a great book, it stands tall amongst the histories which impressed me most. For the first time, I managed to look at Zionism and the Zionist state through semi-neutral eyes. Full of details, written almost on an encyclopedic scale, it is bound to have some repititions as the author tell the story and retells concentrating on each aspect of it. I will keep this book in my library as a landmark in my journey of mental cultivation. I am still an ardent opponant to the Zionist state, not just because it is based on a form of religion, but because it is a colonial power with no legal or logical justification for its existence. However A History of Zionism has helped me understand the moving forces behind it since the early beginnings of its movement.
May 18, 2019
This book is not impartial, it is not unbiased. It is extremely and ridiculously pro-Zionist. Should only be read if you are willing to read about Zionism from many other sources, views, and angles as well.
August 28, 2016
I get why Zionism happened. As someone who is both 2nd and 3rd generation, this country is my home, although I have had a status of partial outsider for most of my time here. There is nowhere else to go, but because of how I look, most of the older generation (at least) will always see me as not quite belonging). So yeah, the desire for having a place of their own led Jews who were historically home-but-outsiders to want the same thing.
Yet disgustingly, anything you can imagine saying about Zionism has been said before. Not only by its critics but also by its supporters. Pick any dimension of justification: biological, social, cultural, religious, economic, philosophical, utopic -- and it's been done. What makes this sick is that despite good intentions, what was done to Jews by a diaspora of history is being done by them to others who were there before. And yet, the desire for a home place is strong enough, and carries with it the need that really drives this to happen.
I'm not that familiar with the events in this book. So I'm not one to assess the veracity of their occurrence. I will say that Laqueur does try to do a thorough job. He admits to being partial; how can you not be, in such a hotly contested topic? It's significant that Israel might not have happened, not just because of the death of millions and millions of Jews in WW2 but also due to timing. If they waited a year later, it might not have happened. It's sad that so many people had to suffer so that a few can feel like they even have a home.
Should current events play out, the children of the immigrants from the Middle East into Europe may one day return to the Middle East with the same intentions. It may be a new Kurdistian, or it may be some other group, but it will happen. The irrationality of nationalism is too strong; it unifies small groups while it divides the human race. The only way for us to coexist is to acknowledge the past, accept that it happened, and then build a future that is appropriate to present conditions -- not appropriate to past conditions. History is too long for us to appease everyone. Land that belonged to one group may have belonged to many many other groups, many of whom hated each other at some point in time.
Yet disgustingly, anything you can imagine saying about Zionism has been said before. Not only by its critics but also by its supporters. Pick any dimension of justification: biological, social, cultural, religious, economic, philosophical, utopic -- and it's been done. What makes this sick is that despite good intentions, what was done to Jews by a diaspora of history is being done by them to others who were there before. And yet, the desire for a home place is strong enough, and carries with it the need that really drives this to happen.
I'm not that familiar with the events in this book. So I'm not one to assess the veracity of their occurrence. I will say that Laqueur does try to do a thorough job. He admits to being partial; how can you not be, in such a hotly contested topic? It's significant that Israel might not have happened, not just because of the death of millions and millions of Jews in WW2 but also due to timing. If they waited a year later, it might not have happened. It's sad that so many people had to suffer so that a few can feel like they even have a home.
Should current events play out, the children of the immigrants from the Middle East into Europe may one day return to the Middle East with the same intentions. It may be a new Kurdistian, or it may be some other group, but it will happen. The irrationality of nationalism is too strong; it unifies small groups while it divides the human race. The only way for us to coexist is to acknowledge the past, accept that it happened, and then build a future that is appropriate to present conditions -- not appropriate to past conditions. History is too long for us to appease everyone. Land that belonged to one group may have belonged to many many other groups, many of whom hated each other at some point in time.
January 1, 2016
A long and detailed walk through the development of political Zionism in its myriad forms, following the emergence of Herzl through the founding of the modern Jewish state of Israel. The book provides the reader with not just the marriage between the religious vision of Judaism with the emergent political landscape of emancipation that led to the idea of Jews becoming enablers of their own fate, but the deep wells of anti-Semitism that both created the need for a haven from the growing violence, and ultimately how the movement, both its leaders and masses, were unable to save the Jews of Europe from the flames of the Nazis. The limits of the movement's power and ability combined with the weak political position of Jews, and widespread poverty in Europe, is a repeated theme that shows just how high the climb was, facing off against not one, but multiple political powerhouses, including the imperial might of the Ottomans, British, Tzarist Russians, and the new political power centers in the US and USSR.
While the concurrent story of the various internal push and shove of the movement's leaders and various factions and wings, was interesting, despite the details, seemed to be almost an aside to the actions and motivations of its leaders (first Herzl, then Weizman). Labor Zionism, Revisionism, the rise of American Jews, all seemed like a background story to the central theme of action and limits of the leaders.
While the concurrent story of the various internal push and shove of the movement's leaders and various factions and wings, was interesting, despite the details, seemed to be almost an aside to the actions and motivations of its leaders (first Herzl, then Weizman). Labor Zionism, Revisionism, the rise of American Jews, all seemed like a background story to the central theme of action and limits of the leaders.
July 12, 2007
A must read for anyone interested in Middle Eastern politics. It's slightly biased, some white-washing, but a discerning reader shouldn't have any trouble recognizing those spots.
January 18, 2022
An historical text paying close attention to detail and informative. Recommended reading for anyone looking for a better understanding about Israel and how it came into existence.
February 15, 2024
Author is not impartial and more pro-Israel, so there are things I feel is underplayed or worded in a way that can skew towards that narrative.
However, as long as you keep that in mind while reading and read other books/articles on the topic, it’s still one worth looking at to understand the origins of a movement that plays such a major role today in a lot of atrocities, as well as various players on the world stage and their justification and interests in supporting it.
Not a difficult read, even if it’s dry. And even in an account that is Pro-Israel up to where this book ends, you can see how things that happened at the time could have led to what is happening today.
2.5/5, worth a look but requires the reader to do further research
However, as long as you keep that in mind while reading and read other books/articles on the topic, it’s still one worth looking at to understand the origins of a movement that plays such a major role today in a lot of atrocities, as well as various players on the world stage and their justification and interests in supporting it.
Not a difficult read, even if it’s dry. And even in an account that is Pro-Israel up to where this book ends, you can see how things that happened at the time could have led to what is happening today.
2.5/5, worth a look but requires the reader to do further research
August 2, 2011
I think I understand Zionism very well now.
August 1, 2016
Excellent at covering the social and intellectual strains that developed Zionism. From Mendlesohn to Herzl, Weizmann, and Jabotinsky, Laqueur does a strong job of detailing the personalities and the infighting that enveloped so much of the Zionist Movement.
Two points stand out. Without Anti-semitism in the form of pogroms throughout early European history there is no wanderlust for a Jewish state and without the Holocaust Israel doesn't happen.
Internally, Israel's beginning is a lottery win. Only after such a tragedy with two superpowers momentarily balanced and after a century of indifference by Jews themselves could this singular event be achieved.
"God writes straight with crooked sticks" And as one famous Jew proved "Spacetime itself is curved."
Two points stand out. Without Anti-semitism in the form of pogroms throughout early European history there is no wanderlust for a Jewish state and without the Holocaust Israel doesn't happen.
Internally, Israel's beginning is a lottery win. Only after such a tragedy with two superpowers momentarily balanced and after a century of indifference by Jews themselves could this singular event be achieved.
"God writes straight with crooked sticks" And as one famous Jew proved "Spacetime itself is curved."
May 31, 2019
Exhaustive, not impartial but honest about it's purpose. If the question is, is this book (or its author) in favour of the state of israel? Yes it is, if this makes it repulsive then don't read it. If you are just curious and want to hear an expansive response from one side than I very much recommend it.
January 8, 2013
It was a thorough analysis of the history of Zionism almost too thorough.
August 14, 2024
In the span of a little more than 50 years, the Jews of Europe (and a little less, of the Middle East) were able to reach an achievement of heroic proportions. In no other moment in recent history a diasporic people were able to revive a language, colonize a hostile and difficult land and build a nation moved solely by the power of an ideal. The creation of the state of Israel is the pinnacle of idealism, a Nietzschean "Will to Power" made manifest.
Said achievement also caused enormous destruction and dispossession to a people who had no good reason to give their land to the Jews and held no guilt over their historical suffering. The creation of the state of Israel was a catastrophe for Palestinians, the vast majority expelled from their ancestral lands and until today occupied and oppressed in great numbers by Israeli forces.
Many of the more realistic and pragmatic thinkers of Zionism foresaw this clash between ideal and reality. They agreed on the legitimacy of the Palestinian claim, however they could not ignore the urgency of the Jewish need for self-determination. And acter the Holocaust, who could blame them?
This book does not follow the conflict between Zionists and Palestinians in much debt. Instead it gives strong focus on the internal dynamics within the Zionist movement and the diplomatic maneuvering necessary to achieve the creation of Israel. As Laqueur is an openly liberal zionist, you can sense the book is strongly biased towards Labour zionism, especially of the Weizmann variety. The book can be meandering, and you feel like by the end there's something that Laquer is purposefully not telling us. A good example is the murder of Jacob de Haan, perfectly important to exemplify the relation between Zionism and its critics, but completely ignored in the book.
Still, a good companion for other works on Zionism, and a thorough study.
Said achievement also caused enormous destruction and dispossession to a people who had no good reason to give their land to the Jews and held no guilt over their historical suffering. The creation of the state of Israel was a catastrophe for Palestinians, the vast majority expelled from their ancestral lands and until today occupied and oppressed in great numbers by Israeli forces.
Many of the more realistic and pragmatic thinkers of Zionism foresaw this clash between ideal and reality. They agreed on the legitimacy of the Palestinian claim, however they could not ignore the urgency of the Jewish need for self-determination. And acter the Holocaust, who could blame them?
This book does not follow the conflict between Zionists and Palestinians in much debt. Instead it gives strong focus on the internal dynamics within the Zionist movement and the diplomatic maneuvering necessary to achieve the creation of Israel. As Laqueur is an openly liberal zionist, you can sense the book is strongly biased towards Labour zionism, especially of the Weizmann variety. The book can be meandering, and you feel like by the end there's something that Laquer is purposefully not telling us. A good example is the murder of Jacob de Haan, perfectly important to exemplify the relation between Zionism and its critics, but completely ignored in the book.
Still, a good companion for other works on Zionism, and a thorough study.
September 30, 2021
This is an excellent and thorough history of the ideas and global politics of Zionism. It does a very good job of laying out the emergence of Zionism as a political movement, its various competing factions, and its place in the larger struggle within the Jewish community to determine how to solve the "Jewish question" of the place of the Jew in an often hostile non-Jewish world. The author does an excellent job of providing the background from which Zionism emerged - the failure of assimilation and the rising tide of romantic nationalism in Western Europe, and the increasing impoverishment and physical danger faced by Jews in Eastern Europe. From there, he does an excellent job describing how the Zionist ideas took form and how the movement conducted itself at first as a political lobby seeking a charter and later as a "practical" effort at Jewish settlement. The book also does a good job of exploring the opposition to Zionism within and without the Jewish community. Within the Jewish community, assimilationists, communists, religious traditionalists, and socialist cultural nationalists (the Bundists) all provided alternative visions of the future of the Jewish people. The book also covers the attitudes of the Ottoman sultanate and the shifting attitudes of the British empire towards Zionism. Finally, it goes into great detail about Zionist-Arab relations and the failed efforts to come to and agreement prior to the establishment of the Jewish state.
It's a history of ideas, political maneuvers, leaders, and the firmest in which they emerged. It is not a history of Jewish settlement in what would become Israel. You'll have to look elsewhere for the latter.
It's a history of ideas, political maneuvers, leaders, and the firmest in which they emerged. It is not a history of Jewish settlement in what would become Israel. You'll have to look elsewhere for the latter.
April 26, 2024
a dense, academic beast. if you’re interested in Zionism’s intellectual history, this is an incredible resource. while it’s a bit older, the book’s timeline ends with the formation of the state of Israel, so it doesn’t really matter.
Laqueur is largely objective about the whole thing. he seemed just as willing to criticize the decisions of Zionist leaders as Arab ones. maybe he comes off as sympathetic to the Zionists at times, but it never felt over the top or even impassioned to me (the one exclamation point I can recall him using is about a thinker sounding Nietzchean.) and you really shouldn’t be surprised that a Jew whose parents died in the Holocaust, and who spent his young adult years in Israel, might have Zionist sympathies.
a must read for those interested in Zionism. if you’re not interested, the density of this book will put you to sleep.
Laqueur is largely objective about the whole thing. he seemed just as willing to criticize the decisions of Zionist leaders as Arab ones. maybe he comes off as sympathetic to the Zionists at times, but it never felt over the top or even impassioned to me (the one exclamation point I can recall him using is about a thinker sounding Nietzchean.) and you really shouldn’t be surprised that a Jew whose parents died in the Holocaust, and who spent his young adult years in Israel, might have Zionist sympathies.
a must read for those interested in Zionism. if you’re not interested, the density of this book will put you to sleep.
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January 12, 2021
Extraordinarily dry reading, but very educational.
August 25, 2022
This was quite a thorough and interesting account of the development of Zionism's history. I only wish Mr. Lauqueur had included a glossary for the goyim like me.
March 18, 2023
This book is amazing and surely the most authoritative on the subject of Zionism. It is quite thorough and challenging but well worth the read.
August 20, 2024
Good book to read and learn about Zionism, there is no doubt about the struggle they endured, this is different than having the right to exist in Palestine or not. No further comments
September 23, 2021
4 stars for readability, informative, and relatively fair and unbiased.
Decently well written, understandable, comprehensive, seemingly well researched...
Relatively fair and unbiased. I say relatively because there are always underlying political implications and perspectives, especially when it comes to Israel. Given that, the focus here is on documenting the history of Zionist groups. The people, events, institutions, the what happened, as told in about the most even way as could be expected.
The one thing I would point out is that the scope of this book ends in 1949 at the establishment of the state of Israel. It does not speak to Zionism in later years after statehood, and the author distances himself from later Zionism in his introduction to the 2009 edition.
Decently well written, understandable, comprehensive, seemingly well researched...
Relatively fair and unbiased. I say relatively because there are always underlying political implications and perspectives, especially when it comes to Israel. Given that, the focus here is on documenting the history of Zionist groups. The people, events, institutions, the what happened, as told in about the most even way as could be expected.
The one thing I would point out is that the scope of this book ends in 1949 at the establishment of the state of Israel. It does not speak to Zionism in later years after statehood, and the author distances himself from later Zionism in his introduction to the 2009 edition.
October 6, 2014
Очень подробная книга о политической истории сионизма. К сожалению, в основном это именно политическая история - то есть, бесконечные описания фракций, съездов, расколов, крупных и мелких деятелей, писем и телеграмм, меморандумов и деклараций. Реальные события в Палестине и в диаспоре упоминаются вскользь, фоном. Как исторический труд, это наверное ценная книга, но для общего чтения она слишком однобока и слишком подробна.
Забавно, что практически все фамилии разнообразных деятелей, даже мелких, были мне знакомы - Усишкин, Гордон, Членов, Смоленскин, Нордау и т.д. и т.п. - просто список улиц любого израильского города.
Забавно, что практически все фамилии разнообразных деятелей, даже мелких, были мне знакомы - Усишкин, Гордон, Членов, Смоленскин, Нордау и т.д. и т.п. - просто список улиц любого израильского города.
October 2, 2014
The German names, places and terms used in this book are certainty impossible for me, as it takes away any interest that rarely grow. If you like reading dictionaries or encyclopedias than this is the book for you and as for me I compare my experience reading this book to hard boring manual labour except your doing it with your mind. The book is highly opinionated and not at all neutral/factual as it should be.
January 12, 2017
A great account of the Zionist movement from start to finish. When there are so many misconceptions, false zeitgeists, and general ignorance about what Zionism is today, this book is an exhaustively researched cure for the afore mentioned woes. No groundless, disturbingly Right Winged conspiracy theories dressed up as "left wing anti establishment truth seeking" here, just well researched historical fact.
January 26, 2016
Excellent
Still very relevant and objective in understanding the roots of the conflict. To have a strong point of view. you really need to read this.
Still very relevant and objective in understanding the roots of the conflict. To have a strong point of view. you really need to read this.
January 13, 2017
Long read, exceptionally well-researched, big time commitment but happy I read it.
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews