A History of Zionism: From the French Revolution to the Establishment of the State of Israel Reprint Edition

by Walter Laqueur (Author)

37 ratings

ISBN-13: 978-0805211498

ISBN-10: 0805211497

Why is ISBN important?

Share <Embed>

Other Sellers

from

Other Sellers

See all 3 versions

Used: Good | Details

Sold by 12SixtyFour

Fulfilled by Amazon

Access codes and supplements are not guaranteed with used items.

Get Fast, Free Shipping with Amazon Prime

FREE delivery: Sunday, Sep 5 on orders over $25.00 shipped by Amazon. Details

Fastest delivery: Aug 30 - 31

Only 12 left in stock (more on the way).

Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.

Available at a lower price from other sellers that may not offer free Prime shipping.

Get Fast, Free Shipping with Amazon Prime

FREE delivery: Sunday, Sep 5 on orders over $25.00 shipped by Amazon. Details

Fastest delivery: Tuesday, Aug 31
Order within 8 hrs and 46 mins Details

Available at a lower price from other sellers that may not offer free Prime shipping.

The definitive general history of the Zionist movement, by one of the most distinguished historians of our time.

Walter Laqueur traces Zionism from its beginnings—with the emancipation of European Jewry from the ghettos in the wake of the French Revolution—to 1948, when the Zionist dream became a reality. He describes the contributions of such notable figures as Benjamin Disraeli, Moses Hess, Baron Edmond de Rothschild, and Sir Herbert Samuel, and he analyzes the seminal achievements of Theodor Herzl, Chaim Weitzmann, and David Ben Gurion.

Laqueur outlines the differences between the various Zionist philosophies of the early twentieth century—socialist, Communist, revisionist, and cultural utopian—and he discusses both the religious and secular Jewish critics of the movement. He concluded with a dramatic account of the cataclysmic events of World War II, the clandestine immigration of Holocaust survivors, the tragic missed opportunities co-existence with both the Arab residents of Palestine and those in the surrounding countries, and the struggle to forge a new state on an ancient land. Laqueur’s new preface analyzes the present-day difficulties, and places them into a fascinating and aluable historical context.

Frequently bought together

Customers who viewed this item also viewed

Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1

Shlomo Avineri
11
Paperback
20 offers from $4.82
Walter Laqueur
13
Hardcover
33 offers from $1.75
Shlomo Avineri
16
Paperback
11 offers from $12.49
Walter Laqueur
27
Paperback
48 offers from $1.35
Martin Gilbert
195
Paperback
55 offers from $4.99
Daniel Gordis
484
Paperback
42 offers from $8.99

What other items do customers buy after viewing this item?

Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1

Theodor Herzl
112
Paperback
59 offers from $1.54
Shlomo Avineri
11
Paperback
20 offers from $4.82
Howard M. Sachar
64
Paperback
56 offers from $5.00
Rashid Khalidi
422
Paperback
34 offers from $12.00
Daniel Gordis
484
Paperback
42 offers from $8.99
Walter Laqueur
13
Hardcover
33 offers from $1.75

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Historical writing of the most thoughtful and serious kind.”
—Newsweek

“The best single volume for the general reader.”
—The Economist

“Laqueur’s rigorous objectivity elevates [this book] light-years above its predecessors in the field.”
—The New York Times Book Review

About the Author

WALTER LAQUEUR chairs the research council for the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C., and he is the founding editor of the Journal of Contemporary History. The author of more than twenty-five works of European and Jewish history, he lives in Washington, D.C.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Schocken; Reprint edition (May 20, 2003)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 688 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0805211497
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0805211498
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.03 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.2 x 1.2 x 8 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #368,518 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #184 in Middle Eastern History (Books)
- #453 in Israel & Palestine History (Books)
- #887 in French History (Books)

Customer Reviews:
37 ratings

Customer reviews

5 star		67%
4 star		20%
3 star		4%
2 star		5%
1 star		4%

How are ratings calculated?

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Mark Horowitz

Superb Intellectual and Political History

Reviewed in the United States on November 6, 2018

Verified Purchase

This is by far the best single-volume history of Zionism, from the 1880s to 1948. Though a chronological history, it emphasizes the competing intellectual and political ideologies that competed with each other throughout the period. Zionism developed against the backdrop of sectarian politics in Europe and the Middle East -- nationalism, Communism, Socialism, etc. -- and there are long chapters on Jabotinsky and the Revisionists, on how Zionist leaders and intellectuals (usually the same people) dealt with the question of Palestinian-Arab nationalism, and on the dissenters and critics of Zionism within the Jewish world. Written in 1972, the book is remarkably balanced and fair-minded on questions relating to Arab nationalism, and to the competition between Labour Zionism and the Revisionists. There is very little, however, on Religious Zionism, which maybe be a function of Laqueur's own prejudices, or it's just that he doesn't see it as particularly relevant to the period he's focusing on. All in all, a dense, rich, fascinating read.

4 people found this helpful

Helpful

Matthew Smith

Exactly what I was looking for

Reviewed in the United States on July 26, 2007

Verified Purchase

When I came upon this book I was searching for a definitive history of Zionism. I had read current histories on Israel and the Middle East, but I didn't have a deep understanding of where Zionism came from nor its philosophical impetus. I was looking for a book that would give me an unbiased account of where and why Zionism came to be, and in this one book I found it.

Mr. Laqueur gives a detailed and clinical look into this phenomenon from its inauspicious beginnings to its improbable statehood and the many twists and turns in between. How he was able to go through and gather so much information on a movement that was so spread out and splintered between many different ideologies and theories is beyond me. He has assembled a wealth of information and presented it fairly and evenly.

Zionism is a movement unprecedented in history and the affects of this movement are still being felt today. It seems that everyone has an opinion about Zionism, but it is important to have a deep understanding of where this movement came from before one can have an accurate picture of where it is now and why it has become what is. The more people understand about that past the more clearly they will see the present. This is an important book that needs to be read.

30 people found this helpful

Helpful

Wilfredo Erba

Great reference book

Reviewed in the United States on March 12, 2020

Verified Purchase

To know exactly the origin of Zionism and its aim.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Henry Oliner

A Broad Look at a Unique Movement

Reviewed in the United States on August 22, 2004

Verified Purchase

I do not know where else in history that we have a people disposed from a land for two thousand years, scattered all over the world, who reconvene through an international movement and regain their homeland. I also can not recall any group suffering the violent and irrational hatred of so many nations as the Jews have.

Lacqueur's history traces this unique movement. It's success was very fragile; the many decisions from world leaders could have gone much differently if made a few years sooner or later. Jews did not initially support it broadly; many prefered assimilation to their country of birth and some felt that the growing socialist movement provided a better answer to anti-Semitism. Even within the Zionist movement political infighting was strong.

Yet the worst fears of those seeking a refuge from growing European anti-Semitism did not forsee the scope of the Holocaust, exterminating 6 out of 7 Jews in Europe. This emboldened the survivors and motivated just barely enough world sympathy to formulate the creation of the Jewish state.

The reaction of the Arabs was neither surprising or unique in the course of developing nations. Lacqueur has the advantage of hindsight to examine policy mistakes and examine how it could have been different, but concludes the difficulty would have remained regardless.

This examination shows Zionism not as a righteous holy ordained movement, nor is it a an evil racist colonial movement as the modern Arab media prefers to portray it. It was a politically and diplomatically unique solution to a very serious and unique problem.

That the success of the Zionist enterprise has not yet yielded the peace they so desperately seek, makes this work only an introduction, but a valuable source to those seeking to understand the volatile Middle Middle East of the 21st century. There are many more chapters to be written.

36 people found this helpful

Helpful

Top reviews from other countries

Translate all reviews to English

GINO VALLE

Ottimo

Reviewed in Italy on December 26, 2019

Verified Purchase

Ricostruzione completa della storia del sionismo. Un must per lo studio dell'argomento.

Translate review to English

angus mcmillan

very detailed on the political!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 6, 2014

Verified Purchase

If you are looking for an impartial, objective account of Zionism in relation to the Indigenous population of historic Palestine, then this book clearly isn't for you. Although very detailed in the political intrigues of the early Zioninst movement. There is less detail given to the conflict with the indigenous Arab & Christian population.
Towards the end of the book the author mentions the Deir yassin masscre in a single fleeting sentence and then goes on to say, in the following paragraph, that 10,000 Arabs left, what was to become Israel in 1948. This, as any objective historian will tell you, is clearly incorrect, the number is now belived to be around 700.000, who were cleansed from the land.I did find it tragic that there was a movement within Zionism to work on an equal footing with the Indigenous population, but this was quickly sidelined by the more hardline elements within both communities.

3 people found this helpful

See all reviews

A History of Zionism: From the French Revolution to the Establishment of the State of Israel Reprint Edition

Buy used: $13.44

Buy new: $22.41

Frequently bought together

Customers who viewed this item also viewed

What other items do customers buy after viewing this item?

Editorial Reviews

Review

About the Author

Product details

Customer reviews

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Top reviews from other countries

Buy used:

$13.44

Buy new:

$22.41