Thread by @Rev1621

Lord Walter Rothschild and the Balfour Declaration.

Quick Thread.

Lord Walter Rothschild, also known as Baron Rothschild, is known to be a part of the most influencial banking and finance dynasty in history.

As a member of the influential family he was positioned in British Society and held leadership positions in Jewish organizations as well as being a key figure in the Jewish Community in Britain. (The Rothchilds: A Family of Fortune, 1973)

He was a big supporter of the Zionist movement which focused on establishing a Jewish homeland in Palestine. (A History of Israel: From The Rise of Zionism to Our time, 1976)

During WWI, Britain fought against the Ottoman Empire which controlled Palestine. Britain made several promises regarding Palestine’s future.

Britain promised support for an independent Arab state that would include Palestine in return for the Arab support against the Ottomons. This was known as the McMahon-Hussein Correspondence.

In 1917, a formal statement of British policy was penned by Arthur James Balfour, the British Foreign Secretary, to Lord Walter Rothschild.

"His Majesty's government view with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavours 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." (The Balfour Declaration: The Origins of Arab-Israeli Conflict, 2010).

This letter called “The Balfour Declaration” was a reversal of the earlier promises of the McHahon-Hussein Correspondance as it supported a Jewish homeland in Palestine.

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