In response to the 1894 Dreyfus Affair in France, Jews, with Theodore Herzl at
the head, created the new concept of political Zionism in which it was believed
that through active political maneuvering, a Jewish homeland could be created.
Zionism was becoming a popular concept by the time World War I began.
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During World War I, Great Britain needed help in the production of Acetone, an
important ingredient for arms production. She may have lost the war if Haim
Weizmann had not invented a process that allowed the British to manufacture
their own liquid acetone.
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This development brought Weizmann to the attention of David Lloyd George and
Arthur James Balfour, both prominent members of the British Cabinet. Chaim
Weizmann was not just a scientist; he was also the leader of the Zionist
movement. His contact with Lloyd George and Balfour continued, even after Lloyd
George became Prime Minister and Balfour was transferred to the Foreign Office
in 1916.
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Though Balfour, himself, was in favor of a Jewish state, Great Britain
particularly favored the declaration as an act of policy. She wanted the United
States to join World War I and hoped that by supporting a Jewish homeland in
Palestine, world Jewry would be able to sway the U.S. to join the war.
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The Balfour Declaration was issued on November 2, 1917, in a letter from Balfour
to Lord Rothschild, president of the British Zionist Federation. The main body
of the letter quoted the decision of the October 31, 1917 British Cabinet
meeting. This declaration was accepted by the League of Nations on July 24, 1922
and embodied in the mandate that gave Great Britain temporary administrative
control of Palestine.
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In 1939, Great Britain reneged on the Balfour Declaration by issuing the White
Paper, which stated that creating a Jewish state was no longer a British policy.
It was also Great Britain's change in policy toward Palestine, especially the
White Paper, that prevented millions of European Jews to escape from
Nazi-occupied Europe to Palestine.
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