Bar Kokhba: the Jew who defied Hadrian and challenged the might of Rome

Abstract

of Jewish sovereignty, favouring instead a bi-national Jewish–Arab federation in western Palestine; however, despite the considerable – and mostly cynical – support for such an arrangement around the world, especially within the United States Department of State, notes Penkower, bi-nationalism ultimately failed to gain sway in the international community. The remaining three chapters focus on the role of institutions on the road to Jewish statehood. In the first, Penkower points out that the 1946 World Zionist Congress proved to be a crucial milestone along this road, as the Zionist movement decided at this conclave to back David Ben-Gurion’s more confrontational approach towards Great Britain rather than Chaim Weizmann’s more conciliatory approach. In the second, Penkower chronicles how the American Jewish community came together to raise $50 million during 1948 to support the establishment of Israel, a quite impressive sum for the late 1940s. And, in the third, Penkower traces the struggle between proand anti-partition forces in the spring of 1948, both within the United States and on the world stage, assessing how the former were finally able to prevail over the latter. Penkower’s book should appeal in particular to those individuals who already possess some knowledge of Palestine-related diplomacy in the post-Second World War years. Nevertheless, even those individuals who are less familiar with the events in question can profit by consulting his book.