History
- Timeline of Jewish History - 1918-1947
Treaty of Versailles
formally ends Word War I. Out of an estimated 1.5 million Jewish
soldiers in all the armies, approximately 170,000 were killed and over
100,000 cited for valor: 1918
Damascus taken by T.E. Lawrence and Arabs: 1918
American Jewish Congress is founded: 1918
End of World War I: 1918
Germany's Kaiser Wilhelm abdicates: November 1918
Nahum Zemach founds the Moscow-based Habimah Theater which receives
acclaim for "The Dybbuk." 1918
The German Workers' Party (DAP) is founded in Munich; Adolf Hitler joins
the Party nine months later: January 5, 1919
Jewish educational summer camping is launched in the United States with
what came to be known as the Cejwin Camps: 1919
Versailles Peace Conference decides that the conquered Arab provinces
will not be restored to Ottoman rule: 1919
First Palestinian National Congress meeting in Jerusalem sends two
memoranda to Versailles rejecting Balfour Declaration and demanding
independence: 1919
Romania grants citizenship to Jews: 1919-1923
Egyptian revolution: 1919
Chaim Weizmann heads Zionist delegation at Versailles Peace Conference:
1919
Third Aliyah, mainly from Russia: 1919-23
Emir Faisel wrote a letter to Felix Frankfurter supporting Zionism, "We
Arabs...wish the Jews a most hearty welcome." 1919
Commander of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, Mordechai Anilewicz: 1919-1943
League of Nations established in an effort to prevent further wars: 1919
Histadrut (Jewish labor federation) and Haganah (Jewish defense
organization) founded: 1920
Vaad Leumi (National Council) set up by Jewish community (yishuv)to
conduct its affairs: 1920
Keren Hayesod created for education, absorbtion and the development of
rural settlements in Eretz-Israel: 1920
Chaim Weizmann elected president of the World Zionist Organization: 1920
Fall of Tel Hai to Arab attackers; Joseph Trumpeldor and five men under
his command killed: 1920
Mandate for the Land of Israel given over to Britain on the condition
that the Balfour Declaration be implemented, San Remo Conference: 1920
Sir Herbert Samuel, British statesman, appointed High Commissioner of
Palestine: 1920
Henry Ford's newspaper, The Dearborn Independent, begins publishing its
anti-Semitic propaganda, including the Protocols of the Elders of Zion:
1920
The first mass meeting of the National Socialist Party (NSDAP) takes
place at Munich's Hofbräuhaus: February 24, 1920
Adolf Hitler is honorably discharged from the German Army: April 1, 1920
The San Remo Conference awards administration of the former Turkish
territories of Syria and Lebanon to France, and Palestine, Transjordan,
and Mesopotamia (Iraq) to Britain: 1920
British civilian administration inaugurated: Sir Herbert Samuel
appointed first High Commissioner: 1920
Second and third Palestinan National Congress' held: 1920.
The Times of London pronounces the Protocols of the Elders of Zion a
forgery: 1921
Immigration laws "reformed" to effectively exclude Eastern European Jews
and other immigrants. Further restrictions imposed in 1924: 1921
Fourth Palestinian National Congress, convenes in Jerusalem, decides to
send delegation to London to explain case against Balfour: 1921
The Allied Reparations Committee assesses German liability for World War
I at 132 billion gold marks (about $31 billion): 1921
The NSDAP, also known as the Nazi Party, establishes the Sturmabteilung
(SA; Storm Troopers; Brown Shirts): 1921
Arab riots in Jaffa and other cities: 1921
Völkischer Beobachter (People's Observer), the official National
Socialist newspaper, begins publication: 1921
Adolf Hitler becomes the Nazi Party's first chairman with dictatorial
powers: July 29, 1921
Kingdom of Iraq established: 1921
First moshav, Nahalal, founded in the Jezreel Valley: 1921
Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook and Rabbi Ya'akov Meir are elected the first
two cheif Rabbis of Eretz-Israel: 1921
Famous Hungarian Jewish poet and paratrooper who fought in WWII, Hannah
Szenes (Senesh): 1921-1944
Britain granted Mandate for Palestine (Land of Israel) by League of
Nations: 1922
Transjordan set up on three-fourths of the British mandate area,
forbidding Jewish immigration, leaving one-fourth for the Jewish
national home: 1922
Jewish Agency representing Jewish community vis-à-vis Mandate
authorities set up: 1922
Mordecai M. Kaplan founds the Society for the Advancement of Judaism,
the cradle of the Reconstructionist movement: 1922
The United States Congress and President Harding approve the Balfour
Declaration: 1922
Supreme Muslim Council created under the jurisdiction of the British
government to centralize religious affairs and institutions, but is
corrupted by the overzealous Husseini family who used it as an
anti-Jewish platform: 1922
Lenin creates the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics: 1922
Benito Mussolini establishes a Fascist government in Italy: 1922
Harvard's president proposes a quota on the number of Jews admitted.
After a contentious debate, he withdrew the recommendation: 1922
League of Nations Council approves Mandate for Palestine: 1922.
First British census of Palestine shows total population 757,182 (11%
Jewish): 1922.
Fifth Palestinian National Congress in Nablus, agrees to economic
boycott of Zionists: 1922.
Jungsturm Adolf Hitler (Adolf Hitler Boys Storm Troop) and Stosstrupp
Adolf Hitler (Shock Troop Adolf Hitler) are established. The latter will
form the nucleus of the Schutzstaffel (SS): 1922
Walther Rathenau, Jewish foreign minister of Germany, is assassinated by
members of Organisation Consul, a clandestine, right-wing political
organization led by Captain Hermann Ehrhardt: June 24, 1922
France and Belgium occupy the Ruhr after an economically broken Germany
is unable to meet the annual installment of its war-reparations payments
designed to pay off Germany's $31 billion war debt: January 1923.
The Schutzstaffel (SS; Protection Squad) is established. It is initially
a bodyguard for Hitler but will later become an elite armed guard of the
Third Reich: March 1923
Palestine constitution suspended by British because of Arab refusal to
cooperate. 1923
Overthrow of Ottoman Muslim rule by "young Turks" (Kemal Ataturk) and
establishment of secular state: 1923
Sixth Palestinian national Congress held in Jaffa: 1923
The first issue of the pro-Nazi, antisemitic newspaper Der Stürmer (The
Attacker) is published in Nuremberg, Germany. Its slogan is "Die Juden
sind unser Unglück" ("The Jews are our misfortune"), a phrase picked up
from Heinrich von Treitschke: 1923 :
Hitler's so-called “Beer Hall Putsch” takeover attempt at Munich fails,
temporarily rattling the National Socialist Party and leading to
Hitler's arrest in Bavaria, Germany: November 8-11, 1923
Technion, first institute of technology, founded in Haifa: 1924
Fourth Aliyah, mainly from Poland: 1924-32
Benjamin Frankel starts Hillel Foundation. The first Hillel House opens
at the University of Illinois, offers religious and social services:
1924
Caliphate officially abolished: 1924
The first conference of the General Zionist movement is held in
Jerusalem: May 11, 1924
Ultra-Orthodox Jews found an agricultural settlement between Ramat Gan
and Petah Tikva: Bnei- Brak: May 14, 1924.
The United States Congress passes the Immigration Restriction Act, which
effectively bans immigration to the U.S. from Asia and Eastern Europe:
1924
While in prison, Hitler begins work on Mein Kampf: July 1924
Pahlevi dynasty in Persia (= “Iran”: 1935): 1925-1979
Revisionist Movement founded by Zeev Jabotinsky: 1925
Hebrew University of Jerusalem opened on Mt. Scopus: 1925
Edna Ferber is the first American Jew to win Pulitzer Prize in fiction:
1925
Palestinian National Congress meets in Jaffa: 1925.
Publication of the pro-Nazi, anti-Semitic newspaper Der Stürmer resumes
after being banned by the Weimar government in November 1923: March 24,
1925
Paul von Hindenburg is elected president of Germany: April 26, 1925
France proclaims Republic of Lebanon. 1926
Warner Brothers produces drama of Jewish assimilation, "The Jazz
Singer," the first film with sound: 1927
Britain recognizes independence of Transjordan. 1928
Seventh Palestinian National Congress convened in Jerusalem; established
a new forty-eight member executive committee: 1928.
Yeshiva College is dedicated in New York: 1928
2,000 Arabs attack Jews praying at the Kotel on the 9th of Av. Arabs
view British refusal to condemn the attacks as support: 1929
Hebron Jews massacred by Arab militants: 1929
Anne Frank, Holocaust victim whose diary, written during the Nazi
Occupation became famous: 1929-1945
Fifth Aliyah, from Germany: 1929-1939
Hope-Simpson report, predecessor to Passfield White Paper, recommends
and end to all Jewish immigration to Eretz-Israel: 1930
Lord Passfield issues his White Paper banning further land acquisition
by Jews and slowing Jewish immigration: 1930
Salo Wittmayer Baron joins the faculty of Columbia University, his is
the first chair in Jewish history at a secular university in the United
States: 1930.
Etzel (the Irgun), Jewish underground organization, founded: 1931
Second British census of Palestine shows total population of 1,035,154
(16.9% Jewish): 1930.
The Nahum Zemach-founded Moscow-based Habimah Theater which received
acclaim for "The Dybbuk" moves to Eretz-Israel: 1931
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia established: 1932
British Mandate over Iraq terminated, Iraq gains independence: 1932
Herbert Lehman was elected New York's first Jewish governor; from that
time on, Jews formed a pact with the Democratic Party: 1932
First Maccabia athletic games take place with representatives from 14
countries:1932
German Chancellor von Papen persuaded President von Hindenburg to offer
Hitler the chancellorship: 1932
Formation of Istiqlal Party as first constituted Palestinian-Arab
political party; Awni Abdul-Hadi elected president: 1932.
The American Jewish Congress declares a boycott on German goods to
protest the Nazi persecution of Jews: 1933.
Assassination of Chaim Arlozorov: 1933
Fifth Aliyah, mainly from Germany: 1933-39
Adolf Hitler becomes Chancellor of Germany: 1933
Germany begins anti-Jewish boycott: 1933
Cardinal Pacelli, who later became Pope Pius XII, signed the Hitler
Concordat; whereby the Vatican accepted National Socialism: 1933
Albert Einstein, upon visiting the United States, learns that Hitler had
been elected and decided not to return to Germany, takes up position at
Princeton: 1933
Riots in Jaffa and Jerusalem to protest British "pro-Zionist" policies:
1933.
In Afghanistan, two thousand Jews are expelled from towns and forced to
live in the wilderness: 1934
American Jews cheer Detroit Tigers' Hank Greenberg when he refuses to
play ball on Yom Kippur. In 1938, with five games left to the season,
Greenberg's 58 home runs are two shy of Babe Ruth's record. When several
pitchers walk him rather than giving him a shot at the record, many
believe major league baseball did not want a Jew to claim that place in
America's national sport: 1934.
Jewish rights in Germany rescinded by Nuremberg laws: 1935
Hakibbutz Hadati, the religious kibbutz movement is founded: 1935
Regina Jonas was ordained by Liberal (Reform) Rabbi Max Dienemann in
Germany, becoming the first woman rabbi: 1935.
Ze'ev Jabotinsky founds the New Zionist Organization:1935
Official establishment of the Palestine Arab Party in Jerusalem; Jamal
al-Husseini elected president: 1935.
Anti-Jewish riots instigated by Arab militants: 1936-39
Supported by the Axis powers, the Arab Higher Committee encourages raids
on Jewish communities in Eretz-Israel: 1936
Leon Blum becomes the first Jew elected premier of France, enacts many
social reforms: 1936
The first of the Tower and Stockade Settlements (Tel Amel) Nir David is
erected: 1936
Syria ratifies the Franco-Syrian treaty; France grants Syria and Lebanon
independence: 1936
World Jewish Congress convened in Geneva: 1936
Peel Commission investigated Arab riots, concluded Arab claims were
"baseless." 1936
Reform Jewish Columbus Platform: 1937
British declare Arab Higher Committee in Palestine illegal and Mufti of
Jerusalem escapes to Syria. 1937.
The Peel Commission recommends the partition of Palestine between Jews
and Arabs: 1937.
Chaim Weizmann and David Ben-Gurion accept partition plan, despite
fierce opposition at the 20th Zionist Congress: 1937
John Woodhead declares partition unworkable after Arab riots: 1937
Central conference of American Rabbis reaffirm basic reform philosophies
in the Colombus Platform: 1937
Kristallnacht — German Jewish synagogues burned down: Nov. 9, 1938
Charles E. Coughlin, a Roman Catholic priest, launches media campaign in
America against Jews: 1938
The Dominican Republic is the only country out of 32 at the Evian
Conference willing to help Jews trying to escape Nazi Germany: 1938
Chamberlain declares "peace in our time" after allowing Hitler to annex
the Sudetenland in the Munich Agreement: September 29, 1938
Catholic churches ring bells and fly Nazi flags to welcom Hitler's
troops in Austria: 1938
Hershel Grynszpan, 17, a German refugee, assassinates Ernst von Rath,
the third secretary to the German embassy in Paris: 1938
More than 100,000 Jews march in an anti-Hitler parade in New York's
Madison Square Garden: 1938
President Roosevelt appoints Zionist and Jewish activist Felix
Frankfurter to the Supreme Court: 1939
Jewish immigration severely limited by British White Paper: 1939
S.S. St. Louis, carrying 907 Jewish refugees from Germany, is turned
back by Cuba and the United States: 1939
Jewish songwriter Irving Berlin introduces his song "God Bless America."
He also wrote "White Christmas": 1939
World War II: 1939-1945
Nazis establish ghettos in Poland: 1940
British government authorizes the Jewish Agency to recruit 10,000 Jews
to form Jewish units in the British army: 1940.
British refuse illegal immigrant ship, the Patria, permission to dock in
Palestine: 1940.
British and France guarantee Syrian independence. 1941
Lohamei Herut Yisrael (Lehi) or Stern Gang underground movement formed:
1941
Palmach, strike force of Haganah, set up: May 15, 1941
Rabbi Stephen S. Wise publicizes Riegner report confirming mass murder
of European Jews: 1942
Biltmore Conference of American Zionists: 1942
Nazi leaders refine the "Final Solution" -- genocide of the Jewish
people -- at Wannsee Conference: 1942
Warsaw Ghetto Uprising: 1943
Palmach parachutes into enemy lines in Europe: 1943
British deport illegal immigrants to Cyprus: 1943
Raphael Lemkin, an international lawyer who escaped from Poland to the
U.S. in 1941, coins the term genocide to describe the Nazi extermination
of European Jews: 1943.
Zionist Biltmore Conference, held at Biltmore Hotel in New York,
formulates new policy of creating a "Jewish Commonwealth" in Palestine
and organizing a Jewish army: 1943.
Jewish Brigade formed as part of British forces: 1944
FDR establishes War Refugee Board. For most victims of Nazism, it comes
too late: 1944.
Camp for Jewish war refugees is opened at Oswego, New York: 1944
The Nazi German Holocaust against Jews: 1939/1942-1945
American drops atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, ending World War
II:1945
Postwar Period
International tribunal for war crimes is established at Nuremberg: 1945
Bess Myerson becomes the first Jewish woman to win the Miss America
Pageant: 1945.
Covenant of League of Arab States, emphasizing Arab character of
Palestine, signed in Cairo by Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Syria,
Transjordan, and Yemen: 1945.
United Nations established: 1945.
President Truman asks Britain to allow 100,000 Jews into Palestine:
1945.
Arab League Council decides to boycott goods produced by Zionist firms
in Palestine: 1945.
Irgun and Stern Gang blow up King David Hotel in Jerusalem: 1946.
Partition of India and Pakistan: 1947
Steamer Exodus repelled by forces from shores of Palestine: July 1947
UN proposes the establishment of Arab and Jewish states in the Land:
1947
Arab Higher Committee for Palestine rejects UN Partition Plan: 1947.
Three Jews are hanged for involvement in Acre Prison break and two
British sergeants are executed in reprisal. 1947.
Scrolls dating from approximately 22 B.C.E. are discovered at Qumran,
near the Dead Sea: 1947
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