The Perfidy of Albion: Britain's Secret Re-Assessment of the Balfour Declaration

29 Pages Posted: 1 Aug 2010 Last revised: 3 Aug 2010

See all articles by John Bernard Quigley

John Bernard Quigley

Ohio State University (OSU) - Michael E. Moritz College of Law

Date Written: July 29, 2010

Abstract

The issuance by the Government of Great Britain of the Balfour Declaration in 1917 had great consequences for the subsequent history of Palestine and the Middle East. As it was administering Palestine and implementing the Balfour Declaration in the 1920s, the British Government reported to the League of Nations that it could successfully achieve the Declaration's aim, namely, the promotion of a Jewish national home in Palestine, while at the same time respecting the rights of the existing (predominantly Arab) population. In its own internal discussion of Palestine, however, the British Government concluded that these two goals were incompatible, and that serious conflict was inevitable. It decided nonetheless, for reasons relating to its own geostrategic interests, to continue to administer Palestine and to implement the Balfour Declaration, and to continue to tell the League of Nations that it could do so successfully.

Suggested Citation

Quigley, John Bernard, The Perfidy of Albion: Britain's Secret Re-Assessment of the Balfour Declaration (July 29, 2010). Ohio State Public Law Working Paper No. 128, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1650658 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1650658

John Bernard Quigley (Contact Author)

Ohio State University (OSU) - Michael E. Moritz College of Law ( email )

55 West 12th Avenue
Columbus, OH 43210
United States

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