Timeline of Zionism

A brief overview of the Zionist movement
-- by: Huxwell
MHP hypertext version for non-profit educational use only

Political Zionism

This timeline provides a brief overview of the Zionist movement, highlighting some of the key events and players involved. Follow the links in the text for more information. For commentary on recent events, also see the MHP news topic "Zionism".

1855: Rabbi Isaac M. Wise, founder of the "Reform" Jewish sect in America, declares that "Masonry is a Jewish institution" (see article "The Jews and Masonry in the U.S.")

"Masonry is a Jewish institution whose history, degrees, charges, passwords, and explanations are Jewish from the beginning to the end, with the exception of only one by-degree and a few words in the obligation... It is impossible to be well posted in Masonry without having a Jewish teacher…”

-- Isaac M. Wise, The Israelite, 03-Aug-1855, pg. 28

1890: Christian Zionist leader W.E. Blackstone organizes the "Conference on the Past, Present and Future of Israel" in Chicago.

1891: Blackstone presents the "Blackstone Memorial" declaration to President Harrison, calling for the return of Palestine to the Jews. The petition was signed by many prominent Americans, including J.P. Morgan and John D. Rockefeller. (see article "The Blackstone Memorial")

1896: Adolph Ochs, son-in-law of Rabbi Isaac Wise, purchases the New York Times. It was inherited by his son-in-law Arthur H. Sulzberger and is still owned and controlled by the family.

1897: Theodore Herzl and fellow Zionists found the World Zionist Organization (WZO) at a meeting in Basle, Switzerland.

1899: Rabbi Stephen Wise becomes a member of the Executive Committee of the WZO.

1903: The British government offers a tract of land in East Africa for a Jewish homeland, but the offer is rejected by the WZO.

1908: The Young Turks movement overthrows the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, which was in control of Palestine at the time. (see article "Palmerston Launches Young Turks")

1910: Zionist revolutionary Vladimir (Ze'ev) Jabotinsky joins the "Young Turks" movement as propagandist and editor of The Young Turk. Their headquarters is the Judeo-Masonic lodge in Salonika.

"The Jews and the Doenmeh (crypto-Jews) in Salonika, in particular, and Jews in other parts of the Ottoman Empire were active in the Young Turk Movement, the Committee for Union and Progress... At the same time, the first Zionist organizations...appeared in Salonika. By the eve of World War II there were more than 20 Zionist organizations. The Young Turk revolution marked a new "golden" era for the Jews..."

-- Jewish Virtual Library

1912: Israel Cohen, officer of the WZO, publishes "The Zionist Movement: Its Aims and Achievements"

1914: Louis Brandeis assumes leadership of the American Zionist movement, promoting the creation of a Jewish homeland in Palestine.

1917: Lord Walter Rothschild receives the "Balfour Declaration" letter from Lord Arthur Balfour, declaring British support for the Zionist colonization project in Palestine. Both men were members of the Masonic Royal Society.

1918: Rabbi Stephen Wise founds the American Jewish Congress, along with Louis Brandeis and Felix Frankfurter.

1919: World War I ends, and the Ottoman Empire is broken up. At the Paris Peace Conference, the Zionists present their proposal for the takeover of Palestine:

"It is [our] purpose to establish in Palestine a government dedicated to social and national justice; a government that shall be guided, like the community of old, by that justice and equality which is expressed in the great precept of our Lawgiver: "There shall be but one law for you and the stranger in the land."

All of which is respectfully submitted, Rothschild" (Lord Walter Rothschild)

1920: Dr. Chaim Weizmann becomes president of the World Zionist Organization

1921: Rabbi Avraham Kook, master of the Talmud and the Halakah (Jewish law), becomes the first Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Palestine

1922: The League of Nations passes the "Palestine Mandate" resolution, establishing British control over Palestine and re-affirming the Balfour Declaration.

1923: Baron Edmond James de Rothschild ("the Great Benefactor") founds the Palestine Jewish Colonization Association, promoting and funding Jewish settlements.

1923: Jabotinsky founds the racist Betar Zionist Youth organization and publishes "The Iron Wall" outlining the Zionist policy toward the native Arabs:

"There will always be two nations in Palestine -- which is good enough for me, provided the Jews become the majority... I am prepared to swear, for us and our descendants, that we will never destroy this equality and we will never attempt to expel or oppress the Arabs..."

"Zionist colonization...must either be terminated or carried out in defiance of the will of the native population...under the protection of a force independent of the local population; an iron wall which the native population cannot break through. This is, in toto, our policy towards the Arabs... As long as there is a spark of hope that they can get rid of us, they will not sell these hopes... A living people makes such enormous concessions on such fateful questions only when there is no hope left."

-- "The Iron Wall", 1923

1923: Rabbi Avraham Kook and his son, Tzvi Yehuda Kook, found the yeshiva Mercaz HaRav in Jerusalem to promote the religious basis for Zionism, based on the Torah and the Talmud. HaRav Kook coins the term "State of Israel". (see "Religious Zionism" below)

1929: Jabotinsky publishes "The Ideology of Betar", in which he states that the ultimate goal of Zionism is to subject the entire world to Jewish (or Judeo-Masonic) rule from their seat in Jerusalem:

"Afterward will come probably the most important task of all: to make Eretz Yisrael the leading state of the civilized world, a country the customs and laws of which are to be followed by the whole universe... Zionism is a tremendous, overwhelming important task, the boundaries of which our generation cannot as yet envisage... Each of these revolutions follow one another and each constitutes a new stage of progress; each of these does not arrive like a bloody outbreak but constitutionally, as a perfectly lawful event..."

-- "The Ideology of Betar", 1929

1932: Menachem Begin becomes a leader of Jabotinsky's Betar organization in Poland.

1933: The American Jewish Congress launches a worldwide campaign to boycott all German products.

1935: Jabotinsky founds the radical "New Zionist Organization"

1937: Jabotinsky founds the militant Irgun Zvi Leumi (IZL) organization in Palestine.

1940: Benzion Netanyahu, Jabotinsky's personal secretary, takes over the "New Zionist Organization" in New York after Jabotinsky's death.

1943: Begin becomes the commander of the Irgun.

1946: The Irgun under Begin's leadership bombs the King David Hotel, headquarters of the British Mandate government, killing over 90 people. It is a "false flag" attack, in which the Jewish terrorists are disguised as Arabs.

1948: The "State of Israel" is declared on Rothschild Blvd in Tel Aviv. The declaration is immediately recognized by Pres. Harry Truman (33rd degree Mason). The IZL and other paramilitary organizations become the Israel Defense Force (IDF).

1949: Chaim Weizmann is elected President of the newly formed State of Israel.

1952: Tzvi Yehuda Kook becomes the leader of yeshiva Mercaz HaRav

1954: Baron James de Rothschild funds construction of the new Knesset Building.

1967: Israel launches the "Six Day War", defeating the forces of Egypt, Syria and Jordan. Captured territory includes Jerusalem.

1973: Begin founds the Likud party and its worldwide affiliates.

1973: Rabbi Ovadia Yosef becomes the Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Israel

1974: Yehuda Kook founds the Gush Emunim settler movement, dedicated to Jewish occupation of the entire territory of Eretz Yisrael.

1977: Begin is elected Prime Minister of Israel.

1978: U.S. Congress honors rabbi Menachem Schneerson, leader of the Chabad Lubavitch sect which promotes the Talmudic "Noahide Laws" for non-Jews. Similar resolutions have been adopted every year since.

1980: Begin makes a speech on the 40th anniversary of Jabotinsky's death, declaring that the occupied territory would never be relinquished:

"We report to you, Rosh Betar, that Jerusalem, the city that has become bound together, the eternal capital of Israel and of the Land of Israel, shall not be subjected to any division and is our liberated and indivisible capital and so it shall remain from generation to generation. The western part of the Land of Israel is entirely under our control and it shall not be partitioned anymore. No part of this land shall be given over to a foreign administration, to foreign sovereignty."

-- Arutz Sheva

1984: Rabbi Yosef founds the orthodox Shas Party

1984: Benjamin Netanyahu, son of Benzion Netanyahu, is appointed ambassador to the U.N.

1985: Lord Jacob Rothschild funds the design and construction of the new Supreme Court building in Jerusalem, containing many Masonic motifs including a giant glass pyramid projecting through the roof. (see article "The Roots of Evil in Jerusalem")

1993: Benjamin Netanyahu becomes chairman of Likud.

1994: U.S. Congress issues a gold medal to honor the death of rabbi Menachem Schneerson, leader of the Chabad Lubavitch sect.

1996: Netanyahu is elected Prime Minister, with support from Jewish casino billionaire Sheldon Adelson.

1999: Ariel Sharon becomes chairman of Likud

2000: Sharon leads an armed march onto the Haram al-Sharif ("Temple Mount") site in Jerusalem. (see article: "Temple Mount Fanatics Foment a New Thirty Years' War")

2001: Sharon is elected Prime Minister.

2004: The U.N. International Court of Justice issues a ruling against the "apartheid wall" constructed by the Zionist regime in the occupied Palestinian territory.

2008: In August, following an IDF attack on Gaza which killed hundreds, a group of Palestinians attacks the yeshiva Mercaz HaRav killing 8 students (see story)

2008: In December, the IDF launches "Operation Cast Lead", killing thousands of Palestinian civilians. Banned weapons including white phosphorus firebombs are used, and schools are intentionally targeted.

2009: Netanyahu is again elected Prime Minister.

2009: Benzion Netanyahu re-affirms Jabotinsky's "Iron Wall" program of reducing the native population to the point where "there is no hope left", including the withholding of food and other necessities:

"The Jews and the Arabs are like two goats facing each other on a narrow bridge... The strong goat will make the weaker one jump, and I believe the Jewish power will prevail... [This] will include withholding food from Arab cities, preventing education, terminating electrical power and more. They won't be able to exist, and they will run away from here. But it all depends on the war... We should conquer any disputed territory in the Land of Israel..."

-- Benzion Netanyahu, quote in Maariv newspaper, 2009-04-03

2010: In May, IDF commandos attack the humintarian aid ship "Mavi Marmara" heading for Gaza, killing 10 unarmed volunteers from Turkey.

2010: Benzion and Benjamin Netanyahu attend the Betar memorial service on the 70th anniversary of Jabotinsky's death.

2010: The Shas Party joins the World Zionist Organization

2011: The U.S. Congress approves billions of dollars to fund deployment of the "Iron Dome" missile system in Israel. The name is a direct reference to Jabotinsky's "Iron Wall" policy.

2012: The IDF launches another massive air attack on the Gaza strip. Gilad Sharon, son of Ariel Sharon, calls for a "final solution" to the Palestinian problem.

2013: Yitzhak Yosef, son of Ovadia Yosef, is appointed Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Israel.

2014: In July, Netanyahu launches an air and ground assault against the Gaza strip, killing thousands of Palestinian men, women and children.

2015: Netanyahu and Likud re-affirm Begin's promise of "no concessions and no withdrawals" from any of the occupied territory.

2015: The U.N. Human Rights Commission issues a report condemning the 2014 Gaza massacre.

Note: The video documentary, "The Zionist Story" by Ronen Berelovich (2009), covers the history of the Jewish occupation of Palestine in more detail.

Religious Zionism

Some apologists claim that Zionism is a purely secular political movement, distinct from the Jewish religion. However, this is readily disproven by the writings of the Talmudic rabbis who run the principal yeshivas of Israel, including the flagship Mercaz HaRav, which provide the religious justification for the Jewish conquest and occupation of "Eretz Yisrael".

For example, see the article "Jews are Called Men" (1988) by rabbi David Bar-Chayim of Mercaz HaRav: "The Torah of Israel makes a clear distinction between a Jew, who is defined as 'man,' and a Gentile (non-Jew)." He clearly shows that the concept of 'equality' and universal rights for all human beings does not exist in the Jewish law. Instead, the Talmudic doctrine of Jewish racial supremacy, which defines non-Jews as animals rather than "men", is the basis of Zionist policy and the Jewish State.

Rabbi Avraham (HaRav) Kook (1865 - 1935)

"HaRav Kook...more than anyone else, spoke of the essence of Zionism. And he was the first to coin a phrase that then seemed to be but a far fetched dream -- the 'State of Israel'.

HaRav Kook was the great soul of religious Zionism... Thirteen years after his death, the State of Israel was established, and it is his teachings which give content to the moral and Zionist mode of thought of the Jewish State. His own life was an inspiration and an example of love for his fellow Jew no matter what differences of belief or practice separated them.

The teachings of HaRav Kook have influenced an entire generation, and continue, through the Yeshiva which bears his name (Mercaz HaRav), to educate each generation in Israel, to the love of Torah, the love of G-d, the love of Israel, and to a burning love for Zion."

Source: Yeshiva Mercaz HaRav (archive)

Rabbi Ari Shvat has produced a video presentation explaining HaRav Kook's religious justification in support of Zionism and Jewish nationalism.

Rabbi Tzvi Yehuda Kook (1891 - 1982)

"Tzvi Yehuda Kook served as Head of the Yeshiva (Mercaz HaRav) for thirty years. During these years an entire generation of students grew up in the spirit of the philosophy of his father, Rabbi Kook. It was a generation of Israeli Torah scholars nurtured upon a doctrine which combined the Torah of Israel, the nation of Israel, and the land of Israel...

[Following the 1967 war], Tzvi Yehuda quickly announced that all territories of Israel liberated by the IDF in the war belonged to Israel eternally. 'We have returned to our land', he explained, 'and we are obligated to settle these areas. It is absolutely forbidden to relinquish them... this soil was given to us by the Creator of the world in order that we settle and inherit it.'"

Source: Yeshiva.org

Rabbi Ovadia Yosef (1920 - 2013)

"I served for ten years as a Chief Rabbi, a key public position in the State of Israel. In what way are we not Zionists? We pray for Zion, for Jerusalem and its inhabitants, for Israel and the Rabbis and their students. What is Zionist? By our understanding, a Zionist is a [Jewish] person who loves Zion and practices the commandment of settling the land. Whenever I am overseas I encourage Aliyah. In what way are they more Zionist than us?"

Source: Wikipedia

"Goyim (non-Jews) were born only to serve us. Without that, they have no place in the world, only to serve the People of Israel...

In Israel, death has no dominion over them... With gentiles, it will be like any person, they need to die, but [God] will give them longevity. Why? Imagine that one's donkey would die, they'd lose their money. This is his servant... That's why he gets a long life, to work well for this Jew... Why are gentiles needed? They will work, they will plow, they will reap. We will sit like an effendi and eat. That is why gentiles were created."

-- Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, quoted in the Jewish Telegraph Agency, 2010-10-18

Here's another article about Rabbi Yosef and his Shas Party followers, reporting the same quote: Times of Israel, 2013-10-09

For profiles of other "religious Zionists" including Shmuel Eliyahu, Dov Lior and Yitzhak Ginzburg, see the article "Israel's Extremist Rabbis" from the Institute for Middle East Understanding (2013).