Taught by Harvey Leven, M.A.

The first session will delve into the beginning of the Zionist Movement, the establishment of the State, the War of Independence, and the implications of the 1956 Sinai Campaign.

Covered topics will include: * Early European Zionist Movements * The Dreyfus Affair in France; its effects on Theodore Herzl and the establishment of the Political Zionism and the Jewish National Fund (JNF) *The purchase of land by the JNF for Jewish Settlement * The impact of the Balfour Declaration * Local Arab reaction to early Jewish settlement in the land * The Arab Revolt of 1936 * The Peel Commission’s report to the United Nations * The UN Partition Plan and Jewish/Arab reaction to it * The British “White Paper” and Jewish response to it * The Jewish Legion fights on Britain’s behalf during WWII * Jewish self-defense - the Hagganah and the Irgun * The UN Partition Decision * The fight for survival and independence * Refugees: Arab and Jewish * Causes and results of the 1956 Suez Campaign