Though it was still debateful subject that why Russian Empire had begun pogroms against Jewish People in Odessa in 1821, it was one of the most remarkable anti-Semitic program ever done by state. 2 million Jewish people were forced to emigrate, most of them to UK and USA. After 70 years in 1894, a Jewish descendant Alfred Dreyfuss was sentenced to life imprisonment for allegedly communicating French military secrets to the German Embassy in Paris as a French Artillery officer. The case was resolved in 1906 and Dreyfuss's innocence was accepted, however this case remained as a symbol of modern injustice and anti-Semitism in justice.
An Austro-Hungarian Jewish journalist Theodor Herzl, who was born in Budapest in 1860, wrote a pamphlet in 1896. Herzl described his own plan to found Jewish State. It is not known that whether he was influenced by Dreyfuss's case or not. However, his pamphlet “Proposal of a modern solution for the Jewish Question” ” Der Judenstaat” was very influential for most of Jewish People in the world, since Dreyfuss's Case, pogroms and nationalism which had being rise in Europe, rise anti-Semitism. For many scholars Theodor Herzl's pamphlet Jewish State is the milestone of Zionism since it was the first modern concept of Zionism. For the first time in history, Herzl offered a method for founding a Jewish State without Romantic ideas. Herzl had an idea and concept which covered economics, city plans, social classes, markets, rabbis etc. As he mentioned at the beginning of his pamphlet it was easier to write down Utopia with Romantic ideas and it could be more successful literally, however he chosen to build a plan. He showed people that it is not impossible to build their own state before the Resurrection of messiah. But what was the reason laying behind this. Did he write pamphlet because of his precision to anti-Semitism or something else?
We do not know but we have ideas about it. First of all, Theodor Herzl did not write his pamphlet for public distribution, he wrote it to Rothschild family and furthermore called it “Address to Rothschild”. He thought to present it to Rothschild who was the owner of one of the biggest bank in the world. We do not know whether he wanted to affect Rothschild with his planning ability or he present this as a real plan. As a result, Baron Edmond de Rothschild rejected Herzl's plan feeling that it threatened Jews in the Diaspora. He also thought it would put his own settlements at risk.
Though Rothschild rejected it, influence of Herzl's pamphlet spread to all over the World. People began to discuss. Can they build Jewish State without Messiah or not? Are they capable to do it or not? And these discussions reached to end with Balfour Declaration 1917 which was sent by United Kingdom's Foreign Secretary Arthur James Balfour to Walter Rothschild, 2nd Baron Rothschild.
“His Majesty's government view with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people, and will use their best endeavours to facilitate the achievement of this object, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine, or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country”
Notes from The Jewish State of Herzl;
1. Herzl offers two alternative lands for state, these are Argentina and Palestine.
2. The main parts of Herzl's plan were The Jewish Company and the Jewish Society. The Jewish Company would finance the plan and Society would collect and process scientific and political knowledge.
3. Though Jewish Company should be non-profitable organization according to Herzl, it seems to me that it is wonderful plan to earn money from your own people. For instance, company would buy emigrants' houses and sell them to Christians or demands of first settlers would be supply by company. At that points Herzl of course cannot give measurable values and he just describe prices like low or high
4. First settlers would be poorest ones, especially people who came from Russia and Poland. They have to work for 5 years at there and in return they have a house in State.
5. Herzl has plans for immigration of businessman too. However, one of the most striking point of the book is he said if some businessman do not want to go to the new land, then he would be happy in his home because most of Jewish from ghettos were already gone and Christians won't tell “Do not buy from Jews” anymore.
6. Herzl never refuses scientific knowledge in his book and never refers to sacred texts although he try to plan one of the most famous sacred mission in the history.
