As an assimilated Viennese Jew, Theodor Herzl was a most unlikely candidate to become the founder of modern Zionism and have a city, Herzlia, named for him in Israel. But just 50 years after his movement was born, David Ben Gurion stood before a huge portrait of the determined playwright, writer, and political activist to proclaim independence for the state of Israel. Ralph Nurnberger, adjunct professor of international relations at Georgetown University, shares how—against the odds—Herzl became the spearhead of this political movement.
He was not religious, didn’t speak Hebrew, had not read the works of previous Zionist thinkers, and knew next to nothing about the lives of the impoverished and oppressed Jewish masses in Eastern Europe. He was not committed to the present location of Israel and was willing to consider other locations. And yet, he developed the concepts of Zionism, wrote the most significant books and articles outlining the rationale for a Jewish homeland, and established the organizations needed to carry out this dream. And perhaps most remarkable of all, Israelis on the right and left of the political spectrum accept Herzl as the founder of modern Zionism.
