Chaim Weizmann

The Making of a Zionist Leader

Jehuda Reinharz

In the pantheon of modern Jewish leaders, Chaim Weizmann is a giant. One of the founding fathers of the State of Israel and its first president, he was also a president of the World Zionist Organization, and an eminent chemist, for whom Israel’s renowned Weizmann Institute of Science was named. Yet, until now, there has never been an authoritative biography of Weizmann that removed the layers of myth obscuring our image of the man. Both a personal portrait of a fascinating man and a far-reaching history of the Jews in the modern world, this book, written by one of America’s leading authorities on Jewish history, delves into the factors that shaped Weizmann’s personality and worldview. Though the book focuses on the making of Weizmann as a Zionist leader, it also lays the foundations for understanding his extraordinary achievements as a scientist. This volume, the first of two that will cover his entire career, ends when, at the age of 40, Weizmann is thrust onto the center stage of world politics as a major negotiator for the Balfour Declaration.

Series:

The Tauber Institute Series for the Study of European Jewry

Paper: $40

ISBN-13: 9781584652670

Pages: 576 | Size: 6 in. x 9 in.

Date Published: May 28, 1987

Imprint:

Brandeis University Press

“Magisterial.”

The Washington Post Book World

Reviews

Rich in fascinating detail, and never losing sight of the great issues involved.

Chaim Herzog, President of Israel
Magisterial

The Washington Post Book World
Admirable new life of Weizmann — easily the most authoritative so far.

The New York Times

About the Author

Jehuda Reinharz

Jehuda Reinharz is the Richard Koret Professor of Modern Jewish History at Brandeis University, where he served as President for seventeen years. He is the author and coauthor of more than thirty books in Jewish studies, including The Road to September 1939: Polish Jews, Zionists, and the Yishuv on the Eve of World War II and Zionism and the Creation of a New Society. He is the president and chief executive officer of the Jack, Joseph, and Morton Mandel Foundation.

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