Part ii
The Dreyfus trial in 1894 served as a catalyst that would drive home the now undeniable realities and results of anti-Semitism in Europe, and the possibility of such outcomes due to anti-Semitism in any land where the Jews were merely guests.
In Austria, with the failure of Liberalism, and the ascendance to power of anti-Semite delegates in the municipal assembly-such as Karl Lueger of the Christian Social Party who was elected to mayor of Vienna in 1895-anti-Semitism acquired a political representation. This was a clear indication that the very existence of the Jews in Austria was at risk.
For Herzl this was a clear sign of the collapse of political stability in the Austro-Hungarian Empire in general and the undermining of the status of the Jews in particular. 12
Lichtenstein-co-founder with Karl Lueger of the Austrian Christian Social Party-declared that anti-Semitism was an integral part of his ideology and politics. He cited the antagonism towards the Jews, created by their domination of the Austrian credit business, as the main reason for the success of his party. 13
In France, in 1884, Captain Alfred Dreyfus was convicted in a court martial of selling French military secrets to the Germans. Although the evidence pointed to his innocence, false witnesses fabricated evidence that led to his conviction. When a new trial was held in 1898, and the accuser who was found to be with false testimony committed suicide, huge support arose from the masses to support his widow, and to cry out against the Jews. Herzl maintained that Dreyfus could not have been guilty of the crime of which he had been accused, because when a Jew reaches the desirable and honorable position of power and authority in gentile society-when one is accepted and thus assimilated-he will not risk losing this much-valued acquired status. The anti-Semitism that was stirred up in the masses during the Dreyfus Affair led Herzl to seriously consider a solution to the Jewish Question. All these elements combined necessitated the founding of a Jewish state.
In September 1899 in an article he wrote called “Zionism”, he wrote:
“You see, what made me a Zionist was the Dreyfus trial.” 14
"No human being is wealthy or powerful enough to transplant a nation from one habitation to another. An idea alone can compass that: and this idea of a state may have the requisite power to do so. The Jews have dreamt this kingly dream all through the long nights of their history. ‘Next year in Jerusalem’ is our old phrase. It is now a question of showing that the dream can be converted into a living reality." 15
Herzl is acknowledging that throughout all the centuries in the galut, the Jews have always had a desire in their hearts to return to the land of their forefathers. There has always been a connection between the Jewish nation, and the land of Israel. He says though, that the Jews have been dreaming about it throughout the centuries, without any action towards the realization of that dream.
He is the one who is putting forward the idea; and he is the one who is laying the groundwork, the foundation, for its materialization. He is the sublime figure that encapsulates this idea: he is the personification of this idea that has the requisite power to rise up a nation oppressed, to the military victories we see just forty two years after his death.
He made a journal entry in 1896, which suggests that he was aware of the magnetism that he held over the people:
"As I sat on the platform of the workmen’s stage on Sunday I experienced strange sensations. I saw and heard my legend being born. The people are sentimental; the masses do not see clearly. I believe that even now they no longer have a clear image of me. A light fog is beginning to rise around me and it may perhaps become the cloud in which I shall walk." 16
The first Zionist Congress took place in Basle, Switzerland, on August 29th 1897. The man responsible for organizing the congress and the central figure of the congress was Theodor Herzl. It was attended by nationalist Jewish leaders from all over the world. The aim of Zionism is to create a national home for the Jewish people. It is to bring the Jewish people from the Four Corners of the earth, to an internationally recognized and secure border in the land of Palestine. Herzl wrote in his diary on September 3rd 1897:
"If I were to sum up the Congress in a word-which I shall take care not to publish-it would be this: At Basle I founded the Jewish State. If I said this out loud today I would be greeted by universal laughter. In five years perhaps, and certainly in fifty years, everyone will perceive it." 17
Just over fifty years after this diary entry, this prediction is fulfilled.
Theodor Herzl was not the first to consider the foundation of a Jewish state as a valid solution to the Jewish problem; but he is the first to propose a tangible plan of action for the realization of such a cause. His objectivity due to his ignorance with regards to Jewish matters may have been his greatest asset.
Herzl decided that the only solution was for the Jews to have a state of their own. He was so unlearned in Jewish affairs that he did not know that many other Jews had proposed such a solution before him. Working only from his own thoughts, Herzl went home and wrote a book, The Jewish State, in which he outlined his proposal. 18
Herzl even claimed at a later time, that:
“Had I known Pinsker’s writings, I would not have written 'The Jewish State'.” 19
Innovative leadership is usually a function of the leaders’ freedom of maneuver. When he began, Herzl was free of any cultural conditioning. Unaffected by tradition, national images and historical precedents, he burst boldly into a flight of imagination. 20
The writings of Leon Pinsker and of Moses Hess and of Nathan Binbaum scan back almost three decades before Herzl ever considered political Zionism. Hovevi Zion, and other Zionist groups, existed and proposed the slow migration to, and settlement of the Jews in Palestine. Herzl viewed this method as a slow one; and as one that was not politically sound, because it did not involve or have the open support of the political powers of the time. Herzl wanted Zionism to be supported by at least one world power: he wanted the establishment of the Jewish State to be the product of the combined efforts of the Jewish people and the gentile powers. He wants to recruit gentiles to his camp, who will help with the fulfillment of his plan.
“I have already mentioned that honest anti-Semites, whilst preserving their independence, will combine with our officials in controlling the transfer of our estates.” 21
Although there are differences and disagreements between Herzl, and the already existing Zionist groups, Herzl’s shrewd diplomacy, dispels any clouds that obscure the clarity of his vision. He thus consolidates the efforts and the support of practically all groups, and gets the ball of Political Zionism rolling.
In his opening address at the First Zionist Congress, Herzl declared that ‘Zionism constitutes a return to Judaism even before a return to the land of the Jews.’ This sentence has been subjected to considerable interpretation; there were even some Orthodox who saw it as an expression of Herzl’s return to traditional Judaism. Yet there can be no doubt that this was not the meaning intended by Herzl. It was nothing more than a romantic call for return to the ‘ancient home; to the Jewish past and the sense of national togetherness, before the physical return to the land. 22
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