First, let me say that the history of the nation of Israel is a fascinating story, but its hard to tell it from this journalistic scrap book cut and paste job telling of events with no attempt to integrate or explain.

From what I can tell (Gilbert doesn't help with this) the unsettled situation in Israel that has descended from occasional national wars to continual regional terrorism stems from some primary facts about Israel:

1. In 1948, after the nation was declared, there was a massive exchange of refugees--Palestinians moving out, Jews moving in. Israel quickly integrated its refugees economically, politically, socially, and spiritually. The Palestinians were kept intentionally isolated as refugees in their new countries, even up to today.

2. The continued occupation of Gaza and the West Bank after the 1967 war for security reasons brought a large Palestinian population under Israeli political leadership, setting the stage for an ongoing Arab problem (and was opposed by many Israeli leaders at the time)

3. The secularization of Israeli life and society has led to conflicts with a government increasingly isolated from its population because of . . .

4. . . . the gradual increase of religious influence in Israeli politics. Increasingly conservative religion-based political parties have had an enormous impact on the resolution of the questions of how to do deal with the Arab population in Israel and the Gaza/West Bank areas, the "peace process", and . . .

5. . . . the increasing and increasingly militaristic conservative Jewish resettlement in the disputed areas, which in a perfect- storm downward spiral reinforces the resolve of the Israeli government to maintain its presence in the disputed areas.

Again, these are my conclusions, Gilbert draws none and provides no discussion toward conclusions. It is as if he were paralyzed by the source materials and was unable to go beyond the cut and paste job that was the raw material for what might have been a worthwhile effort.

Martin Gilbert, in this comprehensive volume, chronicles the history of the Land of Israel (Eretz Yisrael), from 1862 to 1997.
He describes the ancient attachment of the Jewish people to the Land of Israel, through the millenia. Since the destruction of the Second Temple by the Romans in CE 70, the Jews who were dispersed all over the Roman Empire, had prayed for a return to Zion.
'Next year' in Jerusalem, has always been the hope expressed at the end of every Passover meal, commemorating the exodus from Egypt.
During the 1700s movements of Hasidic Jews took place to Eretz Yisrael, from Eastern Europe.
By mid-19th century there were around 10 000 Jews living in Eretz Yisrael.
More than 8000 of them lived in Jerusalem. A few hundred lived in the ancient holy city of Safed in the north, in Tiberius, Acre and Jaffa, and there was a community in Peki'in, where there has been a continuous presence of Jews since the destruction of the Second Temple.
He describes the origins of the modern Zionist movement born out of Jewish national aspirations and the ages old attachment to Israel: Moses Hess, George Eliot, Bilu and Hovevei Zion, the return to the land, the actualization of the Zionist programme by Theodore Herzl, and the rebuilding of the blighted and empty Palestine.
By 1914 there were 90 000 Jews living in the Land of Israel, of whom 75 000 were immigrants.
Gilbert reviews the Arab attacks on Jewish communities, in 1920-21, 1929 and 1936-1939, in which Jewish communities were attacked and thousands of Jewish men, women and children murdered.
The answers today to the problems posed by the opponents of Zionism, were already evident before the State of Israel was re-established.
Islamic radicals and the international extreme left demmand that Israel be dismantled and be replaced by a unitary Arab 'Palestine' in which the Jews would survive at the tolerance of Hamas and the PLO.
Zionist leader Arthur Ruppin wrote in 1931 that there was no hope for the Jews to rely, for their survival on Arab goodwill:
"At most the Arabs would agree to grant national rights to the Jews in an Arab state, on the pattern of national rights in Eastern Europe. But we know only too well from conditions in Eastern Europe how little a majority with executive power can be moved to grant real and complete real and national equality to a minority. The fate of of the Jewish minority in Palestine would always be dependent upon the goodwill of the Arab minority which would steer the state."
With Hamas in the ascendancy today, among the Palestinians, with it's aim to clear 'Palestine' of all Jews, and it's murderous apparatus, we all know that a 1 State Solution would lead to a second holocaust of Jews.
Israel was created so that Jews could rely on themselves for their own security and welfare, afetr two thousand years of being subjected to tyrants and murderous rabble.
This remains the case, more than ever today, and always will.
Gilbert covers the massive immigration to Israel, from Germany in the 1930's of hundreds of thousands of Jews fleeing form Hitler's Nazi Reich, and how Britain later shut the doors to Jewish immigration into Israel, while allowing massive immigration from neighbouring Arab regions.
Millions of Jews, who could have fled, to Israel, were instead consumed in the Nazi infernos, in part due to Arab-British connivance.
We read of the in depth anti-Semitic and Nazi-influenced culture, inculcated among Arabs , since the time of Hitler's arch-ally and leader of the Palestinian Arabs, Mufti Haj Amin el Husseini.
Later, for example, we read of how Egyptian troops captured by Israeli soldiers, during the Suez War of 1956, carried on them Arabic translations of Hitler's Meim Kampf.
We read of the survival of the Jews in Palestine during World War II, and how it miraculously survived being overwhelmed by the Axis powers in neighbouring Syria, Lebanon and Egypt.
Finally we read of the struggles of the state internally and externally.
The growth of a society of refugees, and their descendants, refugees either from Nazi-occupied Europe, and holocaust survivors, and of the 800 000 Jews brutally driven out of Arab countries, after 1948.
Of the wars for survival, and of the countless terror attacks, across the borders from the 1950's.
The continuous provocation and murder from Israel's Arab neighbours , and we discover how every war, contrary to Islamic and radical left propaganda, was initiated by the Arabs and their allies.
Unfortunately, the last few chapters of the book, seems to have a bias towards the left of the Israeli political spectrum, and the demand that Israel gives countless concessions to the 'Palestinians', with nothing in return.
The last word, for me, however go's to the former Chief Rabbi of Tel Aviv, Chaim David HaLevi who in response to one of the countless Arab atrocities against Israeli women and children, said at the funeral of a an elderly holocaust survivor, who died in a Hamas suicide bombing, in 1997:"These deaths are more painful than all of the losses of the Jewish people suffered while in exile. Here they are trying to flush us out of our homeland. But we will stay in this land, despite everything".
G-D Bless the Jews of the Land of Israel, forever!

Martin Gilbert, in this comprehensive volume, chronicles the history of the Land of Israel (Eretz Yisrael), from 1862 to 1997.
He describes the ancient attachment of the Jewish people to the Land of Israel, through the millenia. Since the destruction of the Second Temple by the Romans in CE 70, the Jews who were dispersed all over the Roman Empire, had prayed for a return to Zion.
'Next year' in Jerusalem, has always been the hope expressed at the end of every Passover meal, commemorating the exodus from Egypt.
During the 1700s movements of Hasidic Jews took place to Eretz Yisrael, from Eastern Europe.
By mid-19th century there were around 10 000 Jews living in Eretz Yisrael.
More than 8000 of them lived in Jerusalem. A few hundred lived in the ancient holy city of Safed in the north, in Tiberius, Acre and Jaffa, and there was a community in Peki'in, where there has been a continuous presence of Jews since the destruction of the Second Temple.
He describes the origins of the modern Zionist movement born out of Jewish national aspirations and the ages old attachment to Israel: Moses Hess, George Eliot, Bilu and Hovevei Zion, the return to the land, the actualization of the Zionist programme by Theodore Herzl, and the rebuilding of the blighted and empty Palestine.
By 1914 there were 90 000 Jews living in the Land of Israel, of whom 75 000 were immigrants.
Gilbert reviews the Arab attacks on Jewish communities, in 1920-21, 1929 and 1936-1939, in which Jewish communities were attacked and thousands of Jewish men, women and children murdered.
The answers today to the problems posed by the opponents of Zionism, were already evident before the State of Israel was re-established.
Islamic radicals and the international extreme left demmand that Israel be dismantled and be replaced by a unitary Arab 'Palestine' in which the Jews would survive at the tolerance of Hamas and the PLO.
Zionist leader Arthur Ruppin wrote in 1931 that there was no hope for the Jews to rely, for their survival on Arab goodwill:
"At most the Arabs would agree to grant national rights to the Jews in an Arab state, on the pattern of national rights in Eastern Europe. But we know only too well from conditions in Eastern Europe how little a majority with executive power can be moved to grant real and complete real and national equality to a minority. The fate of of the Jewish minority in Palestine would always be dependent upon the goodwill of the Arab minority which would steer the state."
With Hamas in the ascendancy today, among the Palestinians, with it's aim to clear 'Palestine' of all Jews, and it's murderous apparatus, we all know that a 1 State Solution would lead to a second holocaust of Jews.
Israel was created so that Jews could rely on themselves for their own security and welfare, afetr two thousand years of being subjected to tyrants and murderous rabble.
This remains the case, more than ever today, and always will.
Gilbert covers the massive immigration to Israel, from Germany in the 1930's of hundreds of thousands of Jews fleeing form Hitler's Nazi Reich, and how Britain later shut the doors to Jewish immigration into Israel, while allowing massive immigration from neighbouring Arab regions.
Millions of Jews, who could have fled, to Israel, were instead consumed in the Nazi infernos, in part due to Arab-British connivance.
We read of the in depth anti-Semitic and Nazi-influenced culture, inculcated among Arabs , since the time of Hitler's arch-ally and leader of the Palestinian Arabs, Mufti Haj Amin el Husseini.
Later, for example, we read of how Egyptian troops captured by Israeli soldiers, during the Suez War of 1956, carried on them Arabic translations of Hitler's Meim Kampf.
We read of the survival of the Jews in Palestine during World War II, and how it miraculously survived being overwhelmed by the Axis powers in neighbouring Syria, Lebanon and Egypt.
Finally we read of the struggles of the state internally and externally.
The growth of a society of refugees, and their descendants, refugees either from Nazi-occupied Europe, and holocaust survivors, and of the 800 000 Jews brutally driven out of Arab countries, after 1948.
Of the wars for survival, and of the countless terror attacks, across the borders from the 1950's.
The continuous provocation and murder from Israel's Arab neighbours , and we discover how every war, contrary to Islamic and radical left propaganda, was initiated by the Arabs and their allies.
Unfortunately, the last few chapters of the book, seems to have a bias towards the left of the Israeli political spectrum, and the demand that Israel gives countless concessions to the 'Palestinians', with nothing in return.
The last word, for me, however go's to the former Chief Rabbi of Tel Aviv, Chaim David HaLevi who in response to one of the countless Arab atrocities against Israeli women and children, said at the funeral of a an elderly holocaust survivor, who died in a Hamas suicide bombing, in 1997:"These deaths are more painful than all of the losses of the Jewish people suffered while in exile. Here they are trying to flush us out of our homeland. But we will stay in this land, despite everything".
G-D Bless the Jews of the Land of Israel, forever!

Martin Gilbert, in this comprehensive volume, chronicles the history of the Land of Israel (Eretz Yisrael), from 1862 to 1997.

He describes the ancient attachment of the Jewish people to the Land of Israel, through the millenia. Since the destruction of the Second Temple by the Romans in CE 70, the Jews who were dispersed all over the Roman Empire, had prayed for a return to Zion.

'Next year' in Jerusalem, has always been the hope expressed at the end of every Passover meal, commemorating the exodus from Egypt.

During the 1700s movements of Hassidic Jews took place to Eretz Yisrael, from Eastern Europe.

By mid-19th century there were around 10 000 Jews living in Eretz Yisrael.

More than 8000 of them lived in Jerusalem. A few hundred lived in the ancient holy city of Safed in the north, in Tiberius, Acre and Jaffa, and there was a community in Peki'in, where there has been a continuous presence of Jews since the destruction of the Second Temple.

He describes the origins of the modern Zionist movement born out of Jewish national aspirations and the ages old attachment to Israel: Moses Hess, George Eliot, Bilu and Hovevei Zion, the return to the land, the actualization of the Zionist programme by Theodore Herzl, and the rebuilding of the blighted and empty Palestine.

By 1914 there were 90 000 Jews living in the Land of Israel, of whom 75 000 were immigrants.

Gilbert reviews the Arab attacks on Jewish communities, in 1920-21, 1929 and 1936-1939, in which Jewish communities were attacked and thousands of Jewish men, women and children murdered.

The answers today to the problems posed by the opponents of Zionism, were already evident before the State of Israel was re-established.

Islamic radicals and the international extreme left demmand that Israel be dismantled and be replaced by a unitary Arab 'Palestine' in which the Jews would survive at the tolerance of Hamas and the PLO.

Zionist leader Arthur Ruppin wrote in 1931 that there was no hope for the Jews to rely, for their survival on Arab goodwill:

"At most the Arabs would agree to grant national rights to the Jews in an Arab state, on the pattern of national rights in Eastern Europe. But we know only too well from conditions in Eastern Europe how little a majority with executive power can be moved to grant real and complete real and national equality to a minority. The fate of of the Jewish minority in Palestine would always be dependent upon the goodwill of the Arab minority which would steer the state."

With Hamas in the ascendancy today, among the Palestinians, with it's aim to clear 'Palestine' of all Jews, and it's murderous apparatus, we all know that a 1 State Solution would lead to a second holocaust of Jews.

Israel was created so that Jews could rely on themselves for their own security and welfare, afetr two thousand years of being subjected to tyrants and murderous rabble.

This remains the case, more than ever today, and always will.

Gilbert covers the massive immigration to Israel, from Germany in the 1930's of hundreds of thousands of Jews fleeing form Hitler's Nazi Reich, and how Britian later shut the doors to Jewish immigration into Israel, while allowing massive immigration from neighbouring Arab regions.

Millions of Jews, who could have fled, to Israel, were instead consumed in the Nazi infernos, in part due to Arab-British connivance.

We read of the indepth anti-Semitic and Nazi-inluenced culture, inculcated among arabs , since the time of Hitler's arch-ally and leader of the Palestinian Arabs, Mufti Haj amin el Husseini.

Later, for example, we read of how Egyptian troops captured by Israeli soldiers, during the Suez War of 1956, carried on them Arabic translations of Hitler's Meim Kampf.

We read of the surivial of the Jews in Palestine during World War II, and how it miraculously survived being overhelmed by the Axis powers in neigbouring Syria, Lebanon and Egypt.

Finally we read of the struggles of the state internally and externally.

The growth of a society of refugees, and their descendants, refugess either from Nazi-occupied Europe, and holocaust survivors, and of the 800 000 Jews brutally driven oput of Arab countries, after 1948.

Of the wars for survival, and of the countless terror attacks, across the borders from the 1950's.

The continuous provocation and murder from Israel's Arab neighbours , and we discover how every war, contrary to Islamic and radical left propaganda, was initiated by the Arabs and their allies.

Unfortunately, the last few chapters of the book, seems to have a bias towards the left of the Israeli political spectrum, and the demmand that Israel gives countless concessions to the 'Palestinians', with nothing in return.

The last word, for me, however go's to the former Chief Rabbi of Tel Aviv, Chaim DAvid HaLevi who in response to one of the countless Arab atrocities against Israeli women and children, said at the funeral of a an elderly holocaust survivor, who died in a Hamas suicide bombing, in 1997:"These deaths are more painful than all of the losses of the Jewish people suffered while in exile. Here they are trying to flush us out of our homeland. But we will stay in this land, despite everything".

G-D Bless the Jews of the Land of Israel, forever!

Martin Gilbert, in this comprehensive volume, chronicles the history of the Land of Israel (Eretz Yisrael), from 1862 to 1997.

He describes the ancient attachment of the Jewish people to the Land of Israel, through the millenia. Since the destruction of the Second Temple by the Romans in CE 70, the Jews who were dispersed all over the Roman Empire, had prayed for a return to Zion.

'Next year' in Jerusalem, has always been the hope expressed at the end of every Passover meal, commemorating the exodus from Egypt.

During the 1700s movements of Hassidic Jews took place to Eretz Yisrael, from Eastern Europe.

By mid-19th century there were around 10 000 Jews living in Eretz Yisrael.

More than 8000 of them lived in Jerusalem. A few hundred lived in the ancient holy city of Safed in the north, in Tiberius, Acre and Jaffa, and there was a community in Peki'in, where there has been a continuous presence of Jews since the destruction of the Second Temple.

He describes the origins of the modern Zionist movement born out of Jewish national aspirations and the ages old attachment to Israel: Moses Hess, George Eliot, Bilu and Hovevei Zion, the return to the land, the actualization of the Zionist programme by Theodore Herzl, and the rebuilding of the blighted and empty Palestine.

By 1914 there were 90 000 Jews living in the Land of Israel, of whom 75 000 were immigrants.

Gilbert reviews the Arab attacks on Jewish communities, in 1920-21, 1929 and 1936-1939, in which Jewish communities were attacked and thousands of Jewish men, women and children murdered.

The answers today to the problems posed by the opponents of Zionism, were already evident before the State of Israel was re-established.

Islamic radicals and the international extreme left demmand that Israel be dismantled and be replaced by a unitary Arab 'Palestine' in which the Jews would survive at the tolerance of Hamas and the PLO.

Zionist leader Arthur Ruppin wrote in 1931 that there was no hope for the Jews to rely, for their survival on Arab goodwill:

"At most the Arabs would agree to grant national rights to the Jews in an Arab state, on the pattern of national rights in Eastern Europe. But we know only too well from conditions in Eastern Europe how little a majority with executive power can be moved to grant real and complete real and national equality to a minority. The fate of of the Jewish minority in Palestine would always be dependent upon the goodwill of the Arab minority which would steer the state."

With Hamas in the ascendancy today, among the Palestinians, with it's aim to clear 'Palestine' of all Jews, and it's murderous apparatus, we all know that a 1 State Solution would lead to a second holocaust of Jews.

Israel was created so that Jews could rely on themselves for their own security and welfare, afetr two thousand years of being subjected to tyrants and murderous rabble.

This remains the case, more than ever today, and always will.

Gilbert covers the massive immigration to Israel, from Germany in the 1930's of hundreds of thousands of Jews fleeing form Hitler's Nazi Reich, and how Britian later shut the doors to Jewish immigration into Israel, while allowing massive immigration from neighbouring Arab regions.

Millions of Jews, who could have fled, to Israel, were instead consumed in the Nazi infernos, in part due to Arab-British connivance.

We read of the indepth anti-Semitic and Nazi-inluenced culture, inculcated among arabs , since the time of Hitler's arch-ally and leader of the Palestinian Arabs, Mufti Haj amin el Husseini.

Later, for example, we read of how Egyptian troops captured by Israeli soldiers, during the Suez War of 1956, carried on them Arabic translations of Hitler's Meim Kampf.

We read of the surivial of the Jews in Palestine during World War II, and how it miraculously survived being overhelmed by the Axis powers in neigbouring Syria, Lebanon and Egypt.

Finally we read of the struggles of the state internally and externally.

The growth of a society of refugees, and their descendants, refugess either from Nazi-occupied Europe, and holocaust survivors, and of the 800 000 Jews brutally driven oput of Arab countries, after 1948.

Of the wars for survival, and of the countless terror attacks, across the borders from the 1950's.

The continuous provocation and murder from Israel's Arab neighbours , and we discover how every war, contrary to Islamic and radical left propaganda, was initiated by the Arabs and their allies.

Unfortunately, the last few chapters of the book, seems to have a bias towards the left of the Israeli political spectrum, and the demmand that Israel gives countless concessions to the 'Palestinians', with nothing in return.

The last word, for me, however go's to the former Chief Rabbi of Tel Aviv, Chaim DAvid HaLevi who in response to one of the countless Arab atrocities against Israeli women and children, said at the funeral of a an elderly holocaust survivor, who died in a Hamas suicide bombing, in 1997:"These deaths are more painful than all of the losses of the Jewish people suffered while in exile. Here they are trying to flush us out of our homeland. But we will stay in this land, despite everything".

G-D Bless the Jews of the Land of Israel, forever!

Martin Gilbert is easy to read, but I find a number of deficiences that future modern histories of the Land of Israel will need to address.

1) A better discussion of what it was like when the Land of Israel first started being described by modern travelers such as Tristram, Smith, Robinson and Mark Twain back in the nineteenth century.

2) Readers should have more information about the growth and characteristics of the Islamic population of the Land of Israel during the last 150-200 years.

3) The coverage of the establishment and development of the mostly Jewish universities needs improvement. The story of the Arab universities in Judea, Samaria and Gaza needs to be done and placed in historical context.

4) I would like to see coverage of the Wingate Institute and Israeli sports including the Olympics.

5) Any later writer who fails to adequately cover Israeli High-Tech will be judged incompetent. Here because the book was mostly written before the big growth took place with the immigration of the Russians it is annoying, but forgiveable.

This is not a terrible history. Like all national histories it is an attempt at self-understanding. Later histories will need to look at this one, consider the deficiences pointed out by the critics and write better ones. I rate this one 3 stars in consideration of its deficiences and the fact that Israeli society has already moved on in its self-understanding.

Gilbert is a great researcher whose narratives are always studded with well-documented evidence. In this account of the modern state of Israel he presents a basically sympathetic portrait of the struggles of the Jewish state. He gives the sense of the coming into being of Israel and its struggle for existence as a dramatic and worthwhile endeavor. This is a much recommended work.

Gilbert notes occasions in which Jewish leaders asked Arabs to remain in their villages (p. 172, for instance), and occasions in which the Arabs were effectively turned out (p. 218, for one). He recounts the efforts of several Arab leaders to induce Arab flight (p. 173, among others).
He graphically depicts the ugliness of the refugee movements (p. 218, etc).
He talks about Israeli looting (p. 220) and the States efforts to stamp it out.
He describes some solid military justifications for forcibly evacuating Arab villages (p. 177, and others).
He reveals the Israeli decisions to appropriate the land of Arab refugees for Jewish settlement(p. 256, etc), Jewish opposition to such measures (same page) and the enormous population pressure of incoming Jewish refugees which made such measures critical (p. 261, among others).
He documents the internal conflicts of the new State, including those within its divided armed forces (p. 211, and others). He shows self-serving division among Israel's Arab neighbors (pp. 241-242, etc).
He chronicles United States support for Israel (p. 445, 460) but also many occasions in which the United States pressured Israel on various issues, including withdrawing from occupied areas and accepting Arab refugees. (pp. 232, 255, 414, 457, 458).
None of the page lists is exhaustive, merely representative.

Gilbert glosses over nothing. He shows both sides of every question. He never tacitly accepts a simple solution to, or explanation for, a complex problem.
It is my opinion, having read the book, that any perception of favoritism toward Israel is actually an uncomfortable awareness (based on well-documented facts) that Israel, for all its mistakes, has been the victim of ingrained hatred and constant aggression, and that her successes have ultimately been the result of the dedication and brilliance of her own people.

Gilbert notes occasions in which Jewish leaders asked Arabs to remain in their villages (p. 172, for instance), and occasions in which the Arabs were effectively turned out (p. 218, for one). He recounts the efforts of several Arab leaders to induce Arab flight (p. 173, among others).
He graphically depicts the ugliness of the refugee movements (p. 218, etc).
He talks about Israeli looting (p. 220) and the States efforts to stamp it out.
He describes some solid military justifications for forcibly evacuating Arab villages (p. 177, and others).
He reveals the Israeli decisions to appropriate the land of Arab refugees for Jewish settlement(p. 256, etc), Jewish opposition to such measures (same page) and the enormous population pressure of incoming Jewish refugees which made such measures critical (p. 261, among others).
He documents the internal conflicts of the new State, including those within its divided armed forces (p. 211, and others). He shows self-serving division among Israel's Arab neighbors (pp. 241-242, etc).
He chronicles United States support for Israel (p. 445, 460) but also many occasions in which the United States pressured Israel on various issues, including withdrawing from occupied areas and accepting Arab refugees. (pp. 232, 255, 414, 457, 458).
None of the page lists is exhaustive, merely representative.

Gilbert glosses over nothing. He shows both sides of every question. He never tacitly accepts a simple solution to, or explanation for, a complex problem.
It is my opinion, having read the book, that any perception of favoritism toward Israel is actually an uncomfortable awareness (based on well-documented facts) that Israel, for all its mistakes, has been the victim of ingrained hatred and constant aggression, and that her successes have ultimately been the result of the dedication and brilliance of her own people.

Martin Gilbert does not write small books.

It's a good deal that we have this man around at the beginning of the twenty-first century, and that we can read the large works he gave us in the twentieth.

It's wise to understand what you get when Gilbert fixes his gaze on a man (Churchill), a war (the Second), or a disputed piece of turf and the people who live on it (Israel). You get a writer of eminent capability for working through data, one who knows his mind very well, one who expresses himself with a brilliantly English turn of phrase, and one with whom you won't always agree (evident from some reviews of the book in hand).

Gilbert is deeply sympathetic with the phenomenon and the nation we call Israel. As a man whose ethics run deeper than Realpolitik, he doesn't attempt to justify all that has happened under that Israeli flag or its predecessors, though neither does he shift the burden of proof always to Israeli shoulders. Readers will be wise to supplement Gilbert's work with others more cognizant of Palestinian grievances.

Yet not to read and to appreciate Martin Gilbert's way of doing history - even the history of so contentious a place as Israel - is to remain impoverished and to misunderstand what *can* be learned of Israel as seen through Gilbert's lens.

This book is a dense read, but interested learners will not find it too difficult. It is widely available both used and in discount bookstores. In this reviewer's opinion, you never go wrong in picking up a Gilbert.

This is a very readable and informative history of Israel through 1997, and it includes some excellent maps. It does have a point of view, of course, as Gilbert relies heavily on British and liberal Jewish sources. But it does not omit any major elements of the history of the region. Gilbert uses his sources primarily to obtain facts, not opinions.

The book begins with the start of modern Zionism, with the first settlements starting in 1878. But we quickly get through World War One and into the British Mandate period.

Although Gilbert is British, he does not hesitate to describe the infamous British White Paper of 1939, which caused a Jewish revolt that led to the establishment of Israel. Nor does he avoid discussing the ships that tried to run the British blockade in World War Two. And he admits that after the war, in spite of Labour Party promises to make the Mandate a Jewish state, the Labour government instead did the opposite, and became obsessed with the idea of preventing Jews from getting into the Levant.

There is a very good description of the Arab-Israeli war of 1948. And a thorough history of Israel from then on. We see Israel grow as a nation. We see wars in which Israeli succeeds on the battlefield only to lose diplomatically. And Gilbert shows exactly what these diplomatic losses mean. They do not mean merely the loss of a few homes or land or money. They mean more war. Each diplomatic loss hurts because it gets the Arabs to attack them once again. And we see how Israeli self-restraint coupled with international demands on Israel for even more restraint generally wind up causing more violence, not less. Gilbert is to be congratulated for showing how this has occurred.

The only weak points of the book are the most recent four years. These deal with the Oslo "peace process." Gilbert, of course, wrote the book before he knew how events would pan out. And he wound up guessing wrong. That caused him to lack perspective on the significance of Arab insincerity at Oslo, or the significance of the assassination of Rabin. For example, when Israel opened a door to a tunnel in the Muslim quarter of the Old City in 1996, Gilbert quite properly puts the actual act in perspective. All it did was improve things for tourists, giving Muslim shopkeepers a benefit. But there were Arab riots. Here, Gilbert, with the perspective we have years later, probably would have seen these riots as provoked only by Arabs. But in this book, he's too close to the situation, and looks for Israeli errors.

This book has few obvious errors. Given how awful some of the more biased histories of Israel can be, this one is a very good place to start.

Drawing on his vast experience of this subject Sir Martin Gilbert has documented a superlative history of Israel which is extremely thorough and accurate.

This study surveys in some detail the first 50 years of Israel's history following the nation's re-birth in 1948. The book also tells of the involvement of the nation's pioneers and founders extending back into the latter half of the nineteenth century, together with many stories pertaining to the individuals who contributed to the re-birth of the Jewish state and to it's very survival during the ensuing conflicts.

The book begins with a chapter entitled "Ideals For Statehood" and describes how, since the destruction of the Second Temple by the Romans in 70AD, Jews dispersed throughout the World have prayed for a return to Zion. "Next Year in Jerusalem" being the hope expressed at the end of every Passover meal. Later in the book the incredible hostility towards such Zionism is addressed.

The book initially describes the "considerable Jewish activity in Palestine" as the nineteenth century came to an end and extends to the Balfour Declaration and the work towards a Jewish homeland in Palestine that the latter promised. Unfortunately the book lacks any appropriate or real attention to the creation of the state of Transjordan in 1922 and how this affected the eventual rebirth of Israel. An issue where Britain detached 78% of the original area of Mandate Palestine to create another Arab entity in order to satisfy Arab aspirations for independence. This area east of the Jordan was thereafter called Trans-Jordan, and remained legally part of the British Mandate until 1946, when it was declared an independent Arab state, renamed Jordan in 1953. (Jordan then comprising 78% of Mandate Palestine with the vast majority of Jordanians being Palestinians.). The latter, although not discussed in detail here is evident from the contents of the book. Maps illustrating the issue further.

The book on page 37 reveals that the potential of the land following the First World War, (on which fewer than a million people were living on both sides of the Jordan), was regarded as enormous. The reader is shown how less than 10 per cent of the land was actually under cultivation at that time with no Arab needing to be dispossessed, or their rights infringed, for the "Zionists" to make substantial land purchases. The considerable Jewish population already in the land is also mentioned, together with reference to the Arab violence against these Jewish populations even in 1919. Coverage also being given to the increase of this violence through the ensuing decades as Jewish immigration increased with any attempt to reassure or compromise with resident Arabs being rejected. Violence, riots and Arab general strikes described as attempts to stop any influx of Jews to their ancient homeland.

The contents further describing how the rise of Hitler to power in Germany during 1933 affected the situation pertaining to Jewish immigration and the relationship on the ground between Arabs and Jews. The actions of the occupying British forces described as they enforced declared strict quota restrictions on Jewish immigration, even in the face of Nazi persecution and the Holocaust. This whilst illegal Arab immigration from surrounding areas was allowed to proceed unhindered.

The British action restricting immigration by Jewish refugees from Nazi occupied Europe is described as a continuing priority even after the war's end in 1945, with imprisonment being afforded those captured in British "detention camps" on Cyprus. Some 50,000 Jews being imprisoned in this manner. From here the conflict in the land is described in some detail until the declaration of independence by the Jewish State of Israel in May 1948. This is followed by a commendable coverage of the ensuing "War Of Independence" during which surrounding Arab nations sought to eradicate the Jewish State by all military means at their disposal.

The ingathering of Jewish exiles to the newly born Jewish State is documented, as is the Suez conflict and events leading up to the Six Day War in 1967. Continuing acts of violence by Arabs against the Jewish population during these periods are also covered, including the formation in 1964 of the "Palestine Liberation Organisation". Another organisation is described as being formed in 1965, whose leader was Abu Ammar (Yasser Arafat). The group being Fatah, and it's goal the "national liberation of Palestine". All this whilst the Gaza Strip and the "West Bank" were in Arab hands, occupied by the Arab nations of Egypt and Jordan.

Respectable coverage is also given to the 1973 Yom Kippur War, amid the seeming impotence or unwillingness of the UN to intervene, plus the political susceptibility of the World to an Arab oil boycott. A conflict which the book describes as showing the growing independence of Israel upon the USA.

Increasing Palestinian terrorism is described in the context of the Israeli invasion of Lebanon during 1982, again with credible coverage. The study extending to include the Oslo Accords and the present "peace process", together with the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin.

Numerous photographs are provided, together with a large selection of maps which are relevant to the major issues surrounding the history of the Jewish state. An invaluable piece of historical research and an excellent addition to anyone's library. I would also recommend reading "From Time Immemorial; Origins of the Jewish-Arab Conflict Over Palestine" by Joan Peters.

I wondered whether or not this book, as long as it is, would hold my attention. It certainly did! I highly recommend it for anyone who wants to learn about the history of modern-day Israel.

The author starts at about 1897 with the "Zionist Movement," and continues through about 1997 and the assassination of Prime Minister Rabin. He quotes frequently from biographies of such persons as Golda Meir, Shimon Peres, and other influential Israelis.

The only beef I had with the book was I wished the author would have gone into more detail on such events as the Israel attack on the Iraqi nuclear reactor, the rescue of the hostages in Uganda, and the attempted rescue of the Israel Olympic athletes in 1972.

After reading a history such as this it just astounds me that Israel is still in existence, after (at times) almost the entire world is against it. Surviving five wars in less than 60 years of existence (and ususally outnumbered), it is a vivid testimony to God's preservation of His people. Yes, Israel has made some mistakes (both morally and tactically), but there's not a nation on earth that hasn't. It is also in the unusual position of being the most hated nation on earth.

The book is well written, and seems to have been researched extensively. Again, I couldn't recommend it more for someone wanting to learn of Israel's history.

Buy this book if you want to learn about the Palestinian-Israeli conflict from a Zionist's perspective. If you are looking for an unbiased account, look elsewhere.

Why is it that any history of Israel which does not conclude that Zionism is a crime against human nature is "biased". Even many supporters of Israel regard works that look favorably on the Jewish state as somehow "biased." The reality is that any fair neutral analysis will show Israel in a favorable light and its enemies unfavorably. Martin Gilbert's extensive history is such a book. It is not necessary to re-create the myths of Zionism and to whitewash bad acts of the Israelis in order to conclude that Israel is a just country and one that Americans should support. Gilbert makes no attempt to persuade the reader in this regard. Instead he comprehensively (and sometimes pedantically) lays out the facts and events of history. The book is not biased at all. Gilbert is not gifted at prosaic writing as was the man for whom he is official biographer, Winston Churchill. If you want to read a British historian whose prose resembles Churchill, the author to read is Paul Johnson. But Gilbert is a gifted historian and this book is eminently readable and thus serves as an excellent introduction to and reference guide for Israeli history through the late 90's. Of course recent events beg for a second edition. We will see.

If you are an Israeli or a Jews who's interested in feeling good about Israel, then that's your book. It gets you so high to the point that you need no Hash. On the other hand, if you're a historian who seeks the truth, this book is extremely misleading, the quotes are selective, and the presented facts are often contradictory. For example:
1-On page 47 Martin stated the Palestinians were close to half a million, while on page 50 he stated a different number ( close to three quarter of a million).
2- He always presented Arab-Jewish fights as being racist in nature, which can not be further from the truth. The same incidents were described by Tom Segev (One Palestine Complete) and Benny Morris (Righteous Victims) to be on personal or criminal basis. Actually, as an Arab, I like to inform you that Arabs often fight against each other with even more violence.
3- Martin often selectively quoted Ben-Gurion and Ahad Ha'Am. For example, he never mentioned that Ben-Gurion always advocated "Compulsory Transfer" of Palestinians or his anti-Arab speeches, or the famous speech by Ahad Ha'Am informing the Zionists congress in the early 20th century that most of the fertile land in Palestine is being planted and taken care off by the indigenous population.
Finally, as a historian I find this book useless from historical research stand point since Martin did not provide a numbered notes for the quoted source where his findings could be verified, which often lead him to contradict himself. You are better off reading other books such Iron Wall, One Palestine Complete, andRighteous Victims

The history of modern Israel is a search for security and peace -- an elusive, tragic search at best. Martin Gilbert's history can be viewed as slanted toward Israel, but that would miss his point, which is that Israelis have self-consciously wished for and worked for peaceful and fruitful co-existence with their neighbors and with the Palestinians from the beginning. Certainly, there have been grave misdeeds by Israelis (and Arabs) that have resulted in senseless loss of life. But if we go off on that track we will never see what Gilbert's point really means. What both sides would likely acknowledge is that the idea of peaceful coexistence has been more seriously entertained by Israelis than by Arabs -- Palestinian and otherwise. If this book is one-sided then it is so because because Gilbert has revealed this critical asymmetry in a way that has not been made clear before. The book is overflowing with details, anecdotes, portraits and asides that lend it an splendid depth. Yet the author never indulges himself in the sort of speculative forays that might confer color to his work at the expense of careful historical analysis. As a result, there is a critical neutrality toward the facts, with a minimum of bias, emotion or polemic. Perhaps the most emotional part of the book surrounds the events leading up to the assassination of Rabin, a masterful, moving account the whole world should read. Gilbert does not provide an argument for the Labor party or a brief against the Palestinians. Instead, he draws out the tragic dimension of a lost opportunity for peace in a part of the world where peace seems always beyond the pale. In the end, this is a hopeful, though sober and cautious work, and certainly not a book that favors one or the other side. It is a book that should be read by both sides, not with the aim of quibbling about who is represented more favorably, but to see how fragile is the chance for peace and how a knowledge of this brief history of Israel can aid in the efforts to bring about stability and justice for all in this long-suffering part of the world.

With great detail Martin Gilbert details the foundation and continued existience of the state of Isreal. Going right back to the founder of modern day zionism Theodore Herzel, he traces almost every political social and military event up to the present day. Like the history of any period or place it is important not to base definitive conclusions on one text, the same holds true in this case. However I did enjoy the political stuff in this book and in particular the role of the military in influencing decisions at Govt Level. If you want to know why the Isrealies are the what they are and how they came to be that way this is your starting point.

At times reading this book was a chore, but like any chore there is value from the work. Mr. Gilbert probably did not need to tell us in excruciating detail about how every kibbutz in Israel was founded, in honor of whose slain relation, and from what part of Europe they came from. But if he did not, we wouldn't get the feel of how the country was founded, settlement by settlement from barren desert. And that's part of his point as he tells the history of Israel: "Think whatever you want of Zionism and the Israelis, but they uprooted their homes from around eastern Europe, Russia, and the middle East and made the desert bloom"

The book covers what is on the cover: Herzl, Netanyahu, and a dozen in between. You learn about the wars, the politics, the historical founders, and the conflict with Arabs. Now, I am a big fan of Israel, but even I must say there is bias in this book. The Arab point of view is not given its due. Everyone not from the Labor/left/Ashkenazi seems to be a misguided radical. The institutional belligerence against the Palestinian Arabs are glossed over or dismissed as part of Likud policies.

If you can put aside this bias, the book is a good comprehensive history of Israel. Especially good reading is the recounts of the 1956, 1967 and 1972 wars with a good smattering of heroic stories from both sides.

MR. GILBERTS BOOK IS VERY WELL WRITTEN AND VERY READABLE. IT IS A LOGICALLY CONSTRUCTED CHRONOLOGY OF THE HISTORY FROM THE RISE OF ZIONISM TO THE PEACE TALKS. MR. GILBERT IS NOT AN ELABORATE WRITER, NOR DOES HE BOG DOWN HIS WRITTING WITH OVER SIMPLIFIED CONCLUSIONS EVERY OTHER PARAGRAPH. IT IS A VERY STRAIGHTFORWARD METHOD OF CONVEYING HIS SPECIFIC HISTORICAL ANALYSIS, WHICH, FOR MANY, MAKES IT A MUCH MORE RELIABLE SOURCE, AND MUCH MORE ENJOYABLE AS WELL.