Churchill's exalted position in the pantheon of Jewish and Zionist heroes has been almost taken for granted. This book looks beyond the myth and makes a sober reappraisal of the British statesman's attitudes and policies towards the Jews and to Zionism.
Professor Cohen answers some challenging questions: Was Churchill ever really committed to the establishment of a Jewish state in Palestine, and why did the notorious White Paper of 1939 remain the law of the land throughout the entire term of Churchill's historic war ministry? And above all, could Prime Minister Churchill have done more to save the Jewish victims of the Nazi holocaust?
Using primarily public archives, and Churchill's own published speeches and writings, Cohen concludes that Churchill never subscribed to the Zionists' ideology, but supported their cause, sporadically, for so long as he judged it to serve British interest.