Balfour Declaration of 1917

The Balfour Declaration was a British statement supporting the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people. It expressed political support for such a home, but did not explicitly promise a sovereign Jewish state or define its territory and institutions.

Terms of the declaration

Issued on 2 November 1917, the declaration stated that the British government viewed with favour the establishment of a Jewish national home in Palestine and would use its best endeavours to facilitate that objective.

• It required that nothing should prejudice the civil and religious rights of the existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine.
• It also protected the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in other countries.

Form and historical setting

British Foreign Secretary Arthur James Balfour communicated the declaration in a letter to Lord Rothschild, intended for transmission to the Zionist Federation. Britain issued it during the First World War, when Palestine remained part of the Ottoman Empire.

Meaning and significance

The expression national home was not defined, leaving the declaration ambiguous about statehood and political sovereignty. Its safeguards mentioned the civil and religious rights of non-Jewish communities, but did not expressly recognize their political or national rights.

• The declaration was subsequently incorporated into the League of Nations Mandate for Palestine, approved in 1922.
• It became a foundational document in the development of British policy in Palestine and in the competing Jewish and Arab claims that shaped the Palestine question.