The Zionist Masquerade (PDF)

JAMES RENTON is Senior Lecturer in History at Edge Hill University, and an Honorary Research Fellow in the Department of Hebrew and Jewish Studies, University College London.

Longlisted for the 2009 Longman/ History Today Book of The Year Prize

'This volume fits within the corpus of historiographical revisionism in Israeli-Palestinian studies, extending the long fingers of so-called new history back into the pre-mandate era...[It is] an elegant and convincing story of the birth of the Anglo-Zionist alliance, the iconic centre-piece of which has traditionally been regarded as the Balfour Declaration of November 1917...There is more to this book, however, than the re-evaluation of the Balfour Declaration. By concentrating closely on senior political figures, both British and Zionist, Renton brings the period to life...While the book undoubtedly adds to our understanding of the events preceding and immediately after the issuance of the Balfour Declaration...it has broader relevance for students of foreign policy in general, demonstrating the impact of cultural mindsets on policy-making. It is admirably researched and documented and adds new dimensions and chronological depth to the historiographical debates on Israel and Palestine thus far.' - Professor Emma Murphy, Asian Affairs

'Renton's excellent new book clearly and concisely explodes many myths surrounding the

Balfour Declaration of 1917...Providing rational explanation for the irrational views of the individuals in London who were most involved, Renton provides a convincing account of why the British and the Zionists formed their wartime alliance. All this not only explains how the "masquerade" played out in 1918 but also anticipates some of the problems it caused for the British Mandate in Palestine and for Israel...[his] scholarship is impeccable...Finally, Renton deserves praise for putting scholarship ahead of partisanship, an all too rare achievement in the all too tortured historiography of the modern Middle East.' - Professor Roger Adelson, International Journal of Middle East Studies

'James Renton has written a powerfully argued and