Archive of documents.

'just with a little goodwill the Arabs and Jews could get together'. Collection of manuscripts, letters and transcripts relating to the establishment of the Jewish State.

The majority of the correspondence documented is between Chaim Weizmann, the first President of the State of Israel (but at the time - president of the World Zionist Organization and of the Jewish Agency for Palestine), the distinguished historian Sir Lewis Namier, who served under Chaim Weizmann as political secretary of the Jewish Agency for Palestine between 1929 and 1931, and British Government officials. One typed letter, autographed by Weizmann and dated 3rd & 4th of June 1930, addressed to Namier, provides a long account of Weizmann's meeting with Dr Shiels, British Undersecretary for the Colonies, following the British Government's suspension of Jewish immigration, due to their claim that the interests of Jews and Arabs cannot be harmonised:
'I believed that the Jews are genuinely indignant, that they view the stoppage of immigration as a serious infringement of the Mandate, and that I share these views, and that my indignation knows no bounds, and that the Government had brought it on themselves. I then went on to say that I didn't see what the Government had done to re-assure the Jews... I pointed out to him that this conversation reminded me painfully of similar talks which I used to have in the olden days with Russian officials, that after Pogroms, they usually reproached the Jews for having brought it about through their particular behaviou[r]s. This brought the conversation into other channels: he stopped bluffing and became rather serious and somewhat saddened... Whereas the Administration of Palestine and some members of the Colonial Office preached the doctrine that the thing is impossible, we, who have worked in Palestine for 50 years, are firm that it is possible, that just with a little goodwill the Arabs and Jews could get together, that we together could build up the country and that we are ready to go a long way towards elaborating a constructive programm [sic] of work, which would serve the interests of both peoples... I concluded by saying that the Jewish people will go on working for Palestine with or without the British'.

Among other notable documents in this collection are:
- A document of singular importance, titled 'Historical Summary of Discussions Leading Up to the Prime Minister's Letter of February 13th, 1931 to Dr. Weizmann'. This 46-page carbon, by Namier, dated 27.4.31 and annotated in blue crayon by Weizmann. The discussion summarised lead up to the Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald's letter which reversed the Passfield White Paper on settlement and immigration of the Jews, being widely seen as a turning-point in the history of Zionism.
- A six-page carbon, dated five days prior to the latter, titled 'Points Raised by Us but not Included in The Letter', also annotated in blue crayon by Weizmann.
- Two letters addressed to Namier, sent from London and Paris in the summer of 1931, hand-written and autographed by Weizmann. In his letter form the 8th of June Weizmann draws criticism over his opposition within the Zionist movement.
- A four-page carbon of a letter to Lord Passfield, regarding the setting up of a Legislative Council in Palestine, dated September 19th, 1930.
- A carbon documenting Weizmann's schedule and correspondence in the months of October-November 1930.
- A five-page carbon by Hillel Rogoff (the American-Jewish journalist), titled 'Cable of Representatives of New York "Forwards on Interview with Lord Passfield, November 7, 1930".'
- A typed letter to Namier by Selig Brodetsky, sending copies of correspondence between Weizmann and Passfield, etc., and reporting on British attitudes, dated September 26th, 1930.
- A seven-pages long typed memorandum, with manuscript revisions (presumably by Namier), titled 'Interview between the Prime Minister, Dr. Weizmann, and Mr. Namier, Wednesday, December 24th,1930, at 9.30 a.m.' (held in the aftermath of the Passfield White Paper of November 1930 and attendant Jewish protests).

This collection comes from the estate of the distinguished British Army officer and Christian Zionist, Major General Orde Charles Wingate (1903-1944), who was commander and creator of the Gideon Force and Chindits.

12 typed documents, 4to; 2 hand-written letters and 2 pieces of ephemera; three of the letters (one typed and 2 hand-written) autographed by Chaim Weizmann.