Chaim weizmann acetone balfour declaration meaning

With your help, My Jewish Learning can continue to provide nonstop opportunities for learning, connection and growth. But they were harshly disappointed, however, in the first months of the war, when Jews were expelled from the front-line areas, seized as hostages and even attacked in pogroms. This disappointment only reinforced the belief of many other Jews, particularly in the United States, who from the first had supported the Central Powers of Germany and Austro-Hungary which were later joined by Turkey.

Chaim weizmann acetone balfour declaration meaning

But even these Jews could not disregard the basic fact that one-half of the Jewish people resided in Russia, the most important center of Jewish life, and that the fate of this country could decide the destiny of its Jews. But even among Zionist leaders there were those with conflicting political orientation. Some, such as Vladimir Jabotinsky, claimed vehemently that only the defeat of Turkey could save the Jewish community in Palestine from destruction and open up new horizons for the Zionist movement.

He therefore called for active participation in the war on the Entente side. Those with pro-German orientation, on the other hand, argued that only Germany, which wielded considerable influence over the Turkish government could ensure the safety of the Yishuv [Jewish settlement in Palestine]. As early asBritish Zionists, led by Chaim Weizmann, had begun to attempt to persuade the British government to safeguard Jewish interests in Palestine, out of the hope that after the war the country would be under British trusteeship.

Among other things, his tours combined some professional training, and Weizmann visited the Pasteur Institute in Paris, where he worked in the Department of Bacteriology and learned how bacteria can be exploited for the production of organic material. At the end of the 19th century there was an increased demand for rubber all over the world, mainly due to the fast development of the industry.

There was a shortage of natural rubber, which was mainly produced from the sap of tropical trees. Many scientists realized that the development of synthetic rubber would be an economic goldmine, and so did just that. Chaim Weizmann decided to work in the field and developed a process for the production of a substance called isoprene, which is the starting material of synthetic rubber.

This material is needed to make isoprene, but was not available in large quantities like those required in industrial production. Weizmann began to delve into the process bacteria fermentation and grew bacteria in low-oxygen conditions in an effort to find a microbe that produces the isoamyl alcohol fermenting sugar. Concurrently, he worked in laboratories in Manchester and Paris, and thought he had finally produced the long-awaited large amount of material.

However, when he distilled the chaim weizmann acetone balfour declaration meaning from the fermentation tank it turned out to contain only acetone and butanol at a very high level of purity. But Weizmann thought he could make synthetic rubber from a base of butanol, and did not abandon the idea even when he separated from his business partner Halford Strange.

He continued on his own to perfect the process and found that certain bacteria isolated from corn produces very large quantities of butanol and acetone. Weizmann named the bacteria clostridium acetobutylicum, based on the name of the products used. After natural rubber prices fell and the development of synthetic rubber was no longer economically worthwhile, Weizmann eventually abandoned his work.

The turning point came in Acetone was needed for making cordite, a mixture for gunpowder that replaced shelling and other types of ammunition. By the end of the 19th century, the British army used cordite gunpowder, cordite decreased the heat produced by firing of guns and thus allowed for higher firing frequency. Even more important — cordite combustion does not result in smoke production, and thus did not disclose the location of the guns.

Weizmann had previously isolated. Acetone had previously been made from calcium acetate imported from Germany, but since the Allies were at war with Germany, this was no longer possible, and the U. The rapid wartime expansion of this process, from laboratory to industrial scale, was not only unusual among microbiological processes used in industry, but it also set a precedent for the rapid expansion of penicillin production during World War II and for the wide scope of applied biotechnological processes that came afterward.

Remarkable implications Dr. Weizmann knew that his fermentation process yielded chemical compounds containing three and four carbon atoms and predicted that the same process could produce the substances that are the basis for modern petrochemical industries. He often articulated the need for countries — especially those with scarce natural oil — to replace a petroleum-based chemical industry with one based on fermentation.

As history has shown, the discovery had implications beyond science. The answer is the subject to debate. One argument is that the British wanted to reward the Zionist leader most active in lobbying for a declaration, Chaim Weizmannbecause of his invention of a process for producing acetone, which was used in the manufacture of explosives critical to the Allied war effort in World War I.

A second explanation is that the British desperately needed the United States to enter the war and some officials had an essentially anti-Semitic view that American Jews had a great deal of influence with the government and would rally support for England. They calculated that support for a Jewish home would make those Jews happy and encourage them to lobby the government to join the war against Germany and its allies.

Some also feared that Germany would act first and make its own pro-Zionist declaration. Segev suggests a third reason for British sympathy toward Zionism. A fourth reason Britain may have embraced Zionism was to justify its entitlement to Palestine when it came time to divide the spoils of war. By positioning themselves as the promotors of a Jewish homeland they could rationalize the superiority of their claim to Palestine over the French.

Weizmann met with Prime Minister Lloyd George and Herbert Samuel and told the editor of the Manchester Guardian that Samuel had spoken about a plan to establish a Jewish community in Palestine under the British protectorate. Kramer also answers the question as to why the Zionists focused their lobbying on Britain. He said they were convinced their best hope for support came from the British because it was the only country in Europe where they had significant influence among key officials.

Inhowever, the Zionists had a problem, though they did not know it. The Zionists got a break, however, when David Lloyd George became prime minister of Britain and decided the deal should be revised to give Britain control over more of Palestine. Sir Mark Sykes subsequently met with leaders of the Zionist movement, including Sokolow and Weizmann, and told them Britain might offer some form of recognition if they could overcome French opposition to a foothold in Palestine.

Sokolow tried various arguments, suggesting the Zionists preferred British protection and that backing the Zionist cause would win support from Jews in Russia and the United States. After the French expressed sympathy, Sokolow asked for a statement in writing. On June 4,Jules Cambon, secretary-general of the foreign ministry wrote a letter to Sokolow that stated:.

It also omitted any mention to the rights of non-Jews.