Ask about this item

Archive of original and photocopied documents and letters, regarding Chaim Weizmann's Zionist activities. Binders of documents of Gilbert F. Clayton, who commanded the British Intelligence in the Eretz Israel region, filled positions in the British Settlements Office and was involved in discussions concerning the determination of the character of the Middle East.
The archive includes a master copy by John Kimchi, "Vision is not Enough" which deals with Meir Weisgal's contribution to the realization of Chaim Weizmann's leadership potential.
This archive was compiled by Boris Guriel, a commander of Ran, a political intelligence branch of Shai (Information Service), to assist John Kimchi in writing his book. This archive is unique in its reflection of the events of that time and it can shed new light on Weizmann's direction of leadership - the synthetic Zionism. From the Eighth Zionist Congress in 1917 and following the Uganda Plan, Weizmann opposed Herzl's policy, and together with Buber, he led a move to merge political Zionism and active Zionism stressing the settlement of Eretz Israel. This led to the establishment of the Zionist-Eretz Israel office that encouraged purchase of land and its settlement.
This approach reached its climax with Weizmann's contribution to attain the Balfour Declaration in 1917 which indeed was submitted to Rothschild, the man of action. In 1920, Herbert Samuel was appointed Commissioner of the Palestine settlements in light of the San-Remo Conference which divided the Ottoman regions amongst world powers. In 1922, the British mandate was imposed on Eretz Israel and at that same time, began discussions on the nature of the rule in the region and on the relations between Zionism and the Arabs living in Eretz Israel.
The archive reflects the events happening backstage at this time, whose repercussions largely impact events until today. The information and documents in this archive are very valuable for anyone who is studying this period of time and for someone who is searching for the root of problems that The State of Israel faces today.
The archive is divided into office files and binders:
~ Correspondence between Boris Guriel and John Kimchi and the response of Michael Korda, a New York publisher, regarding the writing of the book on the Jewish-Arab dispute at the beginning of the mandate that will include Weizmann's biography, 1971-1972.
~ Binder (called Clayton-Wingate) containing approximately 170 documents and letters, some from Chaim Weizmann's archive, 1917-1919. Contains a detailed list of all letters and memorandums that appear in the binder that Guriel prepared for Kimchi. The documents reflect the background that Weizmann and Yisrael Moshe Ziv presented as a basis for their suggestions for British policy in the area. The letters, some classified, are between people who impacted the events of that time in the Middle East: Weizmann, Balfour, Allenby, Seiks, Wingate, Rothschild, Ziv and others. Clayton commanded the British intelligence in the Middle East and was appointed High Commissioner of Iraq; he was a partner in the determining of the borders of the Middle East after World War I (at that time, Wingate was High Commissioner in Egypt). The binder documents are typewritten copies or photocopies, with Guriel's highlighting and references.
~ Binder, continuation of the "Clayton" documents, 1919-1922. Called "Clayton documents". Contains details of claims to the Jewish National home in Palestine, as well.
~ Binder of "Clayton" documents, 1923-1924. Contains letters to Herbert Samuel, the settlements office and Clayton; letters of greeting from Jewish elements in Eretz Israel and in London, demands for the governmental-legislative composition and reference to the question of borders with details of the areas of discussion. Some of the documents are photocopies of handwritten letters. Classified and/or confidential documents on the subject of the Weizmann Agreement - Amir Feisal and Weizmann's correspondence with British elements. Includes a detailed list of approximately 120 documents from 1919.
~ Binder of photocopies of documents, 1920-1922, about the decisions of the Commonwealth of Nations and the Mandate for Mesopotamia. Robert Gilbert Vansittart, Lord Curzon of Kedleston. Details of the mandate in Palestine including a copy in French.
~ Weizmann documents, 1920. Binder of letters concerning the establishment of the mandate in Palestine and details of the subjects and its components. Letters to the British Department of Foreign Affairs, to Balfour and Lonsitart, by Chaim Weizmann and Yisrael Ziv + binder of letter as above, from 1922.
~ Binder of letters, 1918-1923. Correspondence of Weizmann with Herbert Samuel, Vera Weizmann, David Adar, Sokolov. Summary of meetings of Zionist institutes in Britain. Summaries of Weizmann's interviews, some titled 'confidential'. Letter to Colonel Kisch, with a copy of the British-French declaration in regard to the region, 1918.
~Binder of approximately 50 of Weizmann's letters and interviews, 1923-1925. Arranged by Boris Guriel in 1968 for John Kimchi's use in writing his book on the events of 1920-1923. Guriel claims that during these years, Weizmannism was at its peak.
~ Vision is not Enough. A Study in the Application of Greatness (master copy) - draft of John Kimchi's book on the subject: Meir Weisgal's contribution to the realization of Weizmann's leadership potential. Weisgal was close to Weizmann, his trusted assistant, and President of the Zionist Union and first president of the State of Israel. Apparently, the book was never published. The book's chapters include: a political summary; the struggle between Weizmann and Ben-Gurion; 1943 - diplomacy in Washington and British anti-Zionist attitude; Rehovot - the beginning of the vision; end -Weizmann alone.
~ Archive also contains: notes of handwritten comments and quotes, some on attached articles, 1917-1937; handwritten chronological list of documents and letters in the Clayton collection, 1917-1922; booklet of Sir Alfred Mond and Weizmann's speeches concluding the Oxford Assembly on February 25, 1922, with appendix - Churchill's declaration of the Palestinian Treaty as a response to the Arab Delegation. Various sizes and conditions.