The role of Jerusalem in Jewish and Arab nationalism

From early on during British military administration and continuing through the years of the mandate, Jerusalem/Al Quds was the focal point of nascent Palestinian nationalism with its fiery leader, the young Hajj Amin al-Husayini, scion of one of the most influential Jerusalemite families. Al Quds has been the symbol of Palestinian national aspirations ever since.

In contrast, many early Zionists were ambivalent toward Zion. To Herzl, who had briefly visited it during his 1898 visit to Palestine, the Old City represented everything Zionism was not, and he hoped for a "glorious New Jerusalem" to be established "on the wide green ring of hillside all around."

I would clear out everything that is not sacred, set up worker's houses beyond the city, empty and tear down the filthy rat-holes, burn all non-sacred ruins, and put the bazaars elsewhere. Then, retaining as much of the old architectural style as possible, I would build an airy, comfortable, properly sewered, brand new city around the holy places. (Quoted in Armstrong, p. 366)

Jewish settlers who had begun to arrive in greater numbers from Russia since 1902 were likewise not inclined to concern themselves with the future of the city. In 1911, the first collective farm (kibbutz), Deganya, was established at the shores of the Sea of Galilee, and Zionist theorist Nahum Sokolov emphasized that "(t)he point of gravity has shifted from the Jerusalem of the religious schools to the farms and agricultural schools, the fields and the meadows." (Armstrong, p. 367)

Ambivalence toward Jerusalem made it possible for the Zionist leadership to accept the 1937 proposal of a Zionist state without sovereignty over Zion. The British mandatory was to guarantee the security of the Jewish population of Jerusalem, which by now constituted the majority, and safeguard their continued access to the Holy Places. If the arrangement put forward by the Peel Commission had been acceptable to the leaders of the Arab revolt, the conflict might have ended then and there.