41 Facts About Herbert Samuel

Herbert Samuel was the first nominally-practicing Jew to serve as a Cabinet minister and to become the leader of a major British political party.

Herbert Samuel was the last member of the Liberal Party to hold one of the four Great Offices of State.

One of the adherents of "New Liberalism", Herbert Samuel helped to draft and present social reform legislation while he was serving as a Liberal cabinet member.

Herbert Samuel led the party in both the 1931 general election and the 1935 general election, during which period the party's number of seats in parliament fell from 59 to 21.

Herbert Samuel was born at Claremont No 11 Belvidere Road, Toxteth, Liverpool, Lancashire, in 1870.

Related searches

Around 1775, his great-grandfather, Menachem Herbert Samuel, had emigrated from Kempen in Posen, not far from the city of Posen, to Britain and his grandfather, Louis Herbert Samuel, was born in London.

Herbert Samuel's uncle was born Montagu Samuel, but became better known as Samuel Montagu, founder of the eponymous bank.

Herbert Samuel was known by a Hebrew name, Eliezer ben Pinchas Shmuel.

Herbert Samuel's eldest brother, Sir Stuart Samuel, was a successful Liberal politician; his only sister, Mabel married the influential art-critic Marion Spielmann, from the Spielmann dynasty of bankers and art-connoisseurs.

Herbert Samuel was educated at University College School in Hampstead, London and Balliol College, Oxford, but at home he had a Jewish upbringing.

Herbert Samuel worked through the influence of Charles Darwin and the book On Compromise by senior Liberal politician John Morley.

Herbert Samuel remained a member of the Jewish community to please his wife, and observed the Sabbath and Jewish food laws at home "for hygienic reasons".

Herbert Samuel unsuccessfully fought two general elections before being elected a Member of Parliament at the November 1902 Cleveland by-election, as a member of the Liberal Party.

Herbert Samuel put forward the idea of establishing a British protectorate over Palestine in 1915, and his ideas influenced the Balfour Declaration.

Lloyd George asked Herbert Samuel to continue as Home Secretary, but Herbert Samuel chose to resign instead.

Herbert Samuel attempted to strike a balance between giving support to the new government while remaining loyal to Asquith.

However, Herbert Samuel moved a separate motion on 23 October 1918 to allow women to be eligible as Members of Parliament.

One month after Britain's declaration of war on the Ottoman Empire in November 1914, Herbert Samuel met Chaim Weizmann, who was to become the President of the World Zionist Organization and later the first President of Israel.

Herbert Samuel did not want to enter into a detailed discussion of his plans but mentioned that "the Jews would have to build railways, harbours, a university, a network of schools, etc", as well as potentially a Temple in "modernised form".

In January 1915, Herbert Samuel circulated a memorandum, The Future of Palestine, to his cabinet colleagues, suggesting that Britain should conquer Palestine in order to protect the Suez Canal against foreign powers, and for Palestine to become a home for the Jewish people.

In March 1915, Herbert Samuel replaced the January 1915 draft version with the final version of his memorandum, toned down from the earlier draft, explicitly ruling out any idea of immediately establishing a Jewish state and emphasizing that non-Jews must receive equal treatment under any scheme.

Herbert Samuel lost his seat in the election of 1918 and became a candidate to represent British interests in the territory.

Herbert Samuel was appointed to the position of High Commissioner in 1920, before the Council of the League of Nations approved a British mandate for Palestine.

Herbert Samuel was the first Jew to govern the historic Land of Israel in 2000 years.

Herbert Samuel recognised Hebrew as one of the three official languages of the territory.

Related searches

Herbert Samuel was appointed Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire on 11 June 1920.

Herbert Samuel took advice from a delegation in London representing the Zionists, who told him that the "alarmist" reports were not justified.

Sir Herbert Samuel regarded as a Zionist leader, and his appointment as first step in formation of Zionist national home in the midst of Arab people contrary to their wishes.

Wisdom of appointing Herbert Samuel was debated in the House of Lords a day before he arrived in Palestine.

Herbert Samuel hoped to gain Arab participation in mandate affairs and to guard their civil and economic rights, but refused them any authority that could be used to stop Jewish immigration and land purchase.

Herbert Samuel won the confidence of all sections of the population by his noted "impartiality".

Herbert Samuel struck a particularly strong relationship with Pinhas Rutenberg, granting him exclusive concessions to produce and distribute electricity in Palestine and Trans-Jordan, often strongly backing Rutenberg in his relations with the Colonial Office in London.

Herbert Samuel government signed the Ghor-Mudawarra Land Agreement with the Baysan Valley Bedouin tribes, that earmarked for transfer 179,545 dunams of state land to the Bedouin.

The Herbert Samuel Commission published its report in March 1926, recommending a reorganisation of the industry but rejecting the suggestion of nationalisation.

Herbert Samuel returned to the House of Commons following the 1929 general election.

The government's moves to introduce tariffs caused further friction for the Liberals, and Herbert Samuel withdrew the party from the government in stages, first obtaining the suspension of cabinet collective responsibility on the matter to allow Liberal members of the government to oppose tariffs.

Herbert Samuel remained leader of the Liberal Party until he again lost his seat in 1935.

Herbert Samuel declined a later offer by Chamberlain to return to government.

Herbert Samuel later became the leader of the Liberal Party in the House of Lords.

On 17 November 1897 Herbert Samuel married his first cousin Beatrice Miriam, daughter of Ellis Abraham Franklin, a banker.

Herbert Samuel was great-uncle to the scientist Rosalind Franklin, the co-discoverer of DNA.