"A first-rate scholarly treatment of a neglected aspect of history of mandatory Palestine. . . . It is the first study that i know of that, based on archival sources, analyses British economic policies regarding a wide range of economic issues. In addition, the work develops a cogent, fresh, and non-partisan interpretation. No scholar of the Palestine problem, the Yishuv, the Palestinians and Israel can ignore this work."—Philip Mattar, Executive Director, The Institute of Palestine Studies
Description
A thorough analysis of the economic development of Palestine during the first years of British mandatory rule and, in particular, of the British government’s preferential policy regarding Jewish settlement and enterprise sets the tone for this groundbreaking study.
Using a wealth of previously unpublished documentation, the author proves that British mandatory policy provided the perfect environment for the growth of a largest and more homogeneous Zionist enclave, which in turn led to the inevitable split in Palestine’s economy.
About the Author
Barbara J. Smith works of a economic consultant. Since earning her doctorate in Middle East economic history at Oxford University, she has written and edited a number of books on economic development in the Arab world.
July 1993