David Ben-Gurion in retirement

David Ben-Gurion

David Ben-Gurion, Israel's first prime minister and defense minister was an outstanding leader of the pioneering labor movement in Erez Israel, heading the struggle for Jewish independence in Palestine.

Ben-Gurion was born in Plonsk in Russian Poland. He was educated in a modernized Hebrew-language heder, and studied secular subjects with private tutors. In 1903 He joined the Po'alei Zion movement. In 1906 he settled in Erez Israel and was elected to the central committee of Po'alei Zion. The years 1907-10, when Ben-Gurion was an agricultural worker and watchman in Lower Galilee and Zikhron Ya'akov, left an indelible impression on his life. He became convinced that "the settlement of the land is the only true Zionism, all else being self-deception, empty verbiage, and merely a pastime."

After a stay in Turkey with Izhak Ben-Zvi, they proceeded to New York in 1915, where their main efforts were directed to the establishment of the He-Halutz organization, preparing young Jews for settlement in Palestine immediately after the war. Serving in the Jewish Legion, he returned to Palestine in 1918. After the War he was elected secretary-general of the Histadrut (founded in 1920) which he and Berl Katznelson headed for nearly 14 years. The increased unity in the labor movement which Ben-Gurion called for was further advanced by the merger of Ahdut ha-Avodah and Ha-Po'el ha-Za'ir into Mapai in 1930. At the 18th Zionist Congress in 1933, Ben-Gurion became a member of the Zionist and Jewish Agency Executive. As chairman of the Jewish Agency Executive from 1935 to 1948, Ben-Gurion, together with Chaim Weizmann, directed all Zionist affairs.

During the War his program was to assist the British in the fight against the Nazis while continuing to pursue Zionist ideals. In 1942, he headed the group that drew up the Biltmore Program which postulated a Jewish state as the Zionist goal. When, soon after World War II, it became clear that the British government had no intention of abandoning its White Paper policy restricting aliyah and Jewish rights to acquire land, Ben-Gurion led the political struggle against the British and authorized the sabotage activities. In the months immediately following the war he ordered the Haganah leaders to begin acquiring large quantities of arms in preparation for the contingency of an armed clash with the Arabs.

When the War of Independence broke out in December 1947, Ben-Gurion headed the defense effort, molding the character and structure of the Israel Army. His opinion was the decisive factor in all the fateful events of the war that determined the borders of the state: the conquest of the northern Negev (October 1948), the retreat from Sinai (January 1949), and the occupation of Eilat (March 1949).

David Ben-Gurion with two American Pilots

In the spring of 1948, despite great pressure from the U.S. government and the doubts of many of his colleagues, Ben-Gurion insisted upon the establishment of the Jewish state immediately upon the termination of the British Mandate. On May 14, 1948, he proclaimed the rebirth of the independent Jewish nation. He became prime minister and minister of defense in the provisional government, continuing in these posts after the election to the first Knesset in 1949. Since no single party obtained an overall majority, Ben-Gurion formed a coalition government, which set the pattern for future governments. In December 1949, he declared Jerusalem the capital of Israel. He pursued singlemindedly his policies of the ingathering of the exiles, the strengthening of the armed forces, and the development of the Negev.

Proclamation of the State of Israel

In December 1953 Ben-Gurion announced his resignation from the government and retired to kibbutz Sedeh Boker in the heart of the Negev. However, after the elections in November 1955, he again assumed the twofold functions of prime minister and minister of defense. On Oct. 29, 1956, acting in concert with France and England, the Israel Army moved into the Sinai Peninsula, and within a week the military objectives had been achieved. After taking a strong political stand, Ben-Gurion was compelled to agree to the withdrawal of Israel forces from Sinai and the Gaza Strip.

After handing over the reins of government to Levi Eshkol in 1963, with the intention of retiring permanently, he organized independent lists for the 1965 and 1969 Knesset elections over disagreements with his former colleagues. In 1970 he resigned from the Knesset. After his retirement Ben-Gurion settled in Sedeh Boker, where he dedicated himself to writing and research on Israel and Zionist history.

Ben-Gurion's personality embodied great spiritual forces and tremendous willpower. As an orator, publicist, and forceful debater, he strove to strengthen both the labor movement in Erez Israel and the Zionist movement, and to organize institutions designed to advance their objectives. His intellectual interests were wide, embracing not only a thorough study of the Bible, but also Greek philosophy, Buddhism, and the philosophy of Spinoza. Both admirers and opponents, Jews and non-Jews, have regarded Ben-Gurion as foremost among the founding fathers of modern Israel.