The First World War was a calamity which significantly impacted the Jewish people. Millions of Jews were personally affected whether upon the battlefields by being in close proximity to the fighting, or as refugees. The era of the First World War ignited existing hatreds against Jewry and posed unprecedented challenges in a world rife with peril. With the War’s end in 1918, dangers and hardships facing Jewry continued. Amid this bleak and ominous picture, the Balfour Declaration gave hope for Jewish statehood.The aftermath of the war eventually led to the rebirth of the Jewish State.
About the Author
Larry Domnitch has taught history at Touro College and is the author of The Cantonists: The Jewish Children’s Army of the Tsar and The Jewish Holidays: A Journey through History, as well as many articles, including in the Algemeiner, The Jewish Press, and Israel National News.
Praise for The Impact of World War One on the Jewish People
“Professor Domnitch has taken a monumental period of Jewish history, full of heroism and tragedy that has been overshadowed by the Holocaust, and rendered it accessible to the everyday reader. Full of personal anecdotesdrawn from primary sources, The Impact of World War I on the Jewish People represents an important contribution to the scholarly and popular literature on 20th century Jewish history.”
- Dean Henry Abramson, Touro College
“Because of the unspeakable brutality and scope of the Holocaust, it is often forgotten that World War I was a disaster for the Jewish people. At least 100,000 Jews were killed and countless Jewish communities disrupted or destroyed, a catastrophe from which East European Jewry never really recovered. Larry Domnitch presents the impact of the many warring sides of World War I on the Jewish people with admirable clarity and focus. At the same time, he puts a human face on the Jewish suffering, informing us of not only larger historical developments but poignant scenes and gut wrenching memories.
Domnitch has a keen eye for telling detail and dialogue. Particularly wrenching in his story is how tens of thousands of Jews faced off against each other in the armies of their respective homelands, to which each of its Jewish communities pledged loyalty. In its virulent unleashing of anti-Semitism, WWI paved the way for the Holocaust. Domnitch shows how.”
- Rabbi Hillel Goldberg, PhD, Editor and Publisher, Intermountain Jewish News
