Before catastrophe: the distinctive path of German Zionism

This book, a first attempt to analyze German Zionism in a global Zionist context, sheds new light on the role of German Zionism in the German-Jewish community. It traces the emergence of a small component of the Zionist movement which regardless of size played a distinctive part in both German-Jewish and Zionist history on the eve of World War II.Positioned strategically between East and West, German Zionism was open to influences from both sides. Although post-asimilationist, it was affected by the encounter with East European Jewry. The product was a unique form of Zionism that combined Western ideas with radical "Palestinocentrism".Thanks to its emphasis on Palestine, the German Zionist movement became the instrument of rescue for large numbers of German Jews as the community veered towards catastrophe.