Thomas Hodgkin, Letters from Palestine, 1932-36

These letters, written by Thomas Hodgkin to members of his family during an influx of Jewish immigration and escalating Arab oppostion, trace his disillusionment over the way the British administration in Jerusalem dealt with this complex and thorny situation. Resigning in bitter indignation from his post as private secretary to General Sir Arthur Wauchope, the high commissioner, he declared himself a Communist and returned to England and a distinguished career in education. The letters, graphic and sometimes incongruously funny, reveal much about the social and political life in Palestine during the twilight period of the British mandate. They also provide insight into the process by which many highly educated Englishmen such as Hodgkin became enamored of Communism during the 1930s. (September 15)