British Mandate of Palestine

League of Nations – Mandate for Palestine and Transjordan Memorandum
British Command Paper 1785, December 1922, containing the Mandate for Palestine and the Transjordan memorandum
CreatedMid-1919 – 22 July 1922
Date effective29 September 1923
Repealed15 May 1948
LocationUNOG Library; ref.: C.529. M.314. 1922. VI.
SignatoriesCouncil of the League of Nations
PurposeCreation of the territories of Mandatory Palestine and the Emirate of Transjordan

The British Mandate of Palestine was a League of Nations mandate to the United Kingdom in Palestine. It began after the British had conquered Palestine from the Ottoman Empire in World War I. At the San Remo Conference, on April 25, 1920, the mandate for Palestine was granted to Britain. The mandate became officially operative on September 29, 1923. The mandate ended when the British returned it to the United Nations on May 15, 1948.

The mandate period was characterized by the conflicting nationalist interests and efforts of the Arabs and the Jews in Palestine. Because of the Balfour Declaration, the Mandatory government started off sympathetic to the Zionists. This led to displeasure in the Arab community in Palestine. The conflicting interests often led to violence, making it hard for the British to rule Palestine. Several times commissions investigated the problems in Palestine, and multiple White Papers came out in order to try solving the problems. In 1939 the British changed its position from the Balfour Declaration in favor of the Palestinian Arabs. However, after World War II, the international community pressed for both an Arab and a Jewish state in Palestine. When the British returned its mandate, the state of Israel was declared, on May 14, 1948. On the next day, the Arab-Israeli war began.


© MMXXIII Rich X Search. We shall prevail. All rights reserved. Rich X Search