David Lindo Alexander
Encyclopedia
David Lindo Alexander was an English barrister and Jewish community leader.
on 5 October to solicitor Joshua Alexander and his wife Jemima. He was educated at City of London School
and Trinity College, Cambridge
, where he graduated in mathematics in 1864.
In 1886 Alexander married Hester (1845–1913), daughter of stock broker Simeon Joseph. The couple had two sons and one daughter.
In 1877 Alexander became representative on the Board of Deputies of British Jews
for the Ashkenazi Central Synagogue in Great Portland Street, rising to become president of the organization between 1903 and 1917. He also served as vice-president of the Anglo-Jewish Association
and on the council of Jews' College
.
Alexander is remembered as co-signatory, along with Claude Montefiore
, president of the Anglo-Jewish Association, of a letter to The Times
on 24 May 1917, which declared "grave objections" to two claims in the "published statements of the Zionist leaders": "The first is a claim that the Jewish settlements in Palestine
shall be recognized as possessing a national character in the political sense... the second... is the proposal to invest the Jewish settlers in Palestine with certain special rights in excess of those enjoyed by the rest of the population".
On behalf of the Association and the Board of Deputies the two presidents rejected what they saw as the conflation of nationality and religion:
They also rejected the notion of a charter of rights administered by a Jewish Chartered Company: ".. it is very undesirable that Jews should solicit or accept such a concession, on a basis of political privileges and economic preferences. Any such action would prove a veritable calamity for the whole Jewish people."
On 28 May The Times published critical responses from Lord Rothschild
, the Chief Rabbi
, Joseph H. Hertz
and from Chaim Weizmann
, president of the British Zionist Federation.
Following the correspondence in The Times Alexander's presidency of the Board of Deputies was denounced and on 17 June the letter was condemned by 56 votes to 51 in a vote of censure. As a result of the vote Alexander was forced to resign, and although he subsequently joined the Anti-Zionist League of British Jews, an organization dedicated to resisting the allegation that Jewish people constituted a separate political entity, his departure from the Board effectively marked the end of his political career. Montefiore, co-founder of the League, remained an anti-Zionist
, even after the rise of Nazism
.
Alexander died on 29 April 1922, aged seventy-nine and was buried next to his wife at Willesden Jewish cemetery on 2 May.
Biography
David Lindo Alexander was born in the City of LondonCity of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
on 5 October to solicitor Joshua Alexander and his wife Jemima. He was educated at City of London School
City of London School
The City of London School is a boys' independent day school on the banks of the River Thames in the City of London, England. It is the brother school of the City of London School for Girls and the co-educational City of London Freemen's School...
and Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Trinity has more members than any other college in Cambridge or Oxford, with around 700 undergraduates, 430 graduates, and over 170 Fellows...
, where he graduated in mathematics in 1864.
In 1886 Alexander married Hester (1845–1913), daughter of stock broker Simeon Joseph. The couple had two sons and one daughter.
In 1877 Alexander became representative on the Board of Deputies of British Jews
Board of Deputies of British Jews
The Board of Deputies of British Jews is the main representative body of British Jews. Founded in 1760 as a joint committee of the Sephardi and Ashkenazi Jewish communities in London, it has since become a widely recognised forum for the views of the different sectors of the UK Jewish...
for the Ashkenazi Central Synagogue in Great Portland Street, rising to become president of the organization between 1903 and 1917. He also served as vice-president of the Anglo-Jewish Association
Anglo-Jewish Association
The Anglo-Jewish Association was a British organisation formed in 1871 for the 'promotion of social, moral, and intellectual progress among the Jews; and the obtaining of protection for those who may suffer in consequence of being Jews'. Many Anglo-Jewish businessmen, such as Jacob Behrens, were...
and on the council of Jews' College
Jews' College
-Origins and Remit Today:Jews' College, now known as the London School of Jewish Studies , was opened in Finsbury Square, London as a rabbinical seminary in 1855 with the support of Chief Rabbi Nathan Adler and of Sir Moses Montefiore, who had conceived the idea for such a venture as early as...
.
Alexander is remembered as co-signatory, along with Claude Montefiore
Claude Montefiore
Claude Joseph Goldsmid Montefiore was son of Nathaniel Montefiore, and the great nephew of Sir Moses Montefiore. Some identify him as a significant figure in the contexts of modern Jewish religious thought, Jewish-Christian relations, and Anglo-Jewish socio-politics.-Education:He was educated at...
, president of the Anglo-Jewish Association, of a letter to The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
on 24 May 1917, which declared "grave objections" to two claims in the "published statements of the Zionist leaders": "The first is a claim that the Jewish settlements in Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
shall be recognized as possessing a national character in the political sense... the second... is the proposal to invest the Jewish settlers in Palestine with certain special rights in excess of those enjoyed by the rest of the population".
On behalf of the Association and the Board of Deputies the two presidents rejected what they saw as the conflation of nationality and religion:
Emanicipated Jews in this country regard themselves primarily as a religious community... They hold Judaism to be a religious system, with which their political status has no concern, and they maintain that, as citizens of the countries in which they live, they are fully and sincerely identified with the national spirit and interests of those countries. It follows that the establishment of a Jewish nationality in Palestine, founded on this theory of Jewish homelessness, must have the effect throughout the world of stamping the Jews as strangers in their native lands.
They also rejected the notion of a charter of rights administered by a Jewish Chartered Company: ".. it is very undesirable that Jews should solicit or accept such a concession, on a basis of political privileges and economic preferences. Any such action would prove a veritable calamity for the whole Jewish people."
On 28 May The Times published critical responses from Lord Rothschild
Walter Rothschild, 2nd Baron Rothschild
Lionel Walter Rothschild, 2nd Baron Rothschild, Baron de Rothschild FRS , a scion of the Rothschild family, was a British banker, politician, and zoologist.-Biography:...
, the Chief Rabbi
Chief Rabbi
Chief Rabbi is a title given in several countries to the recognized religious leader of that country's Jewish community, or to a rabbinic leader appointed by the local secular authorities...
, Joseph H. Hertz
Joseph H. Hertz
----Rabbi Joseph Herman Hertz, CH was a Jewish Hungarian-born Rabbi and Bible scholar. He is most notable for holding the position of Chief Rabbi of the United Kingdom from 1913 until his death in 1946, in a period encompassing both world wars and The Holocaust.- Early life :Hertz was born in the...
and from Chaim Weizmann
Chaim Weizmann
Chaim Azriel Weizmann, , was a Zionist leader, President of the Zionist Organization, and the first President of the State of Israel. He was elected on 1 February 1949, and served until his death in 1952....
, president of the British Zionist Federation.
Following the correspondence in The Times Alexander's presidency of the Board of Deputies was denounced and on 17 June the letter was condemned by 56 votes to 51 in a vote of censure. As a result of the vote Alexander was forced to resign, and although he subsequently joined the Anti-Zionist League of British Jews, an organization dedicated to resisting the allegation that Jewish people constituted a separate political entity, his departure from the Board effectively marked the end of his political career. Montefiore, co-founder of the League, remained an anti-Zionist
Anti-Zionism
Anti-Zionism is opposition to Zionistic views or opposition to the state of Israel. The term is used to describe various religious, moral and political points of view in opposition to these, but their diversity of motivation and expression is sufficiently different that "anti-Zionism" cannot be...
, even after the rise of Nazism
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
.
Alexander died on 29 April 1922, aged seventy-nine and was buried next to his wife at Willesden Jewish cemetery on 2 May.