Woodhead Commission
Encyclopedia
The Woodhead Commission, properly known as the Palestine Partition Commission, was established in 1938 in the British
Mandate of Palestine to investigate the implementation of the Peel Commission
's plan for a partition of Palestine.
The Commission comprised Sir John Woodhead, together with Sir Alison Russell, A. P. Waterfield, and T. Reid. It was charged with examining the Peel Commission plan in detail, in order "to recommend boundaries for the proposed Arab and Jewish areas and the enclaves to be retained permanently or temporarily under British Mandate" and "to examine and report on the economic and financial questions involved in partition upon which decisions will require to be taken". However, Woodhead also received secret instructions that he was to find partition to be impractical.
The Commission spent more than three months in Palestine, taking evidence from witnesses in 55 sessions. However, no Arabs came forward to submit evidence. In their report, they examined three possible modifications of the Peel Commission proposal, which they called Plan A, Plan B, and Plan C. Plans A and B were found to be unworkable for reasons that included the large number of Arabs in the proposed Jewish State, since the compulsory population transfer proposed by the Peel Commission had been ruled out by the British government.
The majority of the Commission chose Plan C as the best of the three options. It recommended:
Despite preferring Plan C over the others, the Commission considered that there were financial and economic difficulties "of such a nature that we can find no possible way to
overcome them within our terms of reference". They suggested that the Arab and Jewish states not be given fiscal independence but instead the UK government accept "the very considerable financial liability involved".
Two members of the Commission added Notes of Reservation to the report. Russell argued that Plan B was preferable to Plan C, while Reid argued that all three plans were fatally flawed.
The report of the Woodhead commission was presented to Parliament and published on November 9th 1938. As a consequence, the government issued a policy statement that "the political, administrative and financial difficulties involved in the proposal to create independent Arab and Jewish States inside Palestine are so great that this solution of the problem is impracticable".
Britain later invited the parties to London in 1939 to participate in a third attempt to resolve the crisis, the St. James Conference
(also known as the Round Table Conference of 1939). The recommendations were eventually rejected by both Jews and Arabs.
Category:British Mandate for Palestine
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Mandate of Palestine to investigate the implementation of the Peel Commission
Peel Commission
The Peel Commission of 1936-1937, formally known as the Palestine Royal Commission, was a British Royal Commission of Inquiry set out to propose changes to the British Mandate of Palestine following the outbreak of the 1936-1939 Arab revolt in Palestine...
's plan for a partition of Palestine.
The Commission comprised Sir John Woodhead, together with Sir Alison Russell, A. P. Waterfield, and T. Reid. It was charged with examining the Peel Commission plan in detail, in order "to recommend boundaries for the proposed Arab and Jewish areas and the enclaves to be retained permanently or temporarily under British Mandate" and "to examine and report on the economic and financial questions involved in partition upon which decisions will require to be taken". However, Woodhead also received secret instructions that he was to find partition to be impractical.
The Commission spent more than three months in Palestine, taking evidence from witnesses in 55 sessions. However, no Arabs came forward to submit evidence. In their report, they examined three possible modifications of the Peel Commission proposal, which they called Plan A, Plan B, and Plan C. Plans A and B were found to be unworkable for reasons that included the large number of Arabs in the proposed Jewish State, since the compulsory population transfer proposed by the Peel Commission had been ruled out by the British government.
The majority of the Commission chose Plan C as the best of the three options. It recommended:
- A Jewish state of 1,258 square km, in two parts. The northern part would be a coastal strip 15–20 km wide from Tel Aviv to above Zichron Ya'acov, and the southern part would be a smaller region including RehovotRehovotRehovot is a city in the Center District of Israel, about south of Tel Aviv. According to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics , at the end of 2009 the city had a total population of 112,700. Rehovot's official website estimates the population at 114,000.Rehovot was built on the site of Doron,...
. The initial population would be about 226,000 Jews and 54,400 Arabs.
- An Arab state of 7,393 square km, consisting mostly of a segment approximating today's West Bank and Gaza Strip with a wide corridor connecting them. The Arab state would also include the city of JaffaJaffaJaffa is an ancient port city believed to be one of the oldest in the world. Jaffa was incorporated with Tel Aviv creating the city of Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel. Jaffa is famous for its association with the biblical story of the prophet Jonah.-Etymology:...
. The initial population would be about 8,900 Jews and 441,100 Arabs.
- Three mandated territories under British control: all of the Galilee (initial population 77,300 Jews and 231,400 Arabs), an enclave including Jerusalem and LyddaLyddaLydda can refer to:*Lod, also named Lydda*Exodus from Lydda and Ramla, the Palestinian exodus from the city in July 1948...
(initial population 80,100 Jews and 211,400 Arabs), and the Negev region from north of Beersheva (initially 60,000 Arabs).
Despite preferring Plan C over the others, the Commission considered that there were financial and economic difficulties "of such a nature that we can find no possible way to
overcome them within our terms of reference". They suggested that the Arab and Jewish states not be given fiscal independence but instead the UK government accept "the very considerable financial liability involved".
Two members of the Commission added Notes of Reservation to the report. Russell argued that Plan B was preferable to Plan C, while Reid argued that all three plans were fatally flawed.
The report of the Woodhead commission was presented to Parliament and published on November 9th 1938. As a consequence, the government issued a policy statement that "the political, administrative and financial difficulties involved in the proposal to create independent Arab and Jewish States inside Palestine are so great that this solution of the problem is impracticable".
Britain later invited the parties to London in 1939 to participate in a third attempt to resolve the crisis, the St. James Conference
St. James Conference
The St. James Conference was held from February 7 to March 17 in 1939 in the St James's Palace in London.It was held by Malcolm MacDonald, the British colonial secretary, to discuss with Arabs and Jews to determine the future of the region. The meeting ended without result on 17 March 1939...
(also known as the Round Table Conference of 1939). The recommendations were eventually rejected by both Jews and Arabs.
Publication
The report of the commission was published as "Palestine Partition Commission Report", Command Paper 5854, Printed and published by His Majesty's Stationery Office, London, 1938 (310 pages and 13 maps).Further reading
- Aharon Cohen, Israel and the Arab World (Funk and Wagnalls, New York, 1970) pp. 210-213
Category:British Mandate for Palestine