The Social Zionist movement in Poland. From the Late 19th Century to the Beginning of the Communist Era

Abstract

The article analyses the socialist current of the Zionist movement. It emphasises the pioneers of the current and the sources of inspiration, including those from outside the Jewish community, but related to the socialist bloc. According to the studies conducted, the development of Zionism in Poland was complicated by social transformations among Polish and Jewish workers in the last decade of the 19th century and by a strong ideological polarization of these communities, which led to the emergence of a mass Polish socialist movement based on the Jewish socialist movement. In the atmosphere of ideological and political ferment, the awakened Zionist movement was diversified. In consequence, apart from the dominant liberal-political current, new currents emerged: the conservative-religious and the socialist one. The latter started to develop within Galicia to become strongly present in the Kingdom of Poland with time. When it comes to the organizational and political aspects, the Zionist socialist movement developed only after independence was regained. As a result of the Second World War, a rapid break of the Jewish life in Poland took place. The after-war period brought new challenges that had to be faced also by socialist Zionists.