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[ 10 Articles ] |
• 74 B.E.
• A.H.
• 2 May A.D. 1917
• A.M. |
The martyrdom of Mírzá Muḥammad-i-Bulúr-Furúsh in Yazd. [BBRXXX, BBR443] |
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• 74 B.E.
• A.H.
• Novvember A.D. 1917
• A.M. |
`Abdu'l-Bahá sends a message to the Bahá'ís of the world assuring them of His safety. [AB412]
- The Tablet is carried by an aged Arab Bahá'í, Ḥájí Ramadán. It takes
him 45 days to walk from `Akká to Ṭihrán. On his return trip he brings
gold and messages. [AB412; CH206-7]
- For text of the Tablet see CH207-8.
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• 74 B.E.
• A.H.
• 2 November A.D. 1917
• A.M. |
The Balfour Declaration was a
letter sent to Lord Walter Rothschild by British Foreign Secretary
Arthur Balfour declaring support for the establishment of a ‘national
home for the Jewish people' in what was to become the British Mandate of
Palestine. It was the first official declaration of political support
for Jewish independence and is viewed by some as paving the way for the
legal foundations of the modern State of Israel as evidenced by the
level of international diplomacy that went into securing the letter. In
the context of WWI which was still raging at the time, it offered
Britain the opportunity for a stake in the Middle East in the expected
wake of the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. It also marked one of the
first major successes of the political Zionist movement which had
officially been established with the First Zionist Congress in 1897.
Given that the Balfour Declaration was not a unilateral document on
behalf of the British but rather something which had been agreed upon
privately by allied diplomats before it was issued, it is viewed as the
beginning of a legal process, which involved the San Remo conference of 1920 where the Declaration was officially adopted by the allied powers and
latter, the creation of the British Mandate for Palestine in 1922.
The implementation of the Declaration was not without its failings. It
provided for the safeguarding of the rights of the residents of
Palestine saying ‘nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil
and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine'.
In the run up to WWII that the British wanted to placate the Arab
leadership in the Mandate. They issued a White Paper limiting Jewish
immigration to the Mandate to fifteen thousand every year for five
years, ultimately refusing entry to thousands of Jewish refugees from
Europe, many of whom would tragically die in the Holocaust. |
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• 74 B.E.
• A.H.
• 9 December A.D. 1917
• A.M. |
General Allenby enters Jerusalem. [AB425]
- Major Wellesley Tudor Pole risks court martial to alert the British Cabinet of the danger to `Abdu'l-Bahá. [ER169]
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• 74 B.E.
• A.H.
• In the year A.D. 1918
• A.M. |
Shoghi Effendi finishes his education in Arts and Sciences at the American University at Beirut. [DH148; GBF9]
- He receives a Bachelor of Arts degree. [GBF:9]
- He serves as `Abdu'l-Bahá's secretary for two years before resuming his education in England. [DH148; GBF9; PP26-7]
- For a picture of Shoghi Effendi at this time see BW13:131, GBF50-1 and PP88-9.
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• 74 B.E.
• A.H.
• A.D. 1918
• A.M. |
Shaykh Kázim-i-Samandar, Apostle of Bahá'u'lláh, passes away early in the year.
- For the story of his life see EB191-215.
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• 74 B.E.
• A.H.
• January A.D. 1918
• A.M. |
The British Bahá'ís alert the
Foreign Office about the importance of ensuring `Abdu'l-Bahá's safety in
Haifa. [BBR332-5; CH219; GPB305-6]
CH219 says this was in the Spring but letters to the Foreign Office are dated Jan 1918.
- For the actions of Lady Blomfield see BBR333, CH219-20, AB425-26 and ER169.
- For the role of Major Wellesley Tudor Pole see BBR332-3; CH222-5; and ER168-70.
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• 74 B.E.
• A.H.
• March A.D. 1918
• A.M. |
The British Military Administration of Palestine begins. [BBR488]
- Sir Ronald Storrs is detached from Jerusalem to organize the
British Administration in Haifa. 'Abdu'l-Bahá offers him His staff and
a gift of a little Bokkara rug from the Shrine of the Báb. He returns
the visit to Sir Ronald at a later date in Jerusalem. [BW10 194-5]
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• 74 B.E.
• A.H.
• 15 March A.D. 1918
• A.M. |
Áqá Mírzá Javád, I`timádu't-Tujjár,
is shot in Bandar Jaz and the houses of the Bahá'ís are looted, causing
the death of Javád's 14-year-old nephew. [BW18:387] |
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