Britain's 1939 White Paper sharply restricted Jewish immigration to Palestine and rejected partition, shaping the conflict between Arabs, Jews, and the Mandate until 1948.
Key Facts
- Date approved in Commons
- 23 May 1939
- Jewish immigration cap
- 75,000 over five years
- Proposed independent state timeline
- Within 10 years
- Land sale restrictions coverage
- Applied to 95% of Palestine
- Certificates used by 1944
- 51,000 of 75,000 allocated
- Post-1944 monthly immigration rate
- 1,500 certificates per month
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
The Arab revolt in Palestine from 1936 to 1939 and the failure of the Arab–Zionist London Conference prompted the British government under Neville Chamberlain to craft a new unilateral policy. The Peel Commission's earlier partition recommendation was rejected as unworkable, compelling Britain to seek an alternative framework acceptable to Arab opinion.
Issued in May 1939, the White Paper proposed an independent Palestinian state within ten years with shared Arab-Jewish governance. It capped Jewish immigration at 75,000 over five years, after which Arab majority consent would be required, and empowered the High Commissioner to severely restrict Jewish land purchases across most of Mandatory Palestine.
Zionist organizations immediately rejected the policy and launched months of attacks on government property, while Arab leadership also formally rejected it. Key provisions were never fully implemented due to wartime preoccupation and cabinet changes. The Mandate was ultimately referred to the United Nations in 1947, ending with British withdrawal in 1948.