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The Dreyfus Affair was the trial of the nineteenth century, and for journalist Theodore Herzl, it was a turning point. Until then, he believed Jews could assimilate their way out of anti-Semitism, but the cries of “Kill the Jew!” in sophisticated, liberal France showed him otherwise. From that point on, he dedicated his life to his solution for the Jewish people: their own state. Acting as a diplomat to emperors and an organizer amongst Jews, he met with many obstacles along the way, yet in 2015, with the State of Israel alive and well, nobody can dispute the enormity of his accomplishments.

• the Franco-Prussian War – a blow to French pride
• Emile Zola’s J’Accuse • the ironies of Herzl’s Uganda plan
• the split in the Orthodox Jewish world