Chaim Weizmann

He married Vera Weizmann in 1906 and they had two children together, Benjamin and Michael. Michael was killed fighting in the Royal Air Force during World War II when his plane was shot down.

Ezer Weizmann, his nephew, became president of Israel following in his uncle’s footsteps.

In 1949, the ‘Daniel Sieff Research Institute’ was renamed the ‘Weizmann Institute of Science’ in his honor. He published ‘Trial and Error: The Autobiography of Chaim Weizmann’ in the same year.

He was born to Rachel, a housewife, and Oizer Czermerinsky Weizmann, a timber merchant. He was one of fifteen children.

In 1892, he left what is now Belarus to study chemistry in Germany at the age of 18. He studied at the ‘Polytechnic Institute of Darmstadt’ and then at the ‘Technische Hochschule’ Berlin. He finally he earned his PhD in organic chemistry from the ‘University of Fribourg’ in Switzerland.

In 1901, he began his teaching career at the ‘University of Geneva’ and went on to be a senior lecturer at the ‘University of Manchester’ in England three years later. It was here he became a leader for the British Zionists.

Also in 1901, he teamed up with Martin Buber and Berthold Feiwel to lobby for a Jewish school in Palestine. It took 11 years, but eventually the ‘Technion – Israel Institute of Technology’ was established.

It was during his time at the ‘University of Manchester’ (roughly beginning in 1904) where he discovered how to use bacterial fermentation to make more of a given substance. This scientific practice is now known as ‘acetone-butanol-ethanol fermentation’ and proved very useful during WWI.

His scientific discovery of industrial fermentation earned him the respect of British cabinet members who were then more sympathetic to his Zionistic goals. In 1907, he visited Jerusalem and helped found the ‘Palestine Land Development Company’, a more practical approach to his Zionism.

Ten years later in 1917, he worked with Alfred Balfour as the President of the ‘British Zionist Federation’ to create the ‘Balfour Declaration.’ This supported the idea that Palestine should be the natural home for Jewish people. Weizmann released a statement defending his form of Zionism, saying there was nothing malicious about it – simply a Jewish longing for home.

In 1904 and the following years, he began his discovery of industrial fermentation. This discovery allowed substances to be mass-produced more easily using a chemical formula. This greatly aided British efforts in World War I and gained him respect from Churchill and his aides.

Throughout his life, he was a champion for leading the Zionist cause. In 1920, he served as president for their worldwide alliance.

In 1949, he was chosen to be the first president of Israel. He convinced the US and many other countries to recognize Israel as a serious new state, although the position was largely ceremonial.