Yehoshua Ben Arie

There are people in this world who embody the essence of a land and nation. Events in their lives, their ancestry, and their character make them so, whether they like it or not. Yehoshua Ben-Arieh was one of these people. In his research, he covered the making of the State and Land of Israel in modern times, from the beginning of the nineteenth century, through the modernization and opening up that the country went through, the beginning of the Zionist movement, the British Mandate, and ending with the War of Independence.

In his life, he was a witness to many of these events. Born in the Mandate period to a family that was among the first Jewish pioneers, exposed through his academic career to European civilization, especially the British and American heritage, and acquiring from his father an openness to and fondness for local Arab culture, Yehoshua became an intellectual who combined strong Zionist zeal with an open, universal attitude, believing that the holy city of Jerusalem, which was his focus of study, should be a temple for all men (and women).