Historical Figure
Golda Meir
1898–1978
Prime Minister of Israel from 1969 to 1974
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Biography
Golda Meir was the prime minister of Israel from 1969 to 1974. She was Israel's first and, to date, only female head of government.
In Their Own Words (5)
Women’s Liberation is just a lot of foolishness. It’s the men who are discriminated against. They can’t bear children. And no one’s likely to do anything about that.
As quoted in Newsweek (23 October 1972) , 1972
Pessimism is a luxury that a Jew can never allow himself.
The Observer (29 December 1974) , 1974
We have always said that in our war with the Arabs we had a secret weapon — no alternative. The Egyptians could run to Egypt, the Syrians into Syria. The only place we could run was into the sea, and before we did that we might as well fight.
As quoted in LIFE magazine (3 October 1969), p. 32 , 1969
It is the tragedy of our generation, that small nations have not yet gained the security of exercising their natural right—namely that of being masters of their own destiny.
On the Soviet invasion of Hungary to the UN General Assembly (21 November 1956), as cited in "Excerpts from the U.N. General Assembly Debate on Soviet Action in Hungary", The New York Times (21 November 1956), p. 10 , 1956
I don’t know why you use a fancy French word like détente when there’s a good English phrase for it — cold war.
As quoted in Newsweek (19 January 1976) , 1976
Timeline
The story of Golda Meir, told in moments.
Born Golda Mabovitch in Kiev, then part of the Russian Empire. Her earliest memory is her father boarding up the front door during a pogrom. The family emigrates to Milwaukee in 1906. She is eight.
Immigrates to Mandatory Palestine with her husband Morris Meyerson. They join Kibbutz Merhavia in the Jezreel Valley. She raises chickens, works in the kitchen, and learns Arabic from the local bedouins.
Disguises herself as an Arab woman and crosses into Transjordan to secretly meet King Abdullah. She tries to persuade him not to join the Arab invasion of the new Jewish state. He says his hands are tied. She reports back: "War is inevitable."
Appointed Foreign Minister by Ben-Gurion. She Hebraizes her name from Meyerson to Meir. Over the next decade, she builds diplomatic relationships across Africa, sending Israeli experts to help newly independent nations.
Becomes Prime Minister of Israel at 70 after Levi Eshkol dies in office. She is the world's third female head of government, after Sirimavo Bandaranaike and Indira Gandhi.
The Yom Kippur War. Egypt and Syria launch a surprise attack on Israel's holiest day. The army suffers devastating losses in the first 48 hours. Israel recovers but the intelligence failure destroys Meir's government. She resigns five months later.
Dies of lymphoma in Jerusalem at 80. She'd been secretly battling the disease for 12 years, including through the entire Yom Kippur War.
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