David Cesarani facts for kids

David Ian Cesarani (13 November 1956 – 25 October 2015) was a British historian. He was known for his work on Jewish history, especially the the Holocaust. He also wrote several biographies, which are books about someone's life. One of his famous biographies was about the writer Arthur Koestler.

David Cesarani's Academic Journey

David Cesarani worked at several universities. He taught at the University of Leeds and Queen Mary University of London. He also worked at the Wiener Library in London. This library is a very important place for studying the Holocaust.

Professor of Jewish History

From 2000 to 2004, he was a professor at the University of Southampton. He taught about modern Jewish history there. Later, he became a research professor at Royal Holloway, University of London. He helped start the Holocaust Research Centre at Royal Holloway. He worked there until he passed away.

Understanding Adolf Eichmann and the Holocaust

In 2005, David Cesarani wrote an important book. It was called Eichmann: His Life and Crimes. This book was about Adolf Eichmann, a high-ranking Nazi official. Eichmann played a big role in planning the Holocaust.

Challenging the "Banality of Evil" Idea

Cesarani's book used new information about Eichmann. This included reports and speeches from 1937. In these, Eichmann shared his strong beliefs in a Jewish conspiracy. Cesarani's book aimed to correct an idea called the "banality of evil." This idea was put forward by Hannah Arendt. She suggested that Eichmann was just a bureaucrat. She thought he was simply following orders, not truly believing in Nazi ideas.

Cesarani's research showed something different. He found that Eichmann was deeply committed to Nazi beliefs. He was not just a desk worker. Cesarani argued that Arendt's view was partly wrong. He believed it was because of her own opinions about the prosecutor in Eichmann's trial.

David Cesarani's Public Work

David Cesarani was also active in public life. He worked to educate people about the Holocaust. He also shared his thoughts on the Israeli–Arab conflict.

Promoting Holocaust Education

Cesarani was part of the group that helped create Holocaust Memorial Day in the UK. This day remembers the victims of the Holocaust. He also directed the AHRC Parkes Centre. This center studies the relationships between Jewish and non-Jewish people.

He was also an editor for a journal called Patterns of Prejudice. In 2005, he received an award called the OBE. This award was for his work in Holocaust education. It was also for advising the government on Holocaust Memorial Day.

Views on the Israeli–Arab Conflict

David Cesarani believed that Israel has a right to exist. He thought it was wrong to question this right. He was also against academic and business boycotts of Israel in the UK.

However, he also criticized some of Israel's government policies. He was concerned about certain actions and expansion plans. He saw the Israeli West Bank barrier as a complex issue. He worried if it took land from Palestinians or made their lives harder. He also noted that some Arab towns welcomed the barrier. They saw it as a way to prevent problems in their own towns.

David Cesarani's Early Life and Education

David Cesarani was born in London. His parents were Henry and Sylvia. His father was a hairdresser. His family was not very religious when he was growing up.

School and University Life

He was an only child. He won a scholarship to Latymer Upper School in London. A scholarship helps pay for school. In 1976, he went to Queens' College, Cambridge. He studied history there and did very well.

He then earned a master's degree in Jewish history. He studied at Columbia University in New York City. This experience helped shape his future career. Later, he got his doctorate degree at St Antony's College, Oxford. His research focused on the history of the Jewish community in England between the two World Wars.

Experiences in Israel

In 1974, David Cesarani visited Kibbutz Mashabei Sadeh in Israel. A kibbutz is a community where people live and work together. He spent six weeks there with friends and family. Before starting at Cambridge in 1976, he spent a year at another kibbutz, Givat Haim (Ihud).

These experiences shaped his views on Zionism. Zionism is the movement for the self-determination and protection of the Jewish people. He started to have some doubts during this time. He noticed that local Arabs were not always treated with respect. He was surprised to learn that a pile of rubble he saw was once an Arab village. He had been told it was an old castle.

Later Life and Legacy

David Cesarani enjoyed running marathons and cycling. He was a very active person.

He passed away on 25 October 2015. He had surgery for a cancerous spinal tumour. He was diagnosed with cancer in July 2015. Even in his last weeks, he continued to work. He checked notes for his final book just before his operation. He was still writing ten days before he died. He finished two books that were published in 2016. These were Final Solution: The Fate of the Jews 1933–1949 and Disraeli: The Novel Politician.

Awards and Recognition

• 2006: National Jewish Book Award in the History category for his book Becoming Eichmann: Rethinking the Life, Crimes, and Trial of a "Desk Murderer"