When Meir became prime minister of Israel in 1969, the Jewish state that she had done so much to bring into existence was barely 20 years old and faced Arab nations committed to its destruction. Already 70 years old and often in poor health, she was widely seen as a stopgap leader who would be shunted aside once the right man came along. For a nation that had already fought three wars and was in thrall to its dashing military commanders, a small, wrinkled grandmother who wore baggy dresses and shuffled around in orthopaedic shoes seemed an unlikely saviour.
Yet in the five years that Golda held office, she would stamp her personality indelibly on a country where fierce political feuding was the norm and any sign of weakness could be fatal. Beyond Israel she became a global celebrity, regularly voted the worldâ??s most admired woman in opinion polls. Chain-smoking her way from the UN to the White House, Downing Street to the Elysée Palace, she became, in the words of one observer, â??a symbol of the new Israel, its courage, strength and boundless devotionâ?.
Read Full Article »