"Rome and Jerusalem", by Moses Hess – Leipzig, 1862 – First Edition

Rom und Jerusalem, die letzte Nationalitätsfrage, Briefe und Noten, von M. [Moses] Hess. [Rome and Jerusalem, the last National Question, Missives and Notes, by Moses Hess]. Leipzig: Eduard Wengler, 1862. German and some Hebrew. First edition.
In the book "Rome and Jerusalem", which was written as an epistolary narrative (a collection of twelve letters by Moses Hess to his friend), Hess expresses his desire to establish a state for the Jewish nation argued for the Jews to return to Palestine.
Moses (Moshe) Hess (1812-1875), author, philosopher and socialist, one of the founding fathers of the socialist movement in Europe, one of the first Zionists, and a founder of Zionist Socialism. Hess published essays, founded and edited periodicals with a socialistic agenda, and collaborated with Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. After alienating himself for many years from Judaism he went through a radical transformation in view of the 1848 revolutions and the movements to unite Germany and Italy which made it clear to him that the national aspect is central in modern existence. In 1861 he completed his book "Rome and Jerusalem". At first he could not find a publisher but in 1862 he managed to publish the book in Leipzig. Hess died in Paris in 1875 and was buried, according to his request, in the Jewish cemetery of Cologne. In 1961 Hess was re-interred in the cemetery of Kinneret.
XVI, 239, [1] pp; approx. 18.5 cm. Missing cover. Good-fair condition. Library stamps. Many stains. Inscriptions on most of the leaves (most of them in color pencil, some of them in pen). Several small tears along the edges of the leaves. New, elegant cloth binding.