Maurice Orbach (13 July 190224 April 1979) was a British
Labour Party politician,
[
] who served the
Willesden East (1945-1959) and
Stockport South (1964-1979) constituencies.
[
]
Background
Born to a
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
family, Orbach was educated at technical college in Wales and as an extramural student at
New York University
New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin.
In 1832, the ...
.
Career
Public service
Orbach was a lifelong member of
Poale Zion (Great Britain).
He was
general secretary
Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the organization. The term is derived ...
of the Jewish
Trades Advisory Council
Trade is the voluntary exchange of goods, services, or both.
Trade or trading may also refer to:
Geography
* Trade, Tennessee, an unincorporated community, United States
* Trade City, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community, United States
* T ...
("a committee of the
Board of Deputies of British Jews
The Board of Deputies of British Jews, commonly referred to as the Board of Deputies, is the largest and second oldest Jewish communal organisation in the United Kingdom, after only the Initiation Society which was founded in 1745. Established ...
, aimed at countering anti-Semitism in business life" during World War II) from 1940 and remained its secretary until his death.
He was chairman of Central Middlesex Group hospital management committee.
He was active in the
World Jewish Congress
The World Jewish Congress (WJC) was founded in Geneva, Switzerland in August 1936 as an international federation of Jewish communities and organizations. According to its mission statement, the World Jewish Congress' main purpose is to act as ...
(WJC). In 1954, on behalf of both the WJC and
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 Winston Churchill in the Second World War, dur ...
, he went to Cairo to help save the lives of Jews sentenced to death as part of the
Lavon Affair.
Later, he said that Egypt's President,
Gamal Abdel Nasser
Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein, . (15 January 1918 – 28 September 1970) was an Egyptian politician who served as the second president of Egypt from 1954 until his death in 1970. Nasser led the Egyptian revolution of 1952 and introduced far-re ...
, had agreed to spare their lives but then reneged to balance their deaths with members of
Muslim Brotherhood
The Society of the Muslim Brothers ( ar, جماعة الإخوان المسلمين'' ''), better known as the Muslim Brotherhood ( ', is a transnational Sunni Islamist organization founded in Egypt by Islamic scholar and schoolteacher Hassan ...
.
Political service
Orbach contested
Huntingdonshire
Huntingdonshire (; abbreviated Hunts) is a non-metropolitan district of Cambridgeshire and a historic county of England. The district council is based in Huntingdon. Other towns include St Ives, Godmanchester, St Neots and Ramsey. The popul ...
in the
1931 election and
Willesden East in
1935
Events
January
* January 7 – Italian premier Benito Mussolini and French Foreign Minister Pierre Laval conclude Franco-Italian Agreement of 1935, an agreement, in which each power agrees not to oppose the other's colonial claims.
* ...
and in
a 1938 by-election. In 1937 he was elected to the
London County Council
London County Council (LCC) was the principal local government body for the County of London throughout its existence from 1889 to 1965, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today kno ...
, representing
St Pancras South West.
[
]
Orbach was elected
Member of Parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
for
Willesden East in
1945
1945 marked the end of World War II and the fall of Nazi Germany and the Empire of Japan. It is also the only year in which nuclear weapons have been used in combat.
Events
Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix.
Januar ...
, serving until his defeat in
1959
Events January
* January 1 - Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance.
* January 2 - Lunar probe Luna 1 was the first man-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reached the vicinity of E ...
, and for
Stockport South from
1964
Events January
* January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved.
* January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarch ...
until Parliament dissolved for the
1979 general election; he died two weeks later, nine days before polling day. His successor was
Thomas McNally.
[
]
Personal life and death
In 1935, Orbach married Ruth Hubsch, an American, who later taught English to refugees from Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
.[
Daughter ]Susie
Susie is a female name that can be a diminutive form of Susan, Susanne, Suzanne, Susannah, Susanna or Susana.
Susie may refer to:
Songs
* "Susie Q" (song), a 1957 song by Dale Hawkins, covered by Creedence Clearwater Revival (1968)
*"Wake U ...
is a psychotherapist, writer and co-founder of The Women's Therapy Centre in London. Son Laurence taught history at Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
, New York, before founding Quarto Publishing
The Quarto Group is a global illustrated book publishing group founded in 1976. It is domiciled in the United States and listed on the London Stock Exchange.
Quarto creates and sells illustrated books for adults and children, across 50 countri ...
in London in 1976 and served as chairman and CEO of The Quarto Group, Inc.
Legacy
At his death in 1979, the ''Jewish Telegraphic Agency
The Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) is an international news agency and wire service, founded in 1917, serving Jewish community newspapers and media around the world as well as non-Jewish press, with about 70 syndication clients listed on its web ...
'' called him a "prominent leader of Anglo Jewry" and stated "a stalwart Zionist, he was a founder of the Labour Friends of Israel."The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' referred to him as "a self-proclaimed Labour Zionist
Zionism ( he, צִיּוֹנוּת ''Tsiyyonut'' after ''Zion'') is a nationalist movement that espouses the establishment of, and support for a homeland for the Jewish people centered in the area roughly corresponding to what is known in Je ...
who had conspicuously failed to support Israel during the Suez crisis
The Suez Crisis, or the Second Arab–Israeli war, also called the Tripartite Aggression ( ar, العدوان الثلاثي, Al-ʿUdwān aṯ-Ṯulāṯiyy) in the Arab world and the Sinai War in Israel,Also known as the Suez War or 1956 Wa ...
."
Work
;Books
* ''Austria, 1946'' (1946)[
]
References
External links
*
*''Times Guide to the House of Commons October 1974''
*
*
National Archives
Letter of 13 Feb 1957 from Maurice Orbach MP, enclosing telegrams from constituents urging UK government to oppose sanctions against Israel
They Speak for You
417 speeches by Maurice Orbach (1945-1979)
Getty Images
Photo of Maurice Orbach in 1952
Getty Images
Photo of Maurice Orbach in 1972
Palestine Poster Project
"Nationalist Worker! Be Ready To Show Your Strength" by Maurice Orbach (1937)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Orbach, Maurice
1902 births
1979 deaths
Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies
UK MPs 1945–1950
UK MPs 1950–1951
UK MPs 1951–1955
UK MPs 1955–1959
UK MPs 1964–1966
UK MPs 1966–1970
UK MPs 1970–1974
UK MPs 1974
UK MPs 1974–1979
Members of London County Council
Jewish British politicians