Golda Meir

Israel's first woman prime minister.

Life

Born in Kyiv

Meir was born in Kyiv, Ukraine, moved to the United States as a child, and in 1921 emigrated to a kibbutz in Palestine. She rose through the Jewish labor movement, and before independence in 1948 she raised huge sums in the United States for the new state.

Foreign minister

She served as Israel's first Ambassador to the Soviet Union, Minister of Labor and Foreign Minister, and became Prime Minister in 1969, one of the world's earliest women heads of government.

Woman prime minister

In October 1973 Egypt and Syria launched a surprise attack (the Yom Kippur War); Israel suffered heavy losses at first, and after the war she took political responsibility, resigning in 1974. She died in 1978.

Legacy

Meir was Israel's first and, to date, only woman prime minister.

Major works & achievements

• My Life

Did you know? She was called "the only man in the Israeli government" — Ben-Gurion's verdict on her.

Key dates

• 1921Emigrates to Palestine
• 1948Ambassador to the Soviet Union
• 1956Became Foreign Minister
• 1969Becomes Prime Minister
• 1973Yom Kippur War
• 1974Resigns