Published in 1862, Rome and Jerusalem: The Last National Question fuses prophetic polemic with historical analysis. Cast as a series of letters, the book opposes 'Rome'—imperial power and assimilative modernity—to 'Jerusalem,' the emblem of ethical nationhood and renewal. Hess argues that Jewish emancipation without national restoration is illusory, advocating a return to Palestine and a cooperative, socialist commonwealth rooted in productive labor. Engaging the era's debates on nationali...