Breslau - Niederschlesien

 

History of the Community

Breslau was the capital of the Prussian Province Silesia, with approximately 600,000 inhabitants of whom 31,000 were Jewish (these are the numbers from 1925). It can be assumed that Jews were already living in the old Polish Breslau. The earliest Jewish settlement was probably situated near the "Herzogsburg" (the dukes castle) and the modern community was founded in the 17^th century.

The first written record of Jews living in Breslau apppeared in November 1696. It contained 130 names but it can be assumed that not all of the aforementioned were permanent residents of the town, but came to one of the fairs, such as the "Elisabethmarkt" and tried to stay in town as long as possible, even though they did not enjoy residency status.

According to the records of the city archives, in 1673 there were only 10 housholders in permanent residence in the town. In 1702 the municipal council issued regulations for the Jews – Judenordnung - which was supposed to "regulate" the number of Jewish households. The admission of  Jewish households into this list confirmed only those who were already registered in the town in 1699.

These regulations made it possible for the Polish Jews to invite a non-local butcher to take up permanent residency in Breslau. The community grew slowly and only 43 households were recognised in 1707. On the other hand the new regulations forbade the Jews to build a synagogue or to conduct private prayer, but since the records named some persons with the title "Shammes" it can be assumed that prayer services were held privately and that there were several Minyanim. These were probably Polish,  Moravian and Lemberger Jews. A total of five of these "Shammases" were named.

Moreover there were another 28 people who were called "Münzjuden" (Jews of coins) or "Hofjuden" (Jews serving the nobility), whom today we would call accountants or tax advisers, and "Zolljuden" (Jews who had a lease on the customs).These were the aristocracy of the community!

In 1722 the community numbered 775 souls, among them a doctor, a goldsmith and a Rabbi. The Rabbi was Saul ben Abraham Josua Heschel, who became Rabbi  of Breslau in 1704  until his death in1707.

A further proof of the existance of an early synagogue in the community is the death of the Rabbi, reported in the memor-book of the "Lissaer Shul". This book is the only proof of the existance of this Shul.

In 1812 with the Prussian law of emancipation, the Jews in Prussia were given citizenship. By the beginning of the 20^th century Breslau was the largest Jewish community in the east German territories and was the third largest in the whole of Germany, after Berlin and Frankfurt.

 

The synagogues

The Landshul, the oldest-known synagogue, also called "Landessynagoge", was situated in the Pokoyhof between Antonienstreet and Wallstreet in a half-timbered house. Eventually the house was so decrepit and due for demolition that the synagogue was relocated to Wallstrasse 17 and still later to Museeumsplatz 12. It was in existence long before the building of the "Storch-Synagogue".

 

The Sklower Synagogue – more correctly the Sklower Shul, also called the "Litauer", served the Lithuanian merchants from 1762 and was situated in the still remaining building in Goldeneradegasse 2. Marcus Israel Sklower received permission from Minister Karl von Hoym to build this "Temple". Sklower also was the editor of a Synagogue-book (1776) which contained the synagogue history, beautifully written on parchment. The Sklower Shul was in use until the beginning of the last century and the building survived the battles of 1945.

 

The Storchen-Synagogue was initiated by well-to-do merchants from south-west Poland who contacted one of the most famous German architects of the time, Karol Friedrich Langhans, and commissioned him to design a new synagogue for the growing community. The Storch-Synagogue was constructed according to his plans, on the site called "Zum Weissen Storch" (to the white stork) on  Wallstrasse 7/8. The construction took from 1827 to 1829. It was one of the architects’ outstanding buildings. This synagogue was considered the central synagogue of Breslau and was intended to combine all the smaller communities. The Consecration was on 10^th April 1829.
The synagogue was first of all used by the liberal faction of the community and only when they moved to the "Neue Synagoge" (Am Anger) did it become home to the orthodox community, which had previously used the synagogue "Zum Tempel".  In the early 20^th century the original galleries were replaced by low cement structures 10 meters wide. Furthermore a four-story community building was added to the site.
The Storch-synagogue was the only one not burned on  Pogrom-night of 1938, since it was situated in the historic section of the city and there was danger that the fire would spread to other parts of the city. During the Nazi-era the synagogue was in use until 1941, after which it was used as a collection point for the victims of deportation, and still later for storage of their worldly possessions. After WW 2. the synagogue was used by the community of the city until the 60's. At the beginning of the 70's the community shrank and the building was annexed by the communist government and connected with the University Wroclaw, first as a library and later as Cultural center and finally as a concert hall.
Contrary to all plans the Synagogue was never renovated. In 1996 the Jewish community of Wroclaw regained possession of the building, but it was already very shabby. A local company was retained to renovate the roof and the gutters in 1997, following which the community began to plan for bigger and more complex renovations. Moreover the Mikva – the last one existing today in Poland , was renovated. In the synagogue building a kosher cafeteria was set up. On 9^th November 1998, 60 years after it's destruction, the synagogue was re-dedicated after extensive renovations.

The Neue Synagoge, also called the "Liberal" or "Mainsynagogue", stood at Anger no. 8. It served, as the name suggests, the liberal or assimilated Jews and was inaugurated in 1872 by the Breslauer Rabbi Gedalja Tiktin (1843-1886), an orthodox Rabbi and Manuel Joel, a liberal Rabbi.
It's builder, the architect Edwin Oppler, was a native of Oels. This synagogue was near the Berlin Hauptsynagogue, considered one of the biggest and most magnificent in Germany. The Munich synagogue came only in third place. Oppler  built this particular synagogue in the Byzantine-romantic style. The beautiful central building was crowned by a 60m high dome, which was surrounded by small corner towers. In addition it had a very impressing rose-window above the front portal. During pogrom night of 9/10^th November 1938 the synagogue was burned down by SA and others. Afterwards the ruin was demolished. The only thing that remained was the wrought iron fence which surrounded the former building.
Other communities included the orthodox (small) synagogue "Zum Tempel", the "Alt-Glogauer Synagogue", the "Bamberger Synagogue" and the private "Pinchas Synagogue".[1]

 

The "Jüdische-Theologische Seminar" or Fränckels Foundation

 

This institution for the training of Rabbis was built through the bequest from Kommerzienrat Jonas Fränkel and opened it's doors 1854. Among the teachers were Heinrich Graety, Jakob Bernays, Manuel Joel and B. Zuckermann. The seminar offered training for Rabbis or Teachers of Religion and was integrated into the German educational system of "Gymnasium" (high-school) and University. Only applicants with the appropriate high-school diploma (Abitur) would be admitted to rabbinical studies. The students pursued parallel studies at the local university to attain the title of "Doctor-Rabbiner" and only afterwards were they able to start their carreer in a community.

Sections of the seminar were closed down in 1867 and 1887 due to the lack of students, so that only the theological branch was left. In the '20s and '30s of the 20^th century the teacher training, that had been interrupted in the meantime, was reinstalled. The library of the Seminar contained 30,000 books and more than 400 valuable manuscripts.

After the rise of the Nazi regime the number of students and teachers was greatly reduced. During the night of the pogrom in November 1938 the seminar was attacked and a major part of the precious library was destroyed. Afterwards teaching activities had to be stopped immediately and students as well as teachers were deported to Buchenwald concentration camp. Lessons continued in hiding until 21^st of February 1939, the day on which the last two students received rabbinic ordination.[2]

 

The Nazi-Era

The persecution of the Jews began, as in all of Germany, with the empowerment of the Nazis and 200 people were declared to be enemies of state as early as 1933. Emmigration to free countries began at this early date. As far as can be re-constructed today there was little or no anti-semitism from the general population of the town until 1935. Only after the coming into force of the "Nuernberg-Laws" in 1935 the specific persecution of the Jewish minority in Breslau also began. In 1937 Germans had to report their Jewish spouses to the authorities and in the same year the separation of Jewish and "Arian" children in schools took place and Jewish children could only attend Jewish schools with Jewish teachers. At the same time Jewish academics were deprived of their academic status and the University of Breslau deprived 63 professors of their titles. From April 1938 Jewish students were not admitted to German universities.

During the pogrom of November 1938 all of the Breslau synagogues, except the Stock-Synagogue, were burned. The community center was demolished and more than 500 Jewish-owned shops were destroyed.

Emmigration became almost impossible. Those who could not make a decision to leave early enough were later confronted with the Nazi destruction machinery.[3]

There was no Ghetto installed in Breslau, unlike in the eastern European cities. The SA threatened the persecuted Jews to obey orders. The surviving members of the community were centered around the Storch-Synagouge in the old center of the city – probably in so-called "Jew-houses", and the still existing communal organisations were dissolved. The situation was depressing for all Jews in Germany. A page out of a diary reads "Murder is everywhere".

In 1941 special transportation camps were created, which the SS represented as set up for the "treatment" of elderly people. In these camps there was neither water nor electricity and the ones who survived were deported.

In the summer of 1941 the deportations from Breslau began. The first transports went to Tormersdorf and Theresienstadt, afterwards to Kowno in Latvia and then to Kaunas, Riga and Izbica. Further transports from Silesia went to Sobibor, Belzeck, Majdanek and Auschwitz. The last transprot left Breslau in April 1943.

The ambulance/medical center in the Jewish cemetary was the only place for Jews to stay in Breslau. This was the only place where Jews were allowed to receive medical treatment and only from Jewish personnel, since all Jewish hospitals and clinics were closed by then. In one of the last deportations the patients and the personnel were deported to Gross-Rosen. The last transport from Breslau went to Bergen-Belsen.[4]

 

The cemetary of Breslau

The oldest tombstone in the Breslau cemetary is from the year 1203 and has the oldest inscription in eastern Europe. However, it can be assumed that the cemetary was in use even before that date.

The modern Jewish community bought a plot in the southeast of the city. The first funeral was already held on the 17^th November 1856 in the former village of Gabitz. The Jewish cemetary of Breslau covers an area of 4,6 ha and has 12,000 gravestones. One of the most famous sons of the city, Ferdinand Lassalle (1825 – 1864) found his last resting place here.[5]The last funeral was held on 12^th August 1942. Afterwards the cemetary was closed. In 1975 the city of Wroclaw added the cemetary to the list of historic monuments and on 24^th April,1975 it was added to the list of sights of the city. From 1978 to 1984 a series of conservation and restoration projects were carried out.

On the former Frankfurter Strasse (today Cimentarz Żydowski uł. Lotnicza) the new Jewish cemetary was established. It was opened in 1902 and has almost 20,000 graves on 7 ha. Ninety-five percent of the graves are of former German Jews.[6]