The History of Mladá Boleslav’s Jews The oldest document of Jewish settlement dates back to 1471. In the year 1570, about 16 Jewish families lived in Mladá Boleslav, while in 1620 there were 126 Jews which ballooned to 775 in 1687--about 50% of the population at the time. By the middle of the 19th century, about 900 Jews lived in the town . Later, the Jewish population declined due to emigration to Prague and elsewhere. In 1880 there were 845 Jews in Mladá Boleslav which decreased to 566 persons in 1900 and then 264 persons in 1930. After the Second World War, the Jewish community was re-established for a very short time. In the early 1950’s, it ceased to exist due to natural reasons but also because of the massive exodus of Jews out of Czechoslovakia and also the forced assimilation of Jews by the newly established communist regime. Historically, Mladá Boleslav used to be one of the most populous Jewish communities in Bohemia. It was a center of Jewish thought and of Talmud, and Torah study. 18 local rabbis from the 17th century are quite well known; among them are authors of significant theological and historical writings. The Jewish surname Bumsla – a Yiddish name for the town – originates in Mladá Boleslav. Jews settled in the city as early as the 15th century. A Jew from the city, Yekutiel Zalman ben Yitzhak Dan Bumsla, who left Prague in 1515 on his way to Russia, is mentioned in early documents. Rabbi Meir Fischels “Me-Bumsla” served for 40 years as Rabbi and head of the yeshiva of Prague. In the 1634, a Jewish nobleman, the court Jew of several Holy Roman Emperors of the Habsburg Dynasty, Yaakov Bat-Shevi, was buried at the local cemetery, after fleeing from Prague where he was involved in a financial scandal. Some more recent personalities who came from Mladá Boleslav include Alfred Meissner, a leading figure of the Czech Social Democracy and government minister; poet and cartoonist František Gellner, painter Max Horb, member of the Osma artistic group. In the 1860s Siegfried Kapper, one of the founders of the Czech-Jewish movement, a poet and publicist, operated as a doctor in the town. From 1922 to the WII, an independent Jewish Museum operated in the town, possessing very valuable local Judaic collections. These were confiscated by the Nazis in WWII and are now part of the collections of the Jewish Museum in Prague. The Jewish Quarter The rest of the Jewish Quarter is still preserved in the northern part of the historical town. It is found between the town hall and the valley of the river Jizera (Synagogní, Starofarní, Bělská, Vodkova and Krajířova streets). In 1599 there were 12 Jewish houses which grew to 32 houses by the first half of the 19th century. The ghetto was burnt down in 1761 and in 1859 but was rebuilt after these incidents. The last synagogue from 1785, built on the site of an older synagogue, was demolished in 1962. It was located in the Synagogní street, hence the name. A large, perfectly preserved Jewish cemetery lies in the in southern outskirts of town. It was first documented in 1584 and extended after 1715. The oldest legible tombstone dates back from 1604, but there are burials even after WWII. A renaissance matzeva of Jakob Bassevi von Treuenberg can be found here. A very valuable cemetery, it has many Renaissance, Baroque and Classical tombstones. There is an octagonal ceremonial hall that was built in 1888. A beth tahara – former Jewish Hospital – is still preserved and inhabited by the last Jew of Mladá Boleslav, Mr. Žák, who also is a caretaker of the cemetery.
Though the Jewish community of Mladá Boleslav is virtually non-existent, its remnants still remain. It’s definitely a town that is worth visiting should you ever find yourself on a Jewish vacation on the Czech Republic. Below is the Part I of this article: Part I: The Old Royal Town Of Mladá Boleslav
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Mladá Boleslav is an ancient royal town in the Central Bohemia Region of the Czech Republic. It is situated on the left bank of the Jizera River, at the confluence with the river Klenice. It has approximately 45,000 inhabitants and forms a bi-city with the neighbouring small town of Kosmonosy. The city is home to the famous Škoda car. History of Mladá Boleslav In 10th century, Bohemian Duke Boleslav II founded a wooden castle he called Mladá Boleslav (“The Young Boleslav”)--after his own name. The main purpose was probably to build an administrative center for newly acquired territories of the Bohemian Crown. At that time, a settlement was set up under the castle on the bank of the Jizera river. By the end of the 13th century, the castle had been completely destroyed by the invasion. After the extinction of the royal branch of the Přemyslids in 1306, the town was under the possession of the Michalovice noble family. In 1334, Ješek of Michalovice issued a document in which he equipped Mladá Boleslav with many city rights. During the 14th century, most of the buildings (predominantly wooden) centered around the triangular market. During the Hussite wars the city was repeatedly devastated and all monasteries were destroyed. In 1600 Emperor Rudolph II promoted Mladá Boleslav to a royal city. However, Mladá Boleslav soon became bankrupt. The reason was the Thirty Years' War which devastated the town entirely, due to the troops trotting through the town. The suburb received the worst damage as it was not protected by the walls. In 1648, the castle of Mladá Boleslav was destroyed. The Renewal The boom restarted with the development of industries. In the 18th and 19th centuries, many factories were built in Mladá Boleslav, most of which concentrated on the banks of the Jizera River. Distilleries, the brewery, the textile factory or the sugar factory were among these. An important milestone for the city was the connection to the Austrian railroad in 1865, connecting the town to the Empire. At the beginning of the 20th century, a new quarter was quickly created and the city expanded significantly beyond the boundaries of its original development. In 1895,the Slavia bicycle factory was founded. It soon became a motorcycle factory and then the car manufacturer in 1905 run by Laurin & Klement Co. – today's Škoda Auto. An architectural plan was drawn by architect František Janda and brought a urban planning concept of a modern industrial town. In 1927, the Border Exhibition of the Czech North was held in the town. The exhibition was a stimulus for the establishment of a number of clubs in all of Northern Bohemia. At that time, the Municipal Museum was established in Mladá Boleslav. Was There A Jewish Community? The Jewish community in Mlada Boleslav, which the Jews called Bumsla, was one of the oldest communities in Bohemia. For many years the rabbis of the community were renowned Torah scholars, whose reputation and influence exceeded their boundaries. This makes it one tourist spot worth visiting when taking a Jewish vacation in the Czech Republic. We shall learn more about this community in the second part of this discussion. Below is the Part II of this article: Part II: The Old Royal Town Of Mladá Boleslav |
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