R. Solomon Kluger (1785–1869), the Maggid of Brody, received his early education from his father, the rabbi of Komarov, who died during Solomon's boyhood. At 13 he went to Zamosc where he studied under R. Mordecai Reuben and R. Jacob Kranz, the famous maggid of Dubno. He soon became known as an illui ("prodigy"). For a time he lived in Rava where he became a shopkeeper, but failed. He was then prevailed upon to accept the post of rabbi at Kolki; from there he went to Josefov and in 1820 to Brody, where he remained for about 50 years. R. Kluger’s great reputation still endures. A prolific writer, he wrote hundreds of responsa. He is said to have written 375 books, the numerical equivalent of his name Solomon; the list of his known works comprises no less then 174, of which 15 were published during his life and 15 posthumously.

R. Moses Sofer (Hatam Sofer, 1762–1839) was the leader of Orthodox Jewry in his time. He was born in Frankfort and his two most important teachers there were R. Phinehas Horowitz and R. Nathan Adler. When, as a result of the opposition to his innovations and departure from accepted custom, R. Adler was forced to leave Frankfort, R. Sofer, his loyal disciple, then 19 years of age, accompanied him on his wanderings. Although R. Sofer never returned to his native town, he was always proud of it, and used to sign himself "Moses ha-Katan [the insignificant] of Frankfort on the Main." He served first as rabbi of Dresnitz (Moravia) and of Mattersdorf, and in 1806 was appointed rabbi of Pressburg, at that time the most important community in Hungary, where he remained for the rest of his life. His appointment to this high office came as a result of the reputation he had acquired by virtue of his oustanding scholarship, moral character, talent and leadership, and a mystical religious fervor which he had acquired under the influence of Adler. There already existed in Pressburg an appreciable minority of maskilim who unsuccessfully opposed his appointment. However, the opposition was not completely silenced, and R. Moses Sofer did not have a tranquil time.

During his 33 years there R. Sofer founded his famous yeshivah, the largest since the Babylonian yeshivot, and made it the center from which to organize Orthodox Jewry in its struggle against the Reform movement. Despite the expansion of his yeshivah and his great influence, which spread far and wide, he was continuously conscious of the growing tension between the traditionalists and the groups which sought a more liberal interpretation of Judaism in order to come to terms with the "spirit of the times." His qualities enabled R. Sofer to become the undisputed religious authority in his own town. As a result, unlike the case in other large European cities, the innovators were not triumphant. He declared total war with no concessions in the battle against modernity. Though it gave him no pleasure to engage in conflict ("There are no quarrels without wounds," Response, pt. 6, no. 35), he waged the battle of Orthodoxy vigorously, resourcefully, and with diplomatic skill. He adopted the long-range plan of strengthening educational and communal institutions and disseminating Torah study ("It is a time to act for the Lord, increase your Torah," ethical testament, see below); the appointment of his best disciples to rabbinic posts and the strengthening in general of the status of the rabbinate; the formation of a joint front with the hasidic movement; and the winning of the confidence of the government in the loyalty of Orthodox Jewry. Among the many pungent and pointed epigrams which R. Sofer coined, and which became the slogans of the Orthodox, the best known is his application of the talmudic dictum "Hadash asur min ha-Torah" to mean that any innovation, even though from the point of view of halakhah it is unimportant, is strictly forbidden simply because it is an innovation.

R. Solomon Zalman Lipschitz, (Hemdat Shelomo, 1765–1839), Polish rabbi, first chief rabbi of Warsaw, known as "Hemdat Shelomo" after his works of that name. was rabbi of Nasielsk, where he founded an important yeshivah. R. Lipschitz was unable to bear the atmosphere of Nasielsk, which was becoming increasingly Hasidic. In 1806 he received a call to be rabbi of his home town, but he refused in order to protect his children from the influence of the Haskalah, which had spread from Germany. In 1819, he was elected rabbi of Praga (a suburb of Warsaw) where there was a large Jewish population. With the development of the Warsaw kehillah, he was appointed rabbi of the community (1821). There, too, he founded an important yeshivah. Among its students were many who later became Polish rabbis. As chief rabbi of Warsaw, he led the opposition to the Haskalah movement. His responsa and decisions are cited in the halakhic works of many Polish rabbis. When he died, a month of mourning was proclaimed. A special announcement issued by the community forbade women to wear jewelry during that month. R. Lipschitz is the author of three works, all entitled Hemdat Shelomo: responsa (Warsaw, 1836); novellae on various tractates of the Talmud (3 pts., 1851–92), and sermons (1890). Some of his original letters were saved from the Holocaust but have not been published.

בשולי השער: נדפס... פה ווארשא [!]. שמואל ווינער, קהלת משה, עמ' 5, מס' 44, רושם: ברעסלויא? ואמנם, כנראה, זהו מקום הדפוס של החלקים ב-ד. דף יב,א: "יען כי אנה ה' לידי כתיבת יד מהספדים אשר נשמע מפי... מו"ה שלמה קלוגר ... אמרתי להדפיסם... יעקב במהרי"ל טויכהערר". נראה, שהכוונה לשלושת החלקים, ב-ד, שנדפסו יחד.