Detailed
Description |
|
The rules for the order of service for the synagogue in Württemberg, state in Germany. There is evidence that the Jewish community of Heilbronn in Wuerttemberg was one of the earliest in Germany. An inscription bearing the name of "Nathan the Parnes," on the entrance of the mikveh, apparently dates from the latter half of the 11th century. Information on Jewish settlement in Wuerttemberg becomes more definite in the early 13th century. Jews are known to have settled in 65 localities there before the Black Death persecutions. These settlements suffered during the Rindfleisch massacres of 1298 and again in the Armleder uprising of 1335–37 but soon recovered. At that time the more important Jewish communities were centered in Heilbronn, Ulm, Esslingen, and Schwaebisch Gmuend. At first the Jews paid their taxes directly to the king, the count of Wuerttemberg, or to a nobleman to whom the king had granted taxing privileges; from the middle of the 14th century, however, most cities acquired taxation rights over the Jews living within them. Jews in positions of financial responsibility were helpful to many cities during a period of territorial expansion in the 14th century. During the 15th century, however, many Jews in Wuerttemberg became impoverished due to heavy taxation and the official cancellation of debts that were owed to them. Throughout the 15th century the Jews were alternately enabled to settle and expelled by the nobles, and by the end of the century they had been banished from most of the towns. In 1521 a decree was issued expelling the Jews from the entire duchy. Nevertheless, some of them managed to remain in many of the small villages during the 16th and 17th centuries. Jewish settlement in Wuerttemberg was substantially renewed only in the 18th century when Jews were first allowed to visit fairs and trade in cattle; later they were allowed to settle permanently in the duke's private lands and several other limited areas. With the aid of Joseph Suess Oppenheimer several Jews were granted residence in Stuttgart and Ludwigsburg.
The dukes subsequently enacted more liberal regulations concerning Jewish settlement, such as the Hochberg Regulation of 1780. During the 18th century they retained a number of Court Jews who aided significantly in the economic development of the duchy. When Napoleon added large areas to Wuerttemberg in 1806 the Jewish population rose from 534 to 4,884, and by 1817 there were 3,256 Jews living in 79 localities. Jews were permitted to live in cities such as Ulm, from which they had previously been excluded. The body tax (Leibzoll) was abrogated and Jews were accepted in the army. The improved attitude toward the Jews did not deteriorate after Napoleon's downfall. In 1828 a law was issued obliging Jewish children to receive a secular education; this, however, applied only to shopkeepers and craftsmen and discriminated against peddlers, cattle traders, brokers, and moneylenders. The law recognized the organization of local communities, and in 1831 a central Jewish executive was created in Stuttgart that functioned under governmental supervision. The constitutions of the local communities were drawn up along similar lines to those applied to the Christian communities. The chief rabbi was a government official; but when the chief rabbi Joseph Meir, who was of Reformist bent, tried to introduce the 60 Hymns of Israel, mostly of his own composition, into the traditional liturgy, most congregations refused to adopt the proposal, although it came from an official source. However, the Jews did not gain full civil equality in Wuerttemberg until April 25, 1828, and their religious life still remained subject to governmental supervision. Full autonomy was granted in 1912, and supplemented by additional legislation approved in 1924. The Jewish population increased from 8,918 in 1828 to 11,916 in 1925, organized in 51 communities. By 1933 the number had dwindled to 10,023, in 43 communities. |
