Language:
German
Year of publication:
2010
Titel der Quelle:
Kirchliche Zeitgeschichte
Angaben zur Quelle:
23,2 (2010) 549-574
Keywords:
Antisemitism History 1800-2000
Abstract:
Discusses Polish antisemitism in the interwar period, comparing it with European antisemitism in general. Argues that, for centuries, there was no other country in which so many Jews lived alongside Catholics; before 1772, four-fifths of European Jewry lived in Poland. Considers Roman Dmowski, the founder of Nationale Demokratie, responsible for the onset of national antisemitism, based on the alleged economic threat presented by the Jewish population, due to unemployment. This anti-Jewish attitude was supported by the Catholic Church. After the recovery of Polish independence in 1918, Jews in contested border areas were especially endangered; ca. 2,000 Jews were murdered by Poles. In 1925 a Polish-Jewish agreement was signed, in which the Polish goverment committed itself to ensure equal access for Jews to official posts, non-discrimination in schools, suspension of anti-Jewish laws, and facilities for Zionist activity. However, none of these points was respected. The Nazi seizure of power in Germany in 1933 influenced internal politics in Poland and led to physical attacks, boycott, and persecution. Maintains that Polish antisemitism differed from that of other European countries due to the significant role of the Catholic Church, which encouraged the anti-Jewish athmosphere, defining the Jew as the interior enemy of the Polish nation.
URL:
Locate this publication in Israeli libraries
Permalink