Burstyn

History of the Community

The origins of the Jewish community

Burstyn is mentioned in the sources from 1629 in the context of the battle that took place between the Polish army and the Tatars. There was previously a settlement there named Nove Selo that was mentioned as early as 1550. By the second half of the 19^th century, Burstyn was a private town that passed among several owners. The city suffered severely in the 17^th century wars, and was therefore exempted from taxes in 1681. Alabaster strata were located near the town. The Jews probably arrived in the town in the early 17^th century. They made a living from branches of trade. In 1641-1642, two local Jews are mentioned as having traded with Gdansk. In 1797, the Jews paid a poll tax of 86 gold pieces. In addition to this sum, one Jew, Zalman, also paid 86 gold pieces. The community organized itself in the early 18^th century, and the cemetery was consecrated at the same time. Among the most prominent Jewish community institutions, the redemption of captives committee stood out, because many of the people in the local community had been taken prisoner by the Tatars, and had to be redeemed.

The synagogue was built in the mid-18^th century. The leading rabbi at the time was Rabbi Zvi Ben Natan Ashkenazi (grandson of the "Chacham Tzvi"), author of "Imrei Noam." The importance of the community at the time can be seen from the fact that the committee of the state of Reisen convened there in 1714. At the end of the Kingdom of Poland period, the state of the Jews in Burstyn was good; they were aided by the city owner, who granted them special privileges: freedom to trade and permission to build stone houses, most of which existed until WWII.

With the Austrian conquest in 1772, the situation of the Jews worsened because of the tax burden and the edicts issued by the authorities, which imposed on all of the Jews in Galicia. The Burstyn community was forbidden to officially employ a salaried rabbi. The Jews ignored this ban, but the serving rabbi was portrayed to the authorities as not receiving a salary. The Jewish community in Burstyn was reduced at that time. In the second half of the 19^th century, and especially after 1868, the city grew and developed, as did the Jewish community there. The Jews of Galicia were granted rights earlier, with several Jews in Burstyn being allowed to buy farms in the area. In the 1840s, a Jewish doctor settled in the city, and another Jewish doctor settled there a few years later.

In the early 20^th century, according to a census of members of a loan fund founded by the Jewish Colonization Association, Jews earned their living in the following professions: 762 merchants, 84 artisans, 23 members of the liberal professions (probably including "holy vessels" (Jewish religious scholars)), and 31 others. There was a modern flourmill in the city, owned by the Friedlander family, in which a number of Jewish clerks worked. At that time, there were two banks in Burstyn: one founded by the Jewish Colonization Association and the other a cooperative. These two banks amalgamated into "Credit Bank" in 1918. Artisans organized in the early 20^th century in the Yad Harutzim union. Public societies in Burstyn consisted of the Hevra Kadisha (probably since the beginning of the community), a Talmud Torah, Bikur Holim, Linat Tzedek (a society for granting medical assistance), Dorshei Tov, and a Women's Association. In addition to the above-mentioned synagogue, 19 small synagogues, a religious school, and eight prayer houses for Hasidim and artisans were built in the 19^th century.

The leading rabbis in the Burstyn community from the late 18^th century to the early 20^th century were Rabbi Zvi Hirsch Ben Natan Ashkenazi, who succeeded his father; Rabbi Joseph Teomim, who later became a rabbinical court judge in Stanislavov; Rabbi Joseph Schwartz, a disciple of Rabbi Yaakov Melissa; Rabbi Meir Landau, who served in the rabbinate until 1898; and his son, Rabbi Moshe Landau, who succeeded his father during the latter's lifetime (both father and son died in 1907). Following the death of the Landaus, a dispute arose in the community concerning the selection a new rabbi, with a split between those favoring Rabbi Isaac and those favoring Rabbi Hertz, Rabbi Moshe Landau's two sons. Rabbi Hertz Landau was selected and served until the Holocaust period.

Hasidism spread in the town, with a branch of the Stretiner Hasidic dynasty settling there. The first of this branch was Rabbi Nahum Brandwein, who was proclaimed its leader in 1865 at age 18. He wrote and published books about Kabbalah and Hasidism: "Imrei Tov," "Imrei Berakhah," "Imrei Haim," and "Imrei Ratzon." He left Burstyn and moved to Stanislavov in 1914, dying there in 1915. His grandson, Rabbi Moshe Brandwein, renewed the branch in Burstyn in 1935 (he died in the Holocaust). In addition to the Stretiner Hasidim, Hasidim from Belz and Chortkov also lived in the town, and constituted a majority of the Hasidim.

By the 1840s, there were already several followers of the Haskalah in Burstyn. Two sons of Haskalah followers in the town converted to Christianity in their childhood, and became eminent figures in Polish culture. One of the them, Edward Rittner, son of a doctor in Burstyn, was appointed at age 31 a professor of church law at the University of Lvov. The other, Ludwik Finkel, became a well-known Polish bibliographer and historian, and was a professor at the University of Lvov from 1892 until 1927. A school for Jewish children was founded in 1898 with the support of the Baron Hirsch Fund, despite the opposition of Rabbi Moshe Landau. The school had 135 students in its first year of studies.

This school received public rights in 1902. Two years later, a building was purchased for it, and the number of students rose to 214. Since most of the students came from poor families, 80 of them received free daily lunches, and 100 received assistance for clothing and writing materials. Courses for adults and a dress-making school with a three-year course of studies were built next to the school. A supplementary Hebrew school was established in 1909 in which 29 students studied in the first year.

The Zionist movement was established in Burstyn at the end of the 19^th century with the founding of a Hovevei Zion association. Dr. David Maltz settled in Burstyn in 1900, and Zionist activity grew under his influence. He was elected to the community leadership, and represented it at the 1908 Galicia Communities Congress in Lvov. Yugend, a branch of the Poalei Zion youth movement, was founded in 1912.

At the end of this period, Ukrainians living in Burstyn and the surrounding villages assassinated several Jews. In August 1898, a dispute between a Jewish seller and a rural Ukrainian buyer sparked clashes between Jews and Ukrainians. 10 Jews were arrested. Hooligans from the city and its environs then rioted, broke into homes, and beat the Jews living in them. Rabbi Moshe Landau had his hand broken in the riots, and his son and grandson were beaten. In 1912, following a trade dispute between a Jew and a peasant, the peasants attacked Jews and seriously injured six of them. A fire broke out in 1914 in which half of the homes in the town burned down. In the early days of WWI, many Jews fled from Burstyn out of fear of the Russian conquerors. Those who remained suffered severely from pogroms by Russian soldiers. The town was burned again in the fall of 1914. Cossacks ran wild in the city, and one Cossack chased a Jewish girl in order to rape her. She reached the synagogue, where a 70 year-old Jew protected her. The girl escaped, but the Jew was severely beaten by the Cossack, and died of his injuries shortly afterwards. Typhus and cholera epidemics broke out at the end of the war. At the peak of the two-month epidemic, an average of seven Jews a week died. A local aid committee operated in those dark times, headed by Dr. Wolf Shmorak.

Between the Two World Wars

During the period of Ukrainian rule (November 1918-May 1919), the Jews suffered from a succession of local rulers. During the Soviet-Polish war, Ukrainian leader Simon Petlyura's armies took control of the city for several days and murdered 11 Jews. During and after the war, many Jews left Burstyn. It is believed that only 1,000 of the original residents of the city before the war remained, while 400 went to Burstyn from the surrounding villages. The city was burnt down for the third time in 1921. The Joint Distribution Committee helped Jews in Burstyn during this period. People from Burstyn living in the United States also helped their former neighbors with generous financial support. With this aid, the "Great Synagogue" burned in one of the fires was rebuilt, while the smaller synagogue remained a ruin. The economic situation in Burstyn improved slightly in 1926-1929, then deteriorated again with the beginning of the Depression. Of the mutual aid societies, most of which already existed before WWI, the most outstanding was an interest-free loan society that provided loans to 317 breadwinners in 1936-1937, as follows: 202 small-scale merchants, 74 artisans, 20 farmers, 10 workers, and 11 people in miscellaneous occupations. These figures indicate that other than the professional intelligentsia, a few large merchants, and a number of wealthy artisans, all other breadwinners needed loans from the society. The professional intelligentsia at the time consisted of three doctors, a veterinarian, about 10 lawyers, and a number of teachers. Jews in the town were represented on the basis of an agreement between the three nationalities there, with each nationality having one third of the seats on the city council. A Jew was usually included as a member of the city council. The Jewish community elections were usually conducted according to improvised lists of influential people in Burstyn, not on a political party basis. David Neuberger, a wealthy Jew and timber merchant, served as head of the community or as a senior member for many years. He succeeded in raising money for community purposes, and also contributed his own money. Since most Jewish children studied in Polish public schools at the time, a supplementary Hebrew school was re-established. Almost all of the existing Jewish political parties in Poland were represented in the city. A branch of the General Zionists Party was the oldest and strongest of them. A branch of Poalei Zion Party was established in 1923. Since the party was unable to appear in its own name (the authorities suspected it of being sympathetic to communism), it was called the "Union of Non-Professional Workers." The Hitahdut was founded the same year, after which branches of the Mizrahi movement, Hapoal Mizrahi, and the Revisionists were founded (also the State Party, following the split in the Revisionists). Youth movements active in Burstyn included Gordonia, established in 1924; a chapter of Beitar, established in 1930; and a chapter of the Zionist Youth. A training kibbutz was established next to the Zionist youth chapter. Several Jews in Burstyn belonged to the illegal Communist Party, one of whom fled to the Soviet Union in the 1930s. He was sentenced there in 1934 to eight years in prison, and he eventually returned. The Poalei Zion Party conducted cultural activity in Burstyn. A drama group was set up next to it, and library named after Yiddish writer I.L. Peretz was established in the school building constructed by Baron Hirsch with the proceeds from the drama group, after the school closed down in 1914. Next to the library was a reading room and a hall for lectures and plays. The results of the elections to the Zionist congresses indicates the balance of power among the Zionist groups.

In WWII

With the outbreak of WWII, young Jews were conscripted into the Polish army. A few of them were taken prisoner by the Germans and died in captivity. Jews were also in the Polish units taken prisoner by the Soviet Union, and three of them from Burstyn were among the victims discovered in the Katyn forest. The Red Army reached Burstyn on September 18, 1939. The Jews accepted the new regime with a feeling of relief, because eliminated the danger of German occupation and pogroms by the Ukrainian population. Several Jews played important roles in municipal institutions. When identity cards were distributed in the spring of 1940, 60 formerly wealth Jews received cards with clauses restricting their civil rights. Enterprises were nationalized, including those that had been owned by Jews. People were arrested because of their economic background in 1940, and Zionist activists and youth movements members, plus a number of families, were exiled.

After war broke out between Germany and the Soviet Union on June 22, 1941, several dozen Jews, especially those active in frameworks of the Soviet regime, enlisted in units of the retreating Soviet army. The German army entered nearby Rohatyn on July 2, 1941, and representatives of the German regime appeared in Burstyn only two weeks later. During this transitional period, a Ukrainian militia organized in the city, molested Jews, and stole their property. On July 20, 1941, the Ukrainian police conducted a pogrom, and groups from the local population, with active encouragement from the Germans, attacked Jews. Many Jews were put in the synagogue and cruelly beaten.

In early August 1941, an order was given to establish a Judenrat with eight members. Lipa Schumer was appointed chairman of the Judenrat, and the other members included Mina Tobias, Phillip Tobias, and Yehuda Hersh-Fishman. The Judenrat was ordered to immediately conduct a census of the Jewish population. In mid-August, the Jewish community was required to provide a contribution of three million rubles. The Judenrat also had to supply the Germans with furniture, jewelry, silver vessels, and large quantities of tea and coffee. In September 1941, the Jews were ordered to leave their homes on the main streets, thereby in effect creating a Jewish quarter, although it was not a closed ghetto. Other decrees issued included a ban on leaving the city, a ban on walking on the sidewalk, and the obligation to wear a white badge with a star of David. The Judenrat had to supply groups of people for forced labor every day for repairing bridges and roads. In the fall of 1941, dozens of Jews were kidnapped an put in labor camps in the Tarnopol area. Reports reached Burstyn that community members had died in these camps. In the winter of 1941-1942, the distress of Jews in Burstyn mounted, and many of them died of starvation. Schumer, the Judenrat's first chairman, escaped and went into hiding shortly after being appointed, and Mina Tobais was appointed in his place. He complied with the German demands for property, but when he was required to hand over 250 people for labor camps, he refused. He assembled members of the community in the synagogue, notified them of his decision, and resigned his position. This action and his activity to relieve the Jews' distress were warmly appreciated by the Jewish townspeople. Phillip Tobias replaced him. In contrast to his predecessor, he obeyed the Germans' orders unconditionally. The Jewish police were influenced by the position of the first two chairmen, and helped to deliver food to the Jewish quarter. During his term as Judenrat chairman, Phillip Tobias, the Jewish police also gave in to German pressure and obeyed their orders. In the spring and summer of 1942, the Jews faced a daily struggle for existence and searched for means of rescue. A group of young people tried to reach the Romanian border, but most of them were caught on the way and murdered. In the city itself and the surrounding forests, Jews prepared hideaways. This work was made very difficult by Ukrainian informers. In September and October 1942, deportation of groups of Jews to the Rohatyn Ghetto began, where they shared the fate of that community. One group of 200 people was deported to Rohatyn on September 21, 1942. An order was given on October 15, 1942 that all the Jews in Burstyn had to leave the city and move to Bukaczowce. This expulsion was accompanied by acts of cruelty and the theft of the Jews' remaining property. Many preferred not to move to Bukaczowce, dispersing to the nearby forests instead. The German and Ukrainian policemen, with the active help of peasants from the nearby villages, hunted those who were hiding, and some of those found were murdered on the spot, usually by the peasants. Only about 30 Jews remained in the city and were employed in road maintenance. They were housed in a labor camp on the site. A month later, this group was also moved to the Rohatyn Ghetto.

Only a few people managed to escape earlier to the forests. The Jews of Burstyn were led to Bukaczowce, where some of them were murdered, while others were added to a group sent to the Belzec death camp on October 26, 1942. During this entire period, from the winter of 1943-1944 until liberation on July 27, 1944, the Jews in Burstyn struggled to stay alive, moving from place to place in the area and hiding in bunkers in the forests and in the city itself. A few Christian families gave shelter to their Jewish acquaintances. Many local residents, however, continued their never-ending persecution of the remains of the Burstyn Jewish community, committing murder and searching for places where the Jews were hiding. Units of the Vlasov army, which was allied with the Germans, also took part in these operations. In one case, when the Germans discovered a hideout after being informed by a Ukrainian peasant, M. Fishman fought against them and wounded a German policeman. A partisan group consisting mostly of Jews, some of them from Burstyn, operated in the forest in the Bukaczowce area. Among its operations were the attack on the police station in Bukaczowce and the seizure of arms. After the city was liberated by the Soviets, 13 survivors were found. In late 1944 and early 1945, a number of Jews returned to Burstyn from the Soviet Union. Since they did not find their families and conditions for Jewish life did not exist there, they moved to Stanislavov and continued on westward from there. In the 1950s, the Soviets converted two former synagogues into grain warehouses. The area of the Jewish cemetery became a public garden. A few Jewish families from the Soviet Union and Bessarabia lived in the city during those years.