Przytyk pogrom
Encyclopedia
The Przytyk Pogrom occurred against the Jewish community in Przytyk
, Radom County
, Masovian Voivodeship
, in east-central Poland
on March 9, 1936. It was the most notorious incident of antisemitic violence in Poland in the interwar period, and attracted worldwide attention. It was one of the series of pogroms that occurred in Poland during the years immediately before the outbreak of World War II
.
Local peasants were stirred with antisemitic propaganda of endecja
politicians. A boycott of Jewish shops was organized, and escalated into a wave of violent attacks on Jewish shops. A Jewish self-defense group was organized. Two days before the pogrom
, some of the Jewish residents gathered in the town square in anticipation of the attack by the peasants, but nothing happened on that day. Two days later, however, on a market day, the peasants attacked the Jews; the pogrom ended with two Jewish and one Polish casualties.
In the aftermath, multiple people were arrested. The trial following the events started on June 2 and involved 43 Polish and 14 Jewish defendants, the latter charged with aggressive behavior towards Polish peasants. The verdict was pronounced on June 26, with eleven of the Jews sentenced to prison terms of from 6 months to 8 years, while 39 Poles received sentences from 6 months to 1 year. The accused Jews claimed they were acting in self-defense, but the court rejected those arguments. The verdict outraged the Jewish community in Poland, leading to a number of nationwide strikes.
News of this pogrom
horrified the Polish Jewish population, as well as Jews around the world, and contributed to significant emigration from Poland of Jews.
The poem/song S'brent
was written by Mordechai Gebirtig
in 1938 about this pogrom.
Przytyk
Przytyk is a village in Radom County, Masovian Voivodeship, in east-central Poland, founded in the year 1333. It is the seat of the gmina called Gmina Przytyk. It lies approximately west of Radom and south of Warsaw. In 2006 the village had a population of 990.In 1895, the village was...
, Radom County
Radom County
Radom County is a unit of territorial administration and local government in Masovian Voivodeship, east-central Poland. It came into being on January 1, 1999, as a result of the Polish local government reforms passed in 1998. Its administrative seat is the city of Radom, although the city is not...
, Masovian Voivodeship
Masovian Voivodeship
-Administrative division:Masovian Voivodeship is divided into 42 counties : 5 city counties and 37 "land counties"...
, in east-central Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
on March 9, 1936. It was the most notorious incident of antisemitic violence in Poland in the interwar period, and attracted worldwide attention. It was one of the series of pogroms that occurred in Poland during the years immediately before the outbreak of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Local peasants were stirred with antisemitic propaganda of endecja
Endecja
National Democracy was a Polish right-wing nationalist political movement active from the latter 19th century to the end of the Second Polish Republic in 1939. A founder and principal ideologue was Roman Dmowski...
politicians. A boycott of Jewish shops was organized, and escalated into a wave of violent attacks on Jewish shops. A Jewish self-defense group was organized. Two days before the pogrom
Pogrom
A pogrom is a form of violent riot, a mob attack directed against a minority group, and characterized by killings and destruction of their homes and properties, businesses, and religious centres...
, some of the Jewish residents gathered in the town square in anticipation of the attack by the peasants, but nothing happened on that day. Two days later, however, on a market day, the peasants attacked the Jews; the pogrom ended with two Jewish and one Polish casualties.
In the aftermath, multiple people were arrested. The trial following the events started on June 2 and involved 43 Polish and 14 Jewish defendants, the latter charged with aggressive behavior towards Polish peasants. The verdict was pronounced on June 26, with eleven of the Jews sentenced to prison terms of from 6 months to 8 years, while 39 Poles received sentences from 6 months to 1 year. The accused Jews claimed they were acting in self-defense, but the court rejected those arguments. The verdict outraged the Jewish community in Poland, leading to a number of nationwide strikes.
News of this pogrom
Pogrom
A pogrom is a form of violent riot, a mob attack directed against a minority group, and characterized by killings and destruction of their homes and properties, businesses, and religious centres...
horrified the Polish Jewish population, as well as Jews around the world, and contributed to significant emigration from Poland of Jews.
The poem/song S'brent
It is Burning
"It is Burning", is a Yiddish poem–song written in 1938 by Mordechai Gebirtig...
was written by Mordechai Gebirtig
Mordechai Gebirtig
Mordechai Gebirtig, born Mordecai Bertig was an influential Yiddish poet and songwriter.- S'brent :One of Gebirtig's best-known songs is "S'brent" , written in 1938 in response to the 1936 pogrom of Jews in the shtetl of Przytyk. Gebirtig had hoped its message, “Don't stand there, brothers, douse...
in 1938 about this pogrom.