Zwischen Ausweisung und Duldung. Die Situation der Breslauer Juden in der 1. Hälfte des 18. Jahrhunderts

Abstract

The situation of the Jews in Breslau in the first half of the 18th century was determined by various interested parties, from the Habsburg emperor as city lord to the council of the city and the monasteries in the suburbs. While the city council had not tolerated Jews in its area since the pogrom of 1453, the monasteries in the suburbs used the economic power of the Jews living there. The Emperor as King of Bohemia was interested in trading with Poland, allowing Polish Jewish merchants to settle in the city. While the emperor allowed Jewish citizens to trade within the city by passing a tax law in 1713, the city council tried to keep the Jews as much as possible away from the market. The situation remained undecided until 1742, when the annexation of Silesia created a new situation in Prussia. A law of 1744 guaranteed the establishment of the Jews in the city and the formation of a community, but the number of Jewish residents permitted in the city was kept very low.