Prague Journal

Sunday, March 13, 2005.

The typical pace at Červena is to have a large breakfast, followed by a leisurely morning, lunch around 12:30, and an afternoon walk. I was eager to spend the day seeing some small Bohemian towns, so we had an early lunch, said goodbye to Ales and Jitka around 1:30, and headed east to Tábor.
Tábor was founded as a fortress town by the Hussites, radical followers of religious reformer Jan Hus, in 1420 and was named after the biblical Mount Tabor. Tábor’s winding streets and underground passages make for an interesting, if small, historical section. There is also a 15th century Gothic church and large town square with a very ornate obelisk.
We headed further east to Jindrichuv Hradec, situated on the banks of the river Nezarka, which boasts the oldest hand-written newspaper in the Czech language, dating from 1495. The main feature of the town is the Renaissance chateau of the Rozmberks, its large pink rotunda dominating the skyline. The first reference to Jindrichuv Hradec is from 1220, naming the castle “Novum Castrum” as seat of Jindrich Vitkovec. Jindrichuv Vitkovec was one of the Vitkovec brothers who later became better known as the Rozmberk Family, each of the 5 brothers with a different color 5-petaled rose, which still can be seen throughout south Bohemia. Jindrichuv is considered the founder of the house of Lords of Hradec. Three feudal families have owned Jindrichuv Hradec throughout most of its history: the Lords of Hradec until 1604, the house of Slavata until 1693, and finally the house of Czernin.
Hradec has always been an important regional center. Although today only housing 20,000 inhabitants, at one time it was second only to Prague in size and importance. This importance can still be seen in the rich material cultural heritage present in the city, protected as a Municipal Reserve of Historical Monuments. As for Jindrichuv Hradec Castle, it is the third largest in the Czech Republic.
Jindrichuv Hradec also has a synagogue, which has been used as a Hussite church since 1952. Apparently, a small prayer room already existed in the 16th century. In the second half of the 18th century, a separate schul or synagogue existed in Hradec, which was rebuilt after the fire of 1801. In 1867, the synagogue was enlarged, reflecting the growth and importance of the local Jewish community. The house next to the synagogue was used as Jewish School. Behind these building was a small Jewish quarter from the mid-18th century. Unfortunately, the original furnishing of the buildings has not been preserved.
A document from the year 1249 states that King Wenceslav II granted Ulrich, Lord of Hradec, the right to take 8 Jewish families within his city walls, evidence that Jewish people were living in Hradec already before the end of the 13th century. Presumably, the Jews profited from the prosperous development of Hradec as well. However, in the 16th century the number of Jewish families officially allowed was lowered to 4, a limitation which the lords of Hradec more often ignored than observed. The Thirty-Year War (1618-1648) caused severe problems for all people. Despite the restriction on numbers, there were 6 Jewish families, together 31 people, in Hradec at the beginning of 1682. That year all Jewish families were turned out of the city, in response to the strong position Jewish families held as merchants. These restrictions were of short duration, and after a few years the number of Jews started to increase again, in part because the tobacco trade for that region was in Jewish hands. As result, 11 Jewish families (76 persons) were living in Hradec in 1795. The most prosperous families from that time were the Bobele, Kahn (or Kohn), and Wiener families. The catastrophic fire of May 19, 1801 also had a devastating impact on the Jewish community. The synagogue, houses and storage buildings were destroyed, a blow which took the Jewish community a long time to recover from. With the revolution of 1848 and the subsequent abolition of serfdom and feudal privileges, the restrictions on the Jews were abolished as well. The number of Jews grew steadily and the Jewish families played an important role in bringing trade and industry in the city. Thanks to this and the personal efforts of some of the Jewish residents, the relation between the Christian and Jewish populations in Hradec was relatively good. The pro-Austrian attitude of some of the Jews during the First World War (1914-18), however, disturbed this relationship, despite the fact that others were supportive of the Czech sentiments and supported the wish for an independent Czech state. An organized anti-Semitic attack in 1919 resulted in the destruction and plunder of most of the Jewish shops in the city. Several of the perpetuators were caught and received heavy sentences, but the real organizers were never apprehended.
Between the two world wars, the Jews played a prominent role in Hradec, in particular by bringing new industry to this industry-poor town. Jewish factories employed well over 1200 people in enterprises such as clothing fabrics, spirits, steel works and machinery. In the early 1930’s, the Jewish population numbered approximately 230. The German occupation and the Holocaust put an end to the once flourishing Jewish community of Jindrichuv Hradec. Some managed to escape in time, but most perished in the concentration camps; the transport lists nameed 126 of them. Today, three Holocaust survivors still live in Jindrichuv Hradec. A fourth still living in Hradec was scheduled for transport to Terezin in April 1945, but was spared the ordeal because the war ended. http://www.rozmberk.org/English/Jewish/hradec.html
By the time we got back to the car, it was 5:30, snowing and getting dark, so we headed directly for Prague, arriving at our flat by 8pm. Matt and Rick were hungry, so we had a light dinner at Pizzeria Siesta, our close-by friendly restaurant.

posted by JWinn @ 10:46 PM