Kraków can boast a multi-century tradition of creative co-existence of two cultures, the Christian and the Jewish. A tradition which – despite painful moments in the history of Kraków Jews – remains alive and contributes to the unique atmosphere of our city.
Jews arrived in Kraków already in the first half of the 11th century, most probably from Prague. They promptly became a significant group for the city: their trading skills were used by regular city dwellers, while rulers of the Wawel settlement (among them Ludwik I, Queen Jadwiga, Władysław Jagiełło and Casimir IV) did not shun away from taking out loans with Jewish merchants. However, contacts between the royal court and the Kraków Jewish community were not limited to the sphere of finance (it suffices to mention the fiery affection between King Casimir the Great and the beautiful Esterka*…).
In late 15th century, the Jewish settlement was transferred from Kraków to Kazimierz, which marked the beginning of over 150 years of the Kraków Jews’ “golden age.” As early as before the year 1500, the first synagogue (known today as the Old Synagogue) was constructed, being the oldest preserved Jewish temple on the Polish territory, and Jewish merchants were awarded numerous trading privileges. It was exactly this period in the history of Kraków (and entire Poland) that was referred to by rabbi Moses Isserles as paradis Judaeorum, the Jewish paradise.
Despite the challenging periods in the history of Poland, such as the “Swedish deluge” or the partition period, the Kraków Jewish community survived until the era of independent Poland and regained its significance in the interwar period. At the time, Kraków was a city of tolerance and co-existence of Poles and Jews. In 1939, over 60,000 Jews lived here, while their Kraków community was the fourth most numerous in Poland. The peaceful co-existence was broken by the beginning of the Second World War.
For the Jewish residents of Kraków, the war time was marked by repression by the Nazi occupiers. In 1940, 3/4 of the Jews became subject to compulsory expulsion and only a year later the remaining 17,000 people were relocated to the specifically assigned ghetto territory, where previously only 3000 Poles had lived. According to calculations, barely 2 square meters were envisaged per person. Already in 1942, 2/3 of the ghetto inhabitants were transported to concentration camps, while the remainder were relocated in March 1943 to the newly established forced labour camp in Płaszów, where many of them lost their lives. Those who survived were sent to extermination camps.
It is estimated that only 3000 Kraków Jews survived the Holocaust, with a thousand of them having been saved by the German entrepreneur Oskar Schindler, whose story stemmed Thomas Keneally’s novel Schindler’s List, followed by the film under the same title, directed by Steven Spielberg. Many people were aided by Tadeusz Pankiewicz, the owner of the Pod Orłem (Under the Eagle) pharmacy located in the territory of the Kraków ghetto, as well as by tens of other residents of the city. After the war, most of the survivors emigrated to the USA or Palestine and only after 1989 some of them returned to Kraków.
Among others, the March of the Living (organised every March, on the anniversary of the liquidation of the ghetto) and the permanent exhibition titled “Kraków. Time of Occupation 1939–1945” at the Schindler Factory have become symbols of remembrance of the painful past. In March 2015 a new exhibition, devoted to the history of the ghetto, was also opened at the former Under the Eagle pharmacy.
But the contemporary Jewish Kraków means also Kazimierz, bursting with cultural life, where in numerous cafes and bars, music – often played live – sounds until the very latest hours of the night. It also stands for the Jewish Culture Festival, attracting performers and participants from all over the world.
* Esterka: Jewish woman famous for her beauty. According to chronicler Jan Długosz, King Casimir the Great’s lover, with whom he had two sons.
Sources: Krakow Encyclopaedia, Wydawnictwo Naukowe PWN, Kraków 2000. Kraków. Time of Occupation 1939–1945, Historical Museum of the City of Kraków, Kraków 2010.
Text by Municipality of Kraków
