Orthodox Jewry and the Russian government: an attempt at rapprochement, 1907–1914

Abstract

This article examines one facet of Jewish Orthodox politics that emerged after the 1905 Russian revolution, namely its attempt to conclude a kind of political alliance with the Russian government. Orthodox circles were the main group within Russian Jewry that professed conservative and monarchist principles. Therefore, Orthodox leaders hoped that a rapprochement with the conservative, but society‐oriented government of Piotr Stolypin would be possible and desirable. With government support, they believed that they could successfully fight against revolutionary‐minded Jewish youth. Although Stolypin's government initially showed an inclination towards this Orthodox rhetoric, it was not willing to make any concessions. After Stolypin's assassination in 1911, the government became increasingly anti‐Semitic and even supported measures that harmed Jewish religious observance, thus weakening Orthodox influence. All in all, the Russian government was not ready to differentiate between its Jewish subjects; to support conservatives against revolutionaries and liberals. The government was not interested in looking for allies among Jews, but preferred to see them as a homogeneous entity, harmful, dangerous and wicked, that aimed at the revolutionary destruction of the Russian Empire. Thus, Orthodox ambitions were disillusioned and the politics of rapprochement with the authorities failed.