The Development of Anti-Hasidic Criticism among the Maskilim of the Congress Kingdom, 1815–1830

Abstract

This chapter traces the development of anti-hasidic criticism among the maskilim of the Congress Kingdom. From 1815, the ‘Jewish question’ was one of the main topics of public debate, preoccupying writers and statesmen throughout the whole constitutional period (1815–30) of the Kingdom of Poland. The state's most prominent politicians, such as Julian Ursyn Niemcewicz, voiced their opinions on the status of the Jewish community and its reform. Representatives of the Jewish community also participated in the great debate, which lasted from 1818 to 1822. Moreover, other Polish maskilim were involved in a variety of activities aimed at ‘civilizing’ the Jewish people, such as attempting to establish new communal institutions representing Enlightenment values, or sending reports and memoranda to the state authorities. The most active of these maskilim included Antoni Eisenbaum, Jakub Tugendhold, Ezechiel Hoge, and Abraham Stern. The hasidic issue is either completely absent from their views, or features marginally. Only one Polish maskil, Abraham Stern, gave it prominence in his public activities. The chapter also looks at two reports written for the Voivodeship Commission in Kalisz in 1820, which provide an example of a reticent attitude towards hasidism. The Kalisz voivodeship authorities availed themselves of the services and opinions of Jewish modernizing circles, and invited them to co-operate with them in their attempts to ‘civilize’ the Jewish population.