The beginning of Jewish settlement in Mysłowice is connected with the emperor’s edict issued in 1627. It allowed Jews to resettle on the hereditary lands of the Habsburgs provided that they paid a special charge in the amount of 40,000 guilders. Emperor Ferdinand decided to issue the document in order to improve the financial situation in the country, ravaged by the Thirty Years’ War (1618–1648). The edict allowed a group of privileged Jews (privilegire Juden) to trade and engage in craftsmanship. They were also referred to as “manorial Jews” (Hofjuden). The emperor permitted them to lease the levy of taxes and duties. They were also allowed to purchase real estate.[1.1] This change in the imperial attitude towards Jews was skilfully taken advantage of by the owner of Mysłowice, Krzysztof Mieroszewski. Seeking to stimulate the town’s economic development, he brought first Jews to Mysłowice in 1637. The local vicar, Father Gosławski, objected to the idea and complained to the Bishop of Kraków, demanding for all Jews to be removed and for their prayer house to be pulled down.[1.2]

In accordance with the Peace of Westphalia concluding the Thirty Years’ War (signed on 24 October 1648), Jews could only settle in private estates with the permission of the landowners. The provisions of the treaty were also binding for the territory of Upper Silesia.[1.3] In 1677, a Jew by the name of Mertek ran a forge near Mysłowice. The 1691 census of Jewish population in Silesia mentioned the presence of Jews in Mysłowice. At the end of 17^th century, there were nine merchants in Mysłowice, most of them Jewish.

Data from 1744 mentions three Jewish tradesmen from Mysłowice. They were selling haberdashery and leather. In 1748, the Prussian authorities obliged all Jews living in Silesia for at least a year to pay an annual charge of 10% of the value of their property in case of their immigration to the country. On 17 April 1750, the authorities issued The Prussian Principal Statute and General Privileges, which defined the legal, social, political, and economic status of Jews. Around the same period, ca. 1751, the first synagogue was built in Mysłowice. There was also a separate court for the Jewish population.

In 1771, 43 Jews lived in Mysłowice. In 1776, the Prussian authorities ordered for all Jews living on the left bank of the Oder to be resettled to the right bank within a month. After resettlement, they were only allowed to live in villages. After several years, in September 1779, the authorities changed their course and obliged Jews to leave villages and settle in towns. Gliwice was selected as the main site of Jewish settlement. On 17 August 1780, the Wrocław Chamber indicated another five towns to receive Jewish migrants. These were: Tarnowskie Góry, Mysłowice, Mikołów, Lubliniec, and Bieruń Stary.[1.4] In 1787, the Prussian authorities withdrew the legal obligation of resettling Jews to selected cities, as the departure of Jewish residents brought considerable economic losses to their former places of residence.

In February 1808, the Prussian authorities abolished all feudal privileges of guilds and towns, including the abolishment of the De non tolerandis Judaeis privilege. Since that moment, Jews could settle in every Silesian town and freely purchase real estate. In 1811, there were 89 Jews living in Mysłowice, hailing predominantly from from Małopolska (Lesser Poland). Most of them were merchants trading in cattle, grains, and haberdashery.

The Jewish community in Mysłowice was officially recognised on 11 July 1821 by Governor Carl Traugott, Count Henckel von Donnersmarck. The document issued by the governor regulated all issues connected to burial sites used by five communities founded in Bytom County (Bytom, Tarnowskie Góry, Miasteczko Śląskie, Mysłowice, and Zabrze).[1.5] In 1826, a house of prayer was opened in Mysłowice. It was located at the junction of today’s Kołłątaja Street and Mieroszewskich Square. The alley leading to the temple from the Market Square bore the name Synagogengasse.

Ca. 1830, Jewish physician Salomon Stroheim moved to Mysłowice from Racibórz (in 1836, he left for Gliwice).[1.6]

In 1869, Mysłowice had 1,040 Jewish residents (the number finds no confirmation in other sources – see “Myslowice,” [in:] The Encyclopedia of Jewish Life Before and During the Holocaust, eds. Sh. Spector, G. Wigoder, vol. 2, New York 2001, p. 864). Most of them made a living from trading and working in the industry. Some of the most prominent Jews from Mysłowice were: Löbel Danziger – owner of the “Mysłowice” mine; Dr. Jackob Lustig – physician, municipal councillor, author of the first monograph on Mysłowice; Max Weichmann – director of the emigration post in Mysłowice. Many local Jews ran hotels, restaurants, and shops. Nonetheless, the local community became significantly weakened after the formation of a separate community in Katowice in 1866.[1.7]

The year 1872 saw the establishment of the Union of Upper Silesian Synagogue Communities (Oberschlesische Synagogen-Gemeinden), which also comprised the Jewish community in Mysłowice. The end of the 19^th century marked the peak of development for the community. At the time, the town had 900 Jewish residents among a total population of 14,000; according to some sources, it was the greatest number of Jews to ever live in the town.[1.1.7] A new synagogue was erected in Mysłowice in 1895.

The turn of 20^th century was a period of intensified Jewish emigration from Mysłowice, prompted primarily by the news of the wave of pogroms sweeping inner Russia and spreading westward.[1.1.7] As a result, only 488 Jews lived in the town in 1910.

After the end of World War I, the lives of people from Upper Silesia were significantly shaken up. The rebirth of the Polish state on 11 November 1918 triggered the awakening of pro-Polish sentiments among the local population. This resulted in a conflict with the German community and the outbreak of three consecutive Silesian Uprisings. Most local Jews firmly supported the German cause. Many decided to migrate west, primarily to big German cities. The same trend could be observed in Mysłowice.

On 20 March 1921, a plebiscite was held in Upper Silesia. Most Jews cast their votes in favour of the region staying in Germany. In Mysłowice, 5,827 people (56.3%) voted for staying in Germany, 44% – for the town’s incorporation into Poland. In spite of the final results, the Third Silesian Uprising soon broke out and resulted in Mysłowice being annexed by Poland in 1922. As a consequence, the wave of migration among Jews became even stronger.

After 1922, Polish Jews started to migrate to Upper Silesia. Most of the newcomers hailed from the Dąbrowa Basin and the territory of former Congress Poland. Their influx to the region partially compensated for the exodus of German Jews and allowed the local Jewish communities to survive. However, the newcomers met with hostility from the local municipal authorities and Jewish town dwellers, whose dislike for the immigrants was rooted in the general beliefs held by the Upper Silesian society, which saw the citizens of former Congress Poland as backwards, poor, and uncultured. The prejudices were projected on the incoming Jews, who were considered a threat in view of the growing economic competition and the potential development of the pro-Polish movement. These attitudes also took their toll on the internal operation of Jewish communities and largely stumped their development.

In 1931, the Mysłowice community had 463 members.[1.1.7] In 1939, the town had only 162 Jewish residents, constituting 0.8% of the total population.

On 1 September 1939, Poland was invaded by Germany. This marked the beginning of World War II. Mysłowice was seized by Nazi troops in the first days of the war. The local synagogue was demolished in the autumn of 1939. In November of the same year, all Jews from Mysłowice were deported to the ghetto in Chrzanów.[1.1.7]

In August 1942, a group of Mysłowice Jews was included in a “death transport” headed to the extermination camp in Bełżec. The rest were deported to the Auschwitz-Birkenau camp in August 1943, where they were killed in gas chambers.

Bibliography

• Kundera J., Historia parafii Mysłowickiej, Mysłowice 1934.
• Jaworski W., Żydzi w województwie śląskim w okresie międzywojennym, Katowice 1991.
• “Myslowice,” [in:] The Encyclopedia of Jewish Life Before and During the Holocaust, eds. Sh. Spector, G. Wigoder, vol. 2, New York 2001, p. 864.
• Walerjański D., “Z dziejów Żydów na Górnym Śląsku do 1812 roku,” Pismo Muzealno-Humanistyczne Orbis 2005, vol. 5.