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Rzeszow
Rzeszów is the voivodship seat, the capital of the Podkarpacie Voivodship, situated between Kraków and Lwów (Lviv), on the Wisłok river.
Sights of interest:
- The former Piarist monastery complex, designed by the Dutch architect Tylman van Gameren in the early eighteenth century. The complex includes the building of the Holy Cross Lycee as well as that of the Regional Museum.
- the castle
- market square
- Lubomirski family summer palace
History
The earliest settlement in the area of present-day Rzeszów dates back to the Neolithic Era. During the Middle Ages, a fortified town and a settlement of traders and craftsmen existed here. The town was granted its charter based on Magdeburg Law by King Kazimierz the Great. Rzeszów later belonged to Jan Pakosławic, the progenitor of the Rzeszowski family, and then to Mikołaj Spytek Ligęza, prince Władysław Ostrogski-Zasławski, and then to the Lubomirski family, which ultimately sold its rights to the Rzeszów town hall.
The Old Town in Rzeszow. Photo: A.Olej&K. Kobus:
During the partitions, Rzeszów was under Austrian rule. The town was a district seat in the Lwów voivodship during the interwar period. A strong scouting movement was based in Rzeszów during the First World War, when the town was home to both the Polish Sokół Troops and the Polish Rifle Troops; in 1910, the Rifle Union was founded, and Rzeszów was one of the organization’s four regional headquarters. In 1917, the Polish Military Organization launched its independence-oriented activities in Rzeszów. After Poland regained its independence and development of the Central Industrial District began, the town's development accelerated. Rzeszów was occupied by the Germans after a fierce battle on 9 September 1939. The occupiers installed their own civil, military and police administration, and the town was renamed Reichshof. In November 1939, the plan to liquidate the Rzeszów intelligentsia began to be implemented. Some of its members were shot in the garden of the Bernardine monastery, while others were sent to camps. Nevertheless, a resistance movement existed right from the start of the occupation. The Germans created a ghetto for the Jews. During the period July to September 1942, over 22,000 people were sent to camps from this ghetto. During the years 1942-1943, a labor camp operated on the grounds of the former State Aeronautical Plants. Some of the buildings within the former ghetto were demolished. On 2 July 1944, Rzeszów was occupied by detachments of the Soviet First Ukrainian Front. After the war, the town experienced rapid growth when Rzeszów became an economic and cultural center for this area of Małopolska after the creation of the Rzeszów Voivodship.
The Jews of Rzeszów
Jews began settling in Rzeszów (in Yiddish: Rayshe, Reyshe) in the sixteenth century. According to documents dating back to the first half of the seventeenth century, there were 564 Jews living in Rzeszów at that time; they were primarily involved in trade. According to figures from the early eighteenth century, of the 91 merchants in Rzeszów, eighty-four were Jews. The Jewish community of Rzeszów also produced respected bankers, physicians and lawyers. Some Jews were also involved in crafts. The town's Jewish population lived mostly in the area of Nowe Miasto, administered by its own laws within the framework of the religious community, headed by the rabbi and its board, known as the kahał (Hebrew, kehilla).
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The Community did nevertheless respect the obligation imposed by Ligęza to participate in the town's defense. After Galicja (the Austrian partition) gained its autonomy, representatives of the Jewish community took part in the town council. For particularly important decisions, the Club of Catholic Council Members came to agreements with the Club of Jewish Council Members. Such an example was the agreement signed in 1902 regarding a common electoral list which had four Catholics and two Jews, who, it should be noted, were primarily recruited from Orthodox circles.
In Rzeszów, the interwar period was the Jewish community's heyday. At that time, forty-four economic and cultural associations were operating, as well as an elementary and high school, and a Jewish Center, impressive in its size, which was built thanks to funds from the Adolf Tannenbaum Foundation. The town's Jewish population was then approximately 14,000. Among the most prominent of Rzeszów's Jews were Rufus Daniel Izaacs (1860-1935), whose family emigrated from Rzeszów to England. He was a lawyer by training, but then became a politician. First as Baron Reading, of Erleigh (and later as a viscount, earl and marquess) he was a member of the British government and an ambassador, and in 1921 became the viceroy of India. Another well-known figure was the Chasidic rabbi Lazar Weissblum (1838-1920), known as Rebe Luzerl, grandson of the famous Rabbi of Leżajsk, Elimelech.
The Small Synagogue. Photo: A.Olej&K. Kobus
The surviving buildings of the Old Town synagogue, known as the "Small" synagogue, is at ul. Bożnicza 4. It was built in the early sixteenth century (and mentioned in the records in 1617), and burned several times during the Cossack raids and later wars. It was reconstructed during the years 1955-60, and currently houses the State Archives.
The New Town synagogue, known as the “Big” synagogue, is on ul. Sobieskiego. Permission to build the synagogue was granted in 1686, and it was constructed during the years 1705-1712. The Germans burned it down, but it was reconstructed in the years 1954-65. It currently houses the Art Center.
The old Jewish cemetery, destroyed by the Germans, had been situated alongside the synagogues until 1939. The new cemetery, on ul. Rejtana, was founded in 1849, and its oldest matsevah dates back to 1851. A total of about 600 matsevot survived there, among which is one belonging to the rabbi of Rzeszów, Aaron Lewin. In 1983, the cemetery was inscribed into the register of Rzeszów's historic buildings.
In 1989, the Center for the Research of Jewish History was founded at the State Archives in Rzeszów. There is also a Regional Association for the Research of the History of Ethnic Minorities in Rzeszów.
Cultural events
Rzeszów Plein Air Meetings, Rzeszów Theatrical Meetings, World Festival of Polish Émigré Folk Groups and the Festival of Organ and Chamber Music, and the Music Festival, which takes place at the Łańcut castle.
Important Figures
From Rzeszów: Stanisław Konarski, Ignacy Łukasiewicz, Władysław Sikorski, Władysław Szafer, Julian Przyboś, Kazimierz Dejmek, Jerzy Grotowski, Adam Harasiewicz, Wojciech Kilar,
Prominent Rzeszów Jews: Rufus Daniel Izaacs, Lazar Weissblum, Józef Szajna
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