Centuries of Jewish Life in Poland
Although the first Jews reached Poland from the east, it was emigres from Bohemia and Germany in the Middle Ages who had the greatest impact on the way of life for Polish Jewry.
During the same 13th- to- 15th-Century period when Jews were being expelled from virtually all of Western Europe, Poland’s rulers, seeking to develop their urban economy, welcomed Jewish and other townspeople, particularly from Germany, and granted them various privileges. The earliest documented privilegium (deed of rights) was granted by Boleslaw the Pious, Duke of Kalisz (1264). It guaranteed the Jews protection, freedom of worship, legal autonomy in internal matters and freedom of movement.
The Catholic Church represented the greatest opposition to Poland’s Jews, fearing their “harmful” influence.
On the eve of World War II, there were 3.25 million Jews in Poland--3 million of whom perished in the Holocaust.
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