Brandýs n/Labem

Jews in Brandýs nad Labem

Though the first documented evidence of a Jewish presence in Brandýs dates back to the 16th century, the community did not start to increase in importance until the 18th century. By 1849 the town was home to 289 Jews, accounting for eight percent of the total population. From 1765 the town had a rabbi, cantors, teachers and a gravedigger. As smaller Jewish communities were also located in the area, a mohel (circumciser) and shochet (butcher who followed the laws of kosher slaughter) also served the region. The town had a synagogue and a cemetery, which was established as early as the 16th century and is located just off Kostelecká Street. From the very beginning Jews settled in a part of town called Nižší Hrádek (“Lower Castle”). Located north of the town proper on the other side of Mlýnský stream, the area lies along what are now Na Potoce and Na Strouze streets. Following the Battle of White Mountain, for a short time Jews were permitted to settle in the main part of town. Most members of the Jewish community in the 17th and 18th centuries were relatively poor traders and simple craftsmen (leather tanners and potash makers). However, the exhibition also notes that from the 19th century, the Jews of Brandýs also opened small industrial ventures: Salamoun Reichmann operated a dye works

and calico printer in Brandýs; Ferdinand Janowitz produced oil and varnish; Abraham Pick had a soap factory. Vojtěch Rakous, a Czech-language author from the nearby village of Brázdim, made his mark on the Czech literary scene with his humorous sketches illustrating the lives of poor Jews from the Elbe river valley. Although Jews moved to larger cities, Brandýs retained a Jewish presence up until the local population was forcibly deported to Terezín in transports on January 13 and 16, 1943. The Jewish community of Brandýs was not renewed after 1945.