Jewish Question in Katerynoslav at the beginning of the 20th century

Keywords: Jews, Black Hundreds, pogroms, anti-Semites, power

Abstract

The purpose of the research paper is to analyze the Jewish question in Katerynoslav at the beginning of the 20th century in a socio-political context and uncover the role of monarchical forces, local authorities, and certain public representatives in anti-Semitic politics.

The scientific novelty. The social and psychological context of the escalation of racially motivated violence is reconstructed; the particular nature of the understanding of nationalism at the level of the ordinary city residents is shown; the absence of a historiographical tradition of studying Katerynoslav anti-Semitism is revealed; based on archival sources not involved in the research process, the specifics of pogrom policy in Katerynoslav are reconstructed and the motivation of the participants of pogrom actions is analyzed; the role of the Black Hundreds in the spread of anti-Semitism at the local level is characterized; the atmosphere of ambiguous perception of imperial-monarchic power by the gubernia authorities is reconstructed; the permissive and censorship policy in Katerynoslav regarding Jews and Jewish institutions is outlined.

Conclusions. Anti-Semitism was a fundamental and uncompromising component of the ideology and politics of Katerynoslav Black Hundreds, which separated them from any socio-political movements and parties of that time and caused irreparable reputational damage to the entire right-wing monarchist movement. That point emphasized the specific features of Russian modern identity that caused negative public perception and were historically unpromising. The attitude of the ruling circles of Katerynoslav region to the Jewish question was complex, ambiguous, and contradictory: they had to find a balance between the government’s anti-Jewish policy, the anti-Semitism of the local Black Hundreds, the liberal and left-wing public, which usually defended the Jews, as well as the Jewish forces, which were a significant part of the financial and economic life of the Dnipro region.

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Published
15.10.2024
How to Cite
Savchenko, S., & Reshetilova, O. (2024). Jewish Question in Katerynoslav at the beginning of the 20th century. Eminak: Scientific Quarterly Journal, (3(47), 92-115. https://doi.org/10.33782/eminak2024.3(47).729
Section
Modern History