Jewish Life in Pre-War Europe

Jewish Life in Europe before the War What can we learn from photographs? Learning objectives: To draw information from a photograph to follow a historical enquiry about Jewish life in Europe before the outbreak of World War 2 To create a part of a display for Holocaust Memorial Day This lesson aims to give students an outline idea of the range of Jewish life in pre-war Europe. It will also develop their source handling skills in that it encourages them to examine provenance and purpose of the sources as well as to clarify the difference between what a source tells us and what it implies or suggests.

A Jewish family in Pinsk, Poland c.1922 Arrow 1- What is this artefact? - photograph What sort of group? - family Why do you think it might have been taken? - studio shot - special occasion? Professional photographer. How might they all be related (unsure but seems to be an extended family around a central matriarchal figure) Arrow 2 - Don’t forget to pay close attention to what we are told in the caption about the provenance of the photo Arrow 3 - Is this a religious family? No - the father figure (?) isn’t wearing a skullcap/kippah Arrow 4 - What is this man wearing? (military uniform) What does this tell us about Jews in Poland at this time? (they served in the army) A Jewish family in Pinsk, Poland c.1922

Your task Look closely at the photograph you have been given Annotate (label) it in your book Write a paragraph, explaining what you can learn from the photograph about Jewish life in Europe before the war Have a collection of photographs ready to use. Preferably with a range of images and from a breadth of European countries (such as those that follow)

Laura Uziel and Saul Amarillo, wedding, Salonika 1938 Large group, family and friends, special occasion, dressed in typical European fashion of 1930s, probably fairly well off although as it’s a wedding their fine clothes may be the only fine clothes they have… Location = synagogue. Synagogue is grand (carpets, high ceilings, large floral arrangements) suggesting a flourishing Jewish community in Salonika

Synagogue on Luetzowstrasse, Berlin, prior to 1938 Large, almost cathedral-esque synagogue. Very grand, suggesting a flourishing and wealthy Jewish community in Berlin. Size of synagogue also imp[lies a large community. Orthodox synagogue (note central bima, ark that houses the Torah scrolls and women’s gallery)

Czestochowa Hebrew Grammar School Orchestra, 1930s Large school orchestra suggests large school. Hebrew Grammar school shows how Polish Jews had their own schools. Although Jewish, the school and students appear non-religious. Boys-only school?? This picture would suggest a well established and large Jewish community in Czestochowa that included secular (Bund? Zionist?) as well as religious Jews.