Josefov (Prague)
| Josefov | |||
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| Basic data | |||
| State : |
 Czech Republic
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| Region : | Hlavní město Praha | ||
| Municipality : | Praha | ||
| Area : | 9 ha | ||
| Geographic location : | 50 ° 5 ' N , 14 ° 25' E | ||
| Residents : | 1,997 (March 1, 2001) | ||
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Josefov (German Josefsstadt or Josephstadt ) is a district of the Czech capital Prague . The historic Jewish town of Prague ( Židovské Město pražské ) is surrounded by the old town and was incorporated in 1850. Before 1949 it was also called District V.
Prague's Jewish city was founded in the 13th century and developed into one of the most important in Europe. When Jews were granted citizenship rights in 1848, Jews were also able to settle in other parts of the city. Around 1900 the old quarter was largely demolished and new residential buildings built in the Art Nouveau style.
Josefov is often represented by the flag of the Prague Jews, a yellow Star of David on a red background.
history
Jewish city
Jews were first mentioned in Prague as early as the 10th century. In the 13th century a separate ghetto , the Judenstadt, was established. The Jews had to live here, separated from the rest of the population. The Jewish city flourished in the 16th and 17th centuries with synagogues, a yeshiva , scholars like Rabbi Judah Löw and patrons like Mordechai Maisel .
In 1744 the Jews had to leave the city after a decree by Maria Theresa . In 1748 they were allowed to return.
In 1848 general civil rights were declared for Jews in Bohemia. Jews were now allowed to settle all over Prague.
Josephstadt
In 1850 the quarter was renamed Josephstadt , after Emperor Joseph II , who had promoted the Jews with the tolerance patent in 1781. Now the wealthier families moved out of the ghetto, so that the former houses fell into disrepair.
Most of the neighborhood was eventually demolished between 1893 and 1913. Historians and architects are at odds on whether the old houses were removed because of the poor hygienic conditions and the increasing slumbers , or whether the decision was dominated by the sale of lucrative areas close to the center. Six synagogues , the old Jewish cemetery, the ceremonial hall and the old Jewish town hall were preserved because their demolition could be prevented by citizen protests. At the end of the 19th century, new splendid Art Nouveau buildings were erected on behalf of the Prague city council . The development and the layout of the new streets were based on models from Paris . The central axis and at the same time the most splendid street in the new Josefstadt became Pariser Strasse . The quarter was no longer clearly delimited and was not destroyed during the German occupation.
The preserved religious buildings and cemetery facilities are part of the Jewish Museum .
In 1991 the district had 2,354 inhabitants. In 2001 Josefov consisted of 66 houses, in which only 1997 people lived. Important streets in the district are Pariser Strasse (originally Niklasstrasse), Breite Gasse (originally Josefstädtergasse), Maiselgasse (Maiselova ul.), Karpfengasse (Kaprova ul.)
Attractions
- Jewish Museum ( Židovské muzeum ). The museum also manages this cemetery:
- Old Jewish Cemetery ( Starý židovský hřbitov v Praze-Josefově ), which was occupied from the 15th to the 18th century and is Europe's oldest surviving Jewish cemetery
- Jewish Ceremonial Hall ( Obřadní síň ), a neo-renaissance building from the 20th century
See also
literature
- Ctibor Rybár: The Jewish Prague. Glossaries on history and culture , TV Spektrum / Akropolis Verlag, Prague 1991.
- Ignát Hermann; Josef Teige; Zikmund Winter; Adolf Kašpar: The Prague Ghetto , Unie, Prague 1903. Digitized.
- Jiří Všetečka; Jiří Kuděla: Fate of Jewish Prague . Grafoprint-Neubert, Praha 1993.
- Prague City Tourism: Prague: Jewish , Prague City Tourism, Praha 2017.
Web links
- Jewish Museum in Prague (Židovské muzeum v Praze)
- Information from the local Jewish community