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News: | 27.05.2008 | | Dear Ladies, dear Gentlemen, dear guests,
Allow me, please, to welcome you heartily at today’s ceremony for the 180th anniversary of the construction of the Ckyne synagogue and commemoration of local and nearby Jewish citizens assassinated during the German occupation.
Most of all I would like to welcome dear Alexandr Woodl from the USA, whose ancestors came from this region, and who is donating with a higher sum the restoration of the synagogue.
In the Vimperk district, former Práchen district, there existed an ancient Jewish settlement, which was violently stopped – similarly as in other places in the Czech Lands – during the Nazi occupation. The Jews, who settled there in the small town Ckyne, and in the bigger one Vimperk, and at some villages in inland (Czech), and border (German) part of the region, belonged to one religious community, which centre was Ckyne at first and lately Vimperk.
In the period of Feudalism the settlement of Jews at some place was not common – under their none sui juris position in the society. Their embedding and life in the country, region, or at a place, were conditioned with benevolence of the ruler, the Feudal authorities, the Church, with goodwill of the Christian inhabitants, calm political conditions, and peace, for the fact in the time of various tremors and struggles the Jews were always among the first victims. In Ckyne, originally a village, since the year 1537 a town, several Jewish families lived as early as at the end of the 16th century. During the Thirty-year War, which struck Ckyne as well, the number of families declined at one. The Revenue Rula (property and tax inventory) states two Jews in Ckyne for the year 1654. After the war the Jews settled in Ckyne region again and their number was increasing gradually. They were engaged most of all in sale (partly door to door), moderately in crafts, farming, and in the 19th century the most wealthy of them in finance.
The Theresian Cadastre states in the year 1748 ten Jewish families at the Ckyne manor. The Ckyne administrator Frantisek Loebl in his statistics from the year 1825 wrote down 28 Jewish houses alongside 79 Christian ones and 151 Jewish inhabitants to 526 others. Johann Gottfried Sommer in his geographical work “Das Königreich Böhmen statistisch-topographisch dargestellt” mentioned 34 Jewish families at the Ckyne manor in the year 1840 with 207 persons. (The total number was 1,823). Johann Trajer states in his work “Historisch-statistische Beschreibung der Diöcese Budweis“ for the year 1862 that in Ckyne there lived 852 Catholics and 2 Evangelic people along to 339 Israeli ones; that was probably the highest number throughout the history. Since the end of the 19th century to the end of the First Republic (1928) the most significant Jewish family in Ckyne was the Lederer family (now the house number 62 and 63).
From the background of the Ckyne community an outstanding lawyer, a professor of university JUDr. Alois Zucker came (born in Ckyne in 1842, died in Prague in1906), professor of the Czech section of the Law faculty of the Karl-Ferdinand University in Prague, and author of great scientist works, mostly in the field of crown law and order. He indorsed warmly the Czech nation and was a pioneer of so-called Czech-Jewish movement, which urged for the Czech national tendency of the Jews in our country, and became the first chairman of the Czech-Jewish National Union.
As late as in 1871 there were recorded 241 Jews in Ckyne (that was 26% of local inhabitants), later their number was declining and the Ckyne Jewish Community was dissolved. The decline turned up due to the moving to the bigger towns –Vimperk included. In the year 1930 only 3 Jewish families lived in Ckyne in number of 11 people.
The beginning of the Jewish settlement in Vimperk goes back to the 20ies of the 17th century. The number of the Jews settled in this town was significantly lower comparing the one in Ckyne. However since the end of the 19th century the number was growing considerably and the seat of the community was transferred from Ckyne to Vimperk. The Vimperk Jewish Community was founded in the year 1899.
Conversely, the German occupation broke into the life of the Jewish gregariousness in the years 1938-1939 – first the Sudety and then the whole Czechoslovakia. The Jews were relegated and they escaped to inland; some of them found the asylum in Ckyne Jewish families. The Vimperk synagogue from the year 1926 was burnt out by the Nazis during the so-called Diamond Night on November 10, 1938.
After the occupation of the Czech lands the Jewish inhabitants faced the brutal race persecution. The majority of the Czech Jews was massacred. In the year 1942 seven Jewish women and seven Jewish men were transported to the camp of concentration in Theresienstadt (ghetto); two women were tormented to death there, 12 of the others in the annihilation camp in Auschwitz, as well as one woman and one man from the nearby Zdíkov village. Only two Jewish citizens of Ckyne survived thanks to their mixed marriages. Other Ckyne natives perished, living in various places, most of all from the Lederer family.
The last Ckyne Israeli was Mrs. Caroline Spaninger died in 1984 in Breznice).
The spiritual centre of the Ckyne Jewish Community was the sanctuary – the synagogue. In the course of history there existed two synagogues in Ckyne: the old one, perhaps from 18th century serving lately as a farm house and was pulled down at the second part of the 20th century; and the new one from the year 1828 we are just inhere.
The new synagogue was built by that time owner of the Ckyne dominium, JUDr. Karel Claudi, as a compensation for the old synagogue in his Vysoký dvur mansion. The construction of the synagogue started on April 14th 1828 and on September 26th of the same year the Ckyne Jews entered their new synagogue. Later on a winter pray-room was joined, that is the room we are just sitting. The synagogue was built in a simple Classicist style and decorated beautifully, as the contemporary testaments state (F. Stán?, J.G.Sommer).
The synagogue served for regular worships until 1895, for temporary ones – according to the witnesses – perhaps till the end of the WWI. The regular worships were held in the pray-rooms in Vimperk since the year 1895. In the Ckyne synagogue there used to be a Jewish school as well and the flats of the rabbi and the cantor in the 19th century. The building in the yard served as a garage for the Jewish burial vehicle.
In the year 1922 the Jewish community sold the synagogue to the Spaningers who adapted it for a house and a carpenter workshop. The rebuilding damaged the east part with the main pray room, the west part has been preserved so far.
During the occupation Mrs. Julia Cervinka, the sister of Mrs. Spaninger , and three members of the family of the former Vimperk salesman Mr. Isidor Schwager, left this synagogue for their death.
Since the beginning of the 90ties of the 20th century the general recnovation of the synagogue has been in process. The aim is to built the South-east Bohemia Jewish Museum in the main pray room, in the winter one establish a small synagogue and at the same time a concert hall; in the other parts to create an art gallery and an exhibition hall, and in the object outside built a clubroom for young people. Unfortunately, due to lack of money the reconstruction goes on really slowly. I wish it would be finished successfully! I would like to say my heartily thanks and cordial thank goodness to Mr. Alexander Woodl, Mr. Jan Zelenka, Mr. Hermann Löffler, and all the others who promoted the renovation through their donations or work.
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News: | 27.05.2008 | | 180th Anniversary of the Ckyne Synagogue
On 17th May 2008 quite an outstanding event was taken place in the Ckyne synagogue. After more than one hundred years a divine service returned there, the Shabbat afternoon Mincha led by the cantor of the Liberec Jewish Community Michael Foršt, and Julius Müller, a member of Bejt Simcha , the liberal Prague Jewish Community (Michael is the member too). The former winter pray room was nearly full by mostly young people. And they watched breathlessly the Hebrew language and really willing commentary; at the same time it was spoken openly about everything that accompanied the Judaism, as well as about everything that weight it down.
Among the ten men required for the Torah reading Mr. Alex Woodl was asked as the first one. He arrived from the USA to donate ten thousand dollars for the synagogue. His delight was great, he was allowed to do that after more than fifty years; but then even
a woman – his niece Mrs. Rebecca Woodl was invited!
However nobody can imagine the surprise and happiness of Mr. Jan Podlesak and mine – Jindra Bromova, when our names were heard… There are no Jewish men in the whole South Bohemia – nobody survived the holocaust - and so the words said by Julius were: “This is not about religion, this is about people!”
Well, we stood up and came to the Torah and completed the ceremony and we both experienced the strength of tolerance, and gratitude as well – Jan devoted all his life for preservation of the Ckyne Jewish cemetery, I fell in alongside and we have been “struggling” for the new life of the Ckyne synagogue since 1991.
Other open words were stated by the pastor of the Czechoslovakian Hussite Church, Vladimír Valí?ek, he was just 88!
And then we all could listen to a real musicianship Michael Foršt and Victor Bytchek, bajan virtuoso, simply took us somewhere far above the ground. And in the meanwhile Michael was speaking about lights inside us, and these lights were sent by him to the past, to Jewish ancestors, to all those victims of violence; and to the present victims of wars and terrorism, to the world without love and acceptance, he sent hope to Israel, too.
Everybody had tears in their eyes when leaving, so who did not have to, stayed at the laid tables prepared by the Ckyne Municipality outside the synagogue, under a beautiful lime tree. To share the experiences, to talk between Ckyne and America; between the Jews and Christians, a man and a man.
On the other day we remembered the ancient settlement of the Jews in Ckyne, their fate; and the history of the synagogue, maybe hopeful future, and in his speech Mr. Podlesak committed to memory all the people who gave a hand or money for the renovation of the cemetery as well as the synagogue. He said thanks to Mr. Alex Woodl for his donation, too. Alex then stated in his speech a history of a Ckyne Jewish family now scattered widely all over the world. Then he gave another cheque to Jan for his commitment but he refused it immediately for him and gave it over for the Ckyne Jewish cemetery.
In the unremitting rain we walked to the cemetery, where the requiescat chimed for the martyrs of the Ckyne and Vimperk regions; their names and fates were read out. Seven doubled candles were burning below two lists of names, the words of a poet Pavel Nozar went along with the words of psalms. Let the fates of these innocent victims remain the last!
Jindra Bromová
Assosiation for the Renovation of the Ckyne Synagogue
www.synagoga-ckyne.cz
photo http://www.mymlevymokem.cz/material/foto/akce/ruzne/vyroci_synagoga/index.htm
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News: | 11.05.2008 | | On Saturday 17, at 16.15 pm you are heartily welcomed to the synagogue for mincha, administrated by the cantor of the Liberec Jewish Community Michal Foršt. After that Michal Foršt will be singing accompanied by the bajan virtuoso Viktor Bytchek. Divina service will be held here after more than hundred years! |
News: | 07.04.2008 | | DEAR FRIENDS,
This invitation belongs to all of you who have been helping us through the years! On Sunday 18th May you are warmly invited to the Ckyne synagogue. There we will meet Mr Alex Woodl whose ancestors lie in the Ckyne Jewish cemetery. You can read his story on this website, now you will be able to watch it in the way it was shot in Ckyne as a story of a Jewish immigrant for the Ellis Island Museum in the USA.
Alex has sent ten thousand dollars for the restoration of the synagogue and he will come to say thank you to all of you who have been helping with the cemetery and the synagogue. You are cordially invited!
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News: | 08.12.2007 | | Photogallery 02.12.2007
Ceremony of the Dedication of the Jewish Memorial in Strakonice on October 10, 2007
With the anniversary of the transports of Jewish citizens to Terezín there was a ceremony of dedication of a memorial devoted to all the Jewish people murdered in the camps of concentration or killed on the marches of death during the WWII. On the day October 10, 2007 quite a lot of people came to remember their former citizens of whom only one has lived so far, only one of those few who survived holocaust – Mrs. Eva Václavíková from Strakonice. The music was provided by the Ester Duo, and then the mayor of the town pronounced a speech where the enormous deserts of the former Jewish citizens were declared, their credit of industrial development of the town, by them-founded factories have still been working so far. The mayor also reminded the destruction of the natural centre of the town with a square, a Jewish ghetto, but especially an old large and beautiful synagogue during the totalize era of the communist party. The large photographs were placed at the place to give a chance to see those territories in their pasted beauty. He also highlighted the significance of
a centre and a central square for a town and promised the restoration at least in the frame of today’s possibilities. The memorial was blessed with songs and speech of the Cantor of
a liberal Jewish community Bej-simcha, Mgr. Michael Foršt, who together with the mayor revealed the memorial, and, together with the only Jewish citizen of the town , Mrs. Václavíková, put a small stone of remember on the memorial instead of flowers according to the Jewish custom.
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