The struggle for power in the Krakow and Podgorze Kehhilot in the interwar period : Jewish religious communities in Krakow

Field: Arts and Humanities (Social Sciences)

During almost the entire interwar period, there were two separate Jewish communities in Kraków. One of them covered most of the city, the other only one district – Podgórze, which was a separate municipal entity until 1915. The basis of the legal status of these communities was an Austrian law from 21 March 1890 and the statues published on its basis (for Kraków – 1897, for Podgórze – 1898). The principles they established survived with minor modifications until 1928. At the head of the religious communities, commonly known as Kehillot, were collegiate elected bodies (a council in Kraków, an authority in Podgórze) and the executive chiefs appointed by them (a president in Kraków, a superior (leader) in Podgórze). The authorities of the Kehillot significantly influenced the life of the Jewish community, maintained contacts with authorities of the state and local government administrations, as well as with prominent political forces. For these and many other reasons, exercising power over the community was exceptionally important both for the religious and the political groups of the Jewish community, and Kehilla elections aroused much more emotion than local government or parliamentary elections. Members of the Kehillot were elected for a four-year term (six years in Podgórze), with a right to re-election. Until 1914, elections were held every two (three) years, during which half the council (authority) was elected. Both Kehillot were governed the entire time by a coalition of Polonised progressive Jews and moderate Orthodox Jews. Efforts made to break this system, among others by Zionists, were not successful. It was not until 1921 that the Kraków Kehilla was provisionally expanded by more than a dozen people – representatives of political groups that had heretofore not been involved in the authorities, but this did not solve the problem. Proper elections were conducted in 1924 on the basis of an outdated curial electoral law, under which only men older than 24 years had the right to vote. A struggle took place between the hitherto existing authorities, organised in the Jewish Civic Committee, which opposed the attempts to secularise the Jewish community and the United Association of National Jewish Factions, established on Zionist initiative, which emphasised the need to transform the Kehilla from a strictly religious organisation into a national representation. Despite the enormous organisational and propaganda effort made in both Kraków and Podgórze, the Zionists suffered a defeat. Five years later, the next election was held on the basis of a new, five-point – although still not very democratic – electoral law. Interest in the vote was exceptionally high, as evidenced by the significant number of electoral lists (15 in Kraków and 9 in Podgórze), issued by political groups, as well as social and professional organisations. This time, too, the assimilatory-Orthodox coalition groups won, although in both communities, the Zionists gained an entry into the authorities. At the end of the four-year term of office of both Kehillot, new elections were not held, as the state authorities decided to postpone them until the merger of the two communities. As a result, Kraków was governed by the Council elected in 1929 and Podgórze by the Interim Authority, established in 1933. The merger of the two communities took place at the beginning of 1937 and was headed by the Provisional Special Administration. This state lasted until the outbreak of World War II.