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Bratislava, built in the style of Budapest, was explicitly rural, a city of about sixty thousand residents. Due to its favorable geographical position, there was a lively, cultural life here. The artists who traveled from Vienna to Pest as guest performers, I mean any great artist, even Caruso [Enrique Caruso (1887-1947): Italian opera singer, (tenor), Member of the Metropolitan Opera from 1903-1920], performed here one night for sure.
Primarily, when Czechoslovakia was already created, and they built the Reduta Theater. They started building the Reduta in 1914 and finished in 1919. Because of the war, they had only got to the first floor, then they finished it, and there the modern Philharmonic was formed, the great hall. I think it’s the most beautiful, biggest hall in the city, at that time it was, too.
The residents have always been ten percent Jewish in Bratislava. That’s thanks to the yeshivah also, which was really the most famous in Central Europe. Chatam Sofer himself founded it. Later, still during the Czechoslovakian period, he made an even greater reputation for himself all over – very, very many people came from other countries to study here.
After World War I, when a lot of people moved to Bratislava – the birth rate was high, and they drove many people here – the city had 130,000 residents, 15,000 of them were Jewish. In 1946, there were 3500. In 2004, today, there are 2800 in the country.
[According to the census taken in the 1930s in Slovakia, there were 137,737 residents of Jewish religion, among those 44,019 (32 percent) considered themselves ‘Czechoslovakian’ nationals; 9,945 (7 percent), as German nationals and 65,385 (48 percent) considered themselves of Jewish nationality.
After the First Vienna Decision, about 90,000 Jews were left in Slovakian territory.] In the city of Bratislava, it’s not possible to know exactly, but about 600 were living here. Bratislava, Kosice and Presov were among the biggest Jewish settlements. In smaller rural towns, in villages, hardly any Jews lived there.
On the castle road there was a very, very old but extraordinarily valuable Orthodox synagogue. It was large. Unfortunately, they tore it down immediately after the war, because it was sinking. It stood on the steep part which leads up to the castle. Really, many times the waves of the Danube washed it.
Primarily, when Czechoslovakia was already created, and they built the Reduta Theater. They started building the Reduta in 1914 and finished in 1919. Because of the war, they had only got to the first floor, then they finished it, and there the modern Philharmonic was formed, the great hall. I think it’s the most beautiful, biggest hall in the city, at that time it was, too.
The residents have always been ten percent Jewish in Bratislava. That’s thanks to the yeshivah also, which was really the most famous in Central Europe. Chatam Sofer himself founded it. Later, still during the Czechoslovakian period, he made an even greater reputation for himself all over – very, very many people came from other countries to study here.
After World War I, when a lot of people moved to Bratislava – the birth rate was high, and they drove many people here – the city had 130,000 residents, 15,000 of them were Jewish. In 1946, there were 3500. In 2004, today, there are 2800 in the country.
[According to the census taken in the 1930s in Slovakia, there were 137,737 residents of Jewish religion, among those 44,019 (32 percent) considered themselves ‘Czechoslovakian’ nationals; 9,945 (7 percent), as German nationals and 65,385 (48 percent) considered themselves of Jewish nationality.
After the First Vienna Decision, about 90,000 Jews were left in Slovakian territory.] In the city of Bratislava, it’s not possible to know exactly, but about 600 were living here. Bratislava, Kosice and Presov were among the biggest Jewish settlements. In smaller rural towns, in villages, hardly any Jews lived there.
On the castle road there was a very, very old but extraordinarily valuable Orthodox synagogue. It was large. Unfortunately, they tore it down immediately after the war, because it was sinking. It stood on the steep part which leads up to the castle. Really, many times the waves of the Danube washed it.
Location
Slovakia
Interview
Katarina Löfflerova