Varaklani file / תיק קהילה

These sources document the History of the Jewish community in Varkalani in Latvia, from its founding to its brutal destruction in the Holocaust. The collection includes Historical reviews On the religious and educational institutions in the town, alongside Name lists Detailed accounts of victims murdered by the Germans in 1941. Additional documents reveal Personal correspondence, genealogical queries, and testimonies about the daily life, economy, and political struggles of the residents. Among other things, the sources describe Antisemitic events and social tensions that preceded the war, alongside the activities of Zionist youth movements. In conclusion, the materials constitute Hand of Memory To a vibrant community that was wiped out, while preserving the names and stories of the Zelikovich family and other families from the area.

History of the Warklany Community – An Archival Historical Review

The beginning of the settlement and the development of the Jewish community

The settlement Varkalani (known in Jewish sources asVarkalyan) is first mentioned at the end of the 16th century (C42-14f). The settlement began to develop in the mid-19th century, mainly thanks to the main road that was paved nearby (C42-1f). An organized Jewish community was founded in the place after the first partition of Poland in 1772, when the region was annexed to Russia (C42-14f, C42-29). The first institutions established were Shevra Kadisha and a cemetery, and by 1847 the community already numbered 250 Jews (C42-14f, C42-3). At the end of the 19th century (1897), Jews constituted about 75% of the total population, with 1,365 people (C42-14f, C42-3). A text printed in German and Russian indicates that the town belonged to the district Režica (Rezekne) in the region Vitebsk (C42-11f, C42-17).

Religious, educational and cultural institutions

Three synagogues operated in the community: "The White Synagogue" (Die weise shul) founded by the Hasidim, "The Green Seminary" (Der greener beth hamidrash) of the opponents, and **"The Little Beit Midrash"** (C42-14f, C42-29). Among the prominent spiritual figures in the community was Rabbi Avraham Dov Bar Son of Rabbi Moshe Gabbay, who was born in the town in 1744 (C42-11f). Another rabbi mentioned is Rabbi Aharon Zelig Zionist, and following him, we built Rabbi Naftali Zionist who arrived in 1873 and served for almost a jubilee of years (C42-21). Rabbi Yaakov HaCohen Grodsky He served as the community's rabbi from the early 1920s until he perished in the Holocaust (C42-14f, C42-29). In the field of education, the children initially studied inTalmud TorahDuring the period of Latvian independence, a kindergarten and a primary school were established where the language of instruction was Latvian. Yiddish, although Hebrew and the Bible were also studied there (C42-14f, C42-24, C42-29). The community also had a library, a drama club, and an amateur orchestra (C42-14f).

Economic and social life

Most of the town's Jews in the 19th century were engaged in the trade of agricultural produce, and many were craftsmen such as tailors and shoemakers (C42-14f, C42-29). The Jews owned houses on small plots of land which they cultivated for subsistence purposes (C42-14f). In 1928, about 90% of the town's businesses were Jewish-owned, but following the authorities' **"Latvizization"** policy, this number was reduced by half by 1935 (C42-14f, C42-23, C42-29). In the early 20th century, mutual aid organizations such as "Visit to the sick", a loan and savings bank, and a public kitchen established in the late 19th century to aid victims of the cholera epidemic (C42-14f, C42-22). The archival documentation includes a detailed list of Jewish business owners in Rehovot Riga, Mege andSkolas, including: Shlomo Shabyov (Slovak Slavs) andDavid Guertin (Davids Gavartins) (C42-19).

Political activity and local administration

Political life in the community was vibrant and included branches of The Bund, Agudat Israel, and the Zionist parties: General scores, Socialist Zionists andRevisionists (C42-14f, C42-30). Youth movements such as Maccabi, Gordonia, The Young Guard, Beitar andBorochov (C42-14f, C42-24). Jews were a majority in the city council, and council meetings were sometimes conducted in Yiddish (C42-14f, C42-30). According to one source citing a Punisher named Aryeh Band, Laser Zelikovich (Leizer Zelikovich) served as Mayor of Varkalani (C42-10f). However, another source states that Hanoch Schwartz (Hanoch Shwartz) served as mayor, followed by Laser Grodsky (C42-25, C42-33). A third source states that two Jews served as mayors one after the other (C42-14f).

"The Varaklani Case"

A notable anti-Semitic incident occurred in August 1925, when a group of Latvian students who had arrived in the town clashed with Jewish residents (C42-26, C42-42). The students behaved provocatively, sang insulting songs, and confronted the Jews on the street and in the bathhouse (C42-42). Following the brawl that ensued, 22 Jews were arrested (C42-26). The trial was held in May 1926, and 13 of the defendants were sentenced to prison terms of 2 to 8 months (C42-26, C42-43). The Latvian press presented the incident as a Jewish attack on the Latvian nation (C42-26, C42-43).

Holocaust period

With the outbreak of World War II and the signing of Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact, the Red Army entered Varkalani in the summer of 1940 and established a Soviet regime (C42-15f, C42-31). Jewish property was nationalized and communal institutions were closed (C42-15f). In June 1941, a few days before the German invasion, the Soviet authorities deported several Jewish families to Siberia (C42-15f, C42-31).

At the end of June 1941, the town was occupied by the German army (C42-15f, C42-31). Immediately after the occupation, murders of Jews in the market square and elsewhere by local Latvians began (C42-15f, C42-31). On July 1, 1941, Latvians shot Jews in the market square (C42-31). The Jews were concentrated in a small area that served as a ghetto in the "New City" district, near the cemetery (C42-15f, C42-31).

InAugust 4, 1941 (11th of Av 5701), led 540 Jews of the city To pre-dug pits near the Jewish cemetery, where they were shot to death (C42-15f, C42-27, C42-31). Among the murdered people documented in the archive lists: Aron Fried (Frid Aron) 85 years old, Max Sharawa (Shrave Max) 53 years old, and small children such as animal andGregory Only 7 days old (C42-13f, C42-10).

Two Jews who managed to escape the ghetto drowned in the swamps during their escape (C42-31). Four young Jews who converted to Christianity and married Latvian women were also murdered by the local authorities (C42-15f, C42-31). Before their retreat, the Germans ordered the surrounding peasants to burn the bodies of the murdered in order to cover up the crime (C42-15f, C42-27, C42-31). The town was liberated by the Red Army on August 2, 1944 (C42-15f, C42-28).

List of terms and concepts

• Latinization: Government policy in Latvia aimed at transferring assets and positions of economic power to the Latvian nation (C42-23).
• progression: A term that appears in the context of donations or graduated community taxation (C42-24).
• The new city: Quarter where the temporary ghetto for Jews was established in Varkalani (C42-31).
• The Bund: A Jewish socialist workers' party that was active in the town (C42-14f).

List of sources

To view the document, click on its number.