Jewish Families from Mikulov (Nikolsburg), Moravia, Czech Republic

This project seeks to list representatives of all of the Jewish families from the Moravian town of Mikulov (Nikolsburg) in the Czech Republic.

Genealogists working with Nikolsburg records online will find helpful the JewishGen.org list of names from the old Nikolsburg Jewish Cemetery. It's a good idea also to review the Geni project overview page "Jewish Communities in Bohemia and Moravia" for information on using the Czech Jewish Registers online. Those Birth, Death and Marriage records for the region are online as part of the HBMa register collection at the VadeMeCum website. Click the icon that looks like a file drawer with the label Listování v pomůcce to see a list of towns at the right of the page. (There are no Mikulov records in the collection of HBM "control registers"; see NOTE below.)

In June 2014, Indexes to Mikulov births, marriages, and deaths came online at the site of the Jewish Museum in Prague. The German name on the book itself is Familien-Register. The museum calls the collection Židovská náboženská obec Mikulov, Rejstřík (z roku 1913) k matrikám, NOZ 1762-1912. That link goes to the page http://collections.jewishmuseum.cz/index.php and performs a search for "Mikulov NOZ 1762 1912" to show the 11 webpages containing images of this book. The first page has images of the cover and introductory pages of the register. Next are three pages containing the listings of births (narození) divided into three alphabetical groupings, three pages of deaths (zemřelí) and three pages of marriages (oddaní), divided similarly. The eleventh page contains a list of rabbis.

If instead you search just for "Mikulov" - http://collections.jewishmuseum.cz/index.php/Search/Index?search=Mi... - you will see many other images of documents, objects, and pictures related to Mikulov. A few of these are of some genealogical interest, including several early lists of names, and some documents pertaining to individual Familiant licenses.

The images of the Familien-Register / Rejstřík matrikám are relatively easy to search, because the entries in each section (birth, deaths, marriages) are in approximate alphabetical order. However, since the marriage section is organized by the names of the grooms, there is no easy way to search for the name of a bride. For that reason, a spreadsheet with the contents of the marriage section is available.

There are three online indices of the Mikulov cemetery:

1. https://www.jewishgen.org/databases/AustriaCzech/nikolsburg.htm - complete list of over 4500 graves from an 1898 register at the Brno Jewish Community. For each grave it lists the grave number and name. Some graves also have an age or comments.
2. https://sites.google.com/zob.cz/cemeteries/mikulov - based on the same register at the Brno Jewish Community, this spreadsheet and map of the cemetery were put online in 2017. In addition to the fields in the first database, some entries include Hebrew name, patronym, husband's name, date of death, and/or notes about current condition of the grave. As of the last update of this description, the spreadsheet only includes entries for the first five of the nine sections of the cemetery - about half of all graves. Hopefully the remaining sections will be added in the future.
3. http://www.chewra.com/keshetnew/kweb/location_tombs.aspx?lid=184&kid=0 - a less complete database, in Czech, probably based on currently viewable graves. Many of the entries include full Hebrew epitaths.

More information about these and other resources can be found on the JewishGen KehilaLinks Mikulov Vital Data Resources page at http://kehilalinks.jewishgen.org/Nikolsburg/nikres.htm

History

Nikolsburg History from the Jewish Encyclopedia of 1906: The settlement of the Jews in Nikolsburg dates probably from 1420, when, after the expulsion from the neighboring province of Lower Austria, fugitives settled in the town under the protection of the princes of Lichtenstein. The expulsions of the Jews from the cities of Brünn and Znaim (1454) may have brought additional settlers. The community first became important in 1575, when the emperor gave Nikolsburg to Adam von Dietrichstein, whose son, Cardinal Franz von Dietrichstein, was a special protector of the Jews, their taxes being necessary to the prosecution of the Thirty Years' war.

The expulsion of the Jews from Vienna in 1670 brought another large group of new settlers to Nikolsburg, which is about 50 miles distant from the capital, and at the census taken under Maria Theresa 620 families were found established there, making the Jewish population of the town about 3,000, or one-half of the total population. Naturally, only a few of them could win a living in the town; most of them peddled, or frequented the fairs in Lower Austria, from which the inhabitants of the various fair towns endeavored to exclude them as late as 1794.

The congregation suffered severely in the Silesian war, when the Prussians levied a contribution of 9,000 florins, and took all horses owned by Jews (1744). The Jews of Nikolsburg had further tofurnish their share in the contribution of 50,000 gulden exacted by the government of Maria Theresa from the Jews of Moravia.

In 1778, during the preparations for the war with Prussia, the Neu-Schul was used as a military storehouse, although the congregation offered other places. Quite a number of Nikolsburg Jews continued to earn their livelihood in Vienna, where they were permitted to stay for some time on special passports. The freedom of residence which was conceded to the Jews there in 1848 and 1860 reduced the number of resident Jews in Nikolsburg to less than one-third of the population which it contained at the time of its highest development. At the present time (1904) there are 749 Jewish residents in the city in a total population of 8,192.

Synagogues and Schools.

Up to 1868 the community had about a dozen synagogues, some named after their founders—as the Wiener Schul, founded by the Vienna exiles—and some serving as centers for the gilds (of which the community had quite a number)—as the Kazowim-Schul and Schuster Schul. Another synagogue, founded by Schmelke Horowitz, was consecrated to the propagation of the Ḥasidic doctrine and was called "Chasidim-Schul." In 1868 the synagogues were reduced to five, and at present there are only two—the Alt-Schul, the cathedral synagogue of the "Landesrabbiner" of Moravia, and the Neu-Schul.

Owing to the importance of the rabbis who officiated in Nikolsburg, the city was the seat of a very prominent yeshibah, which often had from 300 to 400 disciples. It achieved its greatest fame under Mordecai Benet (1753-1829); declining gradually, it disappeared after the death of Solomon Quetsch (1856).

A modern parochial school was established in 1839, and after 1853 was under the management of Moritz Eisler. Since 1868 the school has been in the hands of the state. Owing to the removal of many Jews from the city and the settlement of Christian families in the old ghetto, the majority of the school-children now (1904) are Christians, as are the principal and some of the teachers. The area of the former ghetto, however, still continues to be administrated as a township under the name of Israelitengemeinde Nikolsburg, having its burgo-master and its board of trustees. There are quite a number of societies, including a ḥebra ḳaddisha, a Talmud Torah, and well-endowed foundations for charitable and educational purposes.

Rabbis

1. The first rabbi of Nikolsburg was Judah Löw ben Bezaleel, who officiated in Nikolsburg about 1553-1573.
2. Judah Löb Eilenburg (1574-1618);
3. Yom-Ṭov Lipmann Heller (1624);
4. Pethahiah ben Joseph (1631);
5. Menahem Mendel Krochmal (1648-61);
6. Aaron Jacob ben Ezekiel (1671);
7. Judah Löb, son of Menahem Krochmal (1672-84);
8. Eliezer Mendel Fanta (1690);
9. David Oppenheim (1690-1705);
10. Gabriel Eskeles (1718);
11. Bernard Eskeles (1718–1753);
12. Moses Lwow-Lemburger (1753–1757);
13. Gershon Politz (1753-1772);
14. Shmuel "Schmelke" (ben Hirsh Halevi) Horowitz of Nikolsburg (1772–1778);
15. Gershon Chajes (1780-1789);
16. Mordecai Benet (1789-1829);
17. Nehemias Trebitsch (1831-42);
18. Samson Raphael Hirsch (1846-1851);
19. Hirsch Teltscher (1851–1853);
20. Isak Weinberger (1853–1855);
21. Solomon Quetsch (1855-56);
22. Mayer Feuchtwang (1861-88), and his son
23. David Feuchtwang (1892-1903) and also chief rabbi of Vienna
24. Moritz Levin (since 1904);
25. Alfred Willmann (1919–1938).

Authors & Scholars

1. Eliezer Nin (author of "Mishnat Eliezer," Frankfort-on-the-Main, 1710);
2. Naphtali Hirsch Spitz (author of the "Melo Raẓon," Frankfort-on-the-Oder, 1717);
3. Moses ben Menahem Prager, the cabalist (wrote there his "Zera' Ḳodesh," Fürth, 1696, in which he reports an exorcism in Nikolsburg). In 1785 the story of an exorcism was reported by Abraham Trebitsch, both in Hebrew and in Yiddish, under the title "Ruaḥ Ḥayyim" (Brünn ?).
4. Trebitsch, who was secretary to the "Landesrabbiner," wrote a meritorious chronicle of his time under the title "Ḳorot ha-'Ittim" (Brünn, 1801). To Nikolsburg belong also
5. Moritz Eisler, the philosophical author,
6. Joseph von Sonnenfels,
7. Heinrich Landesmann (1821–1902), Jewish poet and philosophical writer
8. Leopold Oser, professor of medicine at Vienna University.
9. Hirsch Kolisch, the philanthropist, was born at Nikolsburg (end of 18th cent.; d. Vienna Dec. 11, 1866). Kolisch established there a school for deaf-mutes under the administration of Joel Deutsch (1844). The institute was transferred in 1852 to Vienna, where Kolisch took up his residence.

Other

1. Auerbach Jewish Family
2. Moses ben Avraham Avinu (?–1733), printer, author, Christian convert to Judaism
3. Joseph von Sonnenfels, né Lipmann (1732–1817), Austrian and German Jewish (later Christian) jurist, novelist
4. Heinrich Auspitz (1835–1886), Jewish dermatologist
5. Siegfried Altmann (1872–1961), Jewish educator
6. Joseph Almosnino, (1642–1689) Greek-Serbian rabbi, died in Nikolsburg
7. Simon Bacher (Bachrach) (1823-1891), ( Hungarian Neo-Hebraic poet.
8. Samuel Baeck (1834 -1912) was a German rabbi and father of Leo Baeck.
9. Herschl Böhm (ca. 1790 - Mikulov)
10. Simcha Bunim of Peshischa (1765–1827) Studied Torah in Nikolsburg
11. Aron Eisler ( - 1876 Mikulov)
12. Judah he-Hasid Segal ha-Levi (c1660-1700), Stopped at Nikolsburg and then spent a year traveling throughout Germany and Moravia gaining followers
13. Löb Hollitsch (Hollitscher) (ca. 1750 - )
14. Aaron Samuel ben Israel Kaidanover (1614-1676) elected rabbi successively of Langenlois in Lower Austria, Nikolsburg, Glogau, Fürth, and Frankfurt am Main
15. Meyer Kayserling (1829-1905) was a German rabbi and historian, educated at Halberstadt, Nikolsburg (Moravia)
16. Abraham Neuda (1812-1854) was an Austrian rabbi who studied at Mikulov.
17. Richard Teltscher (1888, Vienna - 1974, London), Jewish Austrian wine-merchant, patron and patriot, founder of the Jewish Central Museum for Moravia-Silesia in Mikulov

Bibliography

1. Trebitsch, Ḳorot ha-'Ittim, Brünn, 1801;
2. Löw, Das Mährische Landesrabbinat, in Gesammelte Schriften, ii. 165-218, Szegedin, 1890;
3. Friedländer, Ḳore ha-Dorot, Brünn, 1876;
4. Feuchtwang, Epitaphien Mährischer Landes-und Localrabbiner von Nikolsburg, in Kaufmann Gedenkbuch, pp. 369-384, Breslau, 1900;
5. Wertheimer, Jahrbuch, i. 51.

Links of Interest

• Nikolsburg Org
• Photos
• Map of Moravia
• Die Nikolsburger Juden 1560-1620 Wirtschaftliche Prosperität unter adeligem Schutz, by Marie Bunatova

JewishGen Kehila Links

• Published Gravestones from Nikolsburg
• Searchable database of Nikolsburg Jewish cemetery
• Nikolsburg, Mikulov, Czech Republic KehilaLinks homepage
• Information about genealogical resources
• Annotated index of documents in the physical and online archives of the Jewish Museum in Prague
• Chronology of the Jewish community of Nikolsburg
• The Shamash of Nikolsburg - A story about Rabbi Shmuel Shmelke
• The Eruv A cabalistic legend from Nikolsburg
• Reminiscences of Nikolsburg in the 1880's by Edmund Jerusalem
• Recollections of the Nikolsburg Jewish Community as it was during the 1930's
• Nikolsburg visitors to the Leipzig Fair 1675 to 1764

Note: The VadeMeCum site's HBM registers for "Mikulovice" are not for Nikolsburg. "Mikulovice" can refer to several locations in today's Czech Republic:

• Mikulovice (Jeseník District) (German: Niklasdorf, Polish: Mikułowice)
• Mikulovice (Třebíč District) (German: Nikolowitz)
• Mikulovice (Znojmo District)
• Mikulovice (Pardubice District) The records for Mikulovice at Badatelna/Fond/241 are for Pardubice.

Familiantenstellen

according to different sources;
Hugo Gold: Die Juden Mährens 1929; Page: Nikolsburg 21 & 22

http://genealogyindexer.org/view/1929GoldMoravia/448

Nr:/Given-Name/Family-Name/mentioned on

35 Simon Frankl 08 03 1803

62 Elkan Wolf Abeles 23 12 1836

86 Selig Gerson Politzer 12 05 1827

135 Wolf Deutsch 02 03 1830

146 Isaak Ahron Deutsch 02 03 1830

181 Samuel Politzer 03 09 1846

214 Abraham Spitzer 03 09 1846

219 Samuel Benedikt 12 01 1833

305 Ignatz Hirsch 03 09 1846

361 Markus Moyseles 03 09 1846

441 Jakob Samuel Toch 12 01 1833

582 Markus Ahron Spitz 12 05 1827

584 Salomon Flesch 13 06 1814

591 Juda Jeiteles 08 03 1803

607 Bernhard Schlesinger 08 03 1803

Mikulov, Inhabitants in 1754

Hugo Gold

http://genealogyindexer.org/view/1929GoldMoravia/439