Page:Jewish Encyclopedia Volume 2.pdf/166

128 ;;

Army



THE JEWISH ENCYCLOPEDIA

Arnhem

Rumania, 750 Great Britain and Ireland, 650 other states, 1,350 making a total of 98,000 European Jews who may be termed for the time being professional soldiers and sailors. But including the Jews who would be called out to bring up to war strength the various auxiliary and reserve forces of European countries, it would be found that their nine millions of Jewish subjects would place under arms some





350,000 soldiers of well-proved military quality. See Russian Army.

Bibliography

For America





Simon Wolf, The American

and Citizen, Philadelphia, 1895 American Jewish Year-Book, 1900-1, pp. 525-623; and pub-

Jeio an Patriot, Soldier,

American Jewish Historical Society. For Continental Europe P. Nathan, Die Juden als Soldaten (pub. by the Gesellschaf t zur Abwehr Antisemitischer AngrifCe), Berlin, 1896; AUqemeine Zeitung des Judenthums, 1888, p. 680, reprint from Pesther Lloyd ; Mitteihinflcn aus dem Vercin zurAhwthr des Antisemilismus, 1899, p. 222; Jewish YearBooh, 1901, pp. 195-212; 1902, pp. 205-210; 1903; M. Bloch, Jjcs Vertus Militaires des Juifs, in Aetes et Conferences, Rev. Et. Juives, xxxiv. ; J. Loeb, Reflexions sur les Juifs, in Rev. Et. Juives, xxxix. 15-17. lications of the



,

128

duties in performing military service than the rest of the population, being compelled to furnish 10 recruits per 1,000 inhabitants every year, while nonJews were to furnish 7 per 1,000 every alternate

year (Mysli,

"Rukovodstvo

k.

Ruskkim Zakonam

For arrears in taxes Jews o Yevreyakh," p. 411). had to furnish one additional recruit for every 2,000 rubles. The Karaites, who applied to the czar in 1828, were exempt from military service ("Voskhod," 1896, vii. 2). In 1853 temporary regulations were issued, permitting Jewish communities and private individuals to present substitutes from among those of their coreligionists that had been detected without passGreat atrocities and corruption resulted ports.

from these regulations, which were abolished by the emperor-reformer, Alexander II., who, on Sept. 10, 1856 (Complete Russian Code, 2d ed., V. xxxi., No. 30,888), ordered that henceforth recruits from Jews should be taken on the general basis thus prohibiting the recruitment of minors and of " supernumeraries " (see Poimanniki). The following table, derived from official sources,

F. L. C.

<;.

Jews served the Jewish

in the armies of the

Chazars and in

of Taman as early as the ninth and tenth centuries (Chwolson, "Ibn Dast,"p. 17; Mordtmann, "Isztachri," Records are extant concernp. 103).

dukedom

Russian.

ing two Jewish envoys, Saul and Joseph, who served the Slavonian czar about 960 (A. Harkavy, "Juden und Slavische Sprachen," pp. 143-153); concerning Anbal the Jassin, who, in 1175, served under Prince Bogolyubski of Kiev ("Polnoe Sobranie Russkikh Lyetopisei," ii. and v.); and concerning Zachariah Guil-Gursis (probably Guizolfi), prince of Taman, who in 1487 offered Czar Ivan Vasilyevick of Moscow "to come to him and to serve him with his whole household, or first alone, with only a few of his men," which offer was accepted by the czar in a letter, dated March 18, 1488 but for certain reasons he did not go to Russia (" Sbornik Imperatorskavo Russk. Istor. ObshchestIn the responsa of Rabbi va," xxxv. 41, 42, 43).

Meir of Lublin (Venice,

1638),

p.

1036,

mention

of Bbrachah, " the Hero, " who was killed in the Polish war against Russia, near Moscow, Prom a document discovered in 1900 at in 1610. the Archives of the St. Petersburg Archeological Institute it is evident that among the " Children of Boyars " who enlisted in the Russian military servis

made

1680 two were Lithuanian Jews, Samoilo Vistizki and his son Juri (Goldstein, in " Voskhod, " 1900, No. 30). The warlike Jews of the Caucasus also deserve mention.

ice

in

Abramov

When Russian

kingdom of Poland came under Jews were not admitted into actual the Russian Army, but instead had to pay

the old rule,

service in a special military tax.

By an

Emperor Nicholas I., issued Aug. Jews were ordered to perform actual

edict of

26, 1827, the

military service on the basis of a special and very According to the regulations of this severe statute. statute, the authorities were permitted to take recruits from Jews at the ages of 12 to 25 (see Cantonists),

and "supernumerary"

recruits (bezzachotnye)

even up to the age of 35. The practical application of these regulations gave rise to direful abuses and corruption The Jews were subjected to heavier

show the number of recruits enlisted, and also that of the alleged arrears

will

Year.