Jewish agricultural colonies in the Russian Empire
Encyclopedia
Jewish agricultural colonies in the Russian Empire were first established in Kherson Governorate
in 1806. The Ukase
of December 9, 1804 allowed Jews for the first time in Russia to purchase land for farming settlements (Koloniya). Jews were provided exemption from military service, tax abatements, and reduced land prices as incentives. It was initially an attempt to demote Jews from their mechshanin or kupets ("urban commoner" or "merchant") sosloviye (social group) inherited from the Polish Partitions to the lower-ranking Krestyane (peasant
-agricultural) class. Other colonies in New Russia and Western Krai
followed. In 1835 an abortive attempt to establish Jewish colonies in Siberia
was made. Another major colonization was initiated in Yekaterinoslav Governorate
in 1846. In 1858, 18 Jewish agricultural colonies were registered in Podolia Governorate
, involving over 1,100 families. One of the largest and most successful was Staro Zakrevsky Meidan
. By 1900 there were about 100,000 Jewish colonists throughout Russia.
In early 1890s an English writer Arnold White
visited the Kherson colonies to investigate the status of Russian Jews by commission from Baron Hirsch. He noted that colonies grew due to natural population increase since the inception despite hardships and after 80 years there was not enough land. He also made a note that Jewish women were not permitted to do field work.
Jewish agricultural colonies became more successful than the Russian government initially expected. Some Jewish agricultural colonies turned into full-fledged Jewish shtetls with thriving merchant businesses not related to the agricultural activities originally chartered. Other Koloniya became the centers for new cash crops such as sugar beets, winter wheat, sunflowers, which particularly made Ukraine
the breadbasket for all of Europe. The sugar beet industry produced more sugar for Europe's insatiable sweet tooth than any other source, until tropical sugar cane crops took over in the 20th century. The Russian sugar beet industry was controlled by Jewish families associated with the Jewish agricultural colonies, such as the wealthy Brodsky family, financial magnates based in Kiev
.
Jewish agricultural colonies became models for communal agricultural efforts worldwide. Karl Marx
cited the Koloniya as examples of workers taking control and lifting themselves up through hard work. Jewish Zionists in the early 1900s used Koloniya as models for Kibbutz
im in Israel, particularly in the Second Aliyah
after 1904. After the Russian Revolution of 1917
, the Bolshevik
government carried out collectivization efforts during 1920-1938, see Komzet
and OZET
articles. Many Koloniyas were turned into kolkhoz
es during this period.
Kherson Governorate
The Kherson Governorate or Government of Kherson was a guberniya, or administrative territorial unit, in the Southern Ukrainian region, between the Dnieper and Dniester Rivers, of the Russian Empire. It was one of three governorates created in 1802 when the Novorossiya guberniya was abolished...
in 1806. The Ukase
Ukase
A ukase , in Imperial Russia, was a proclamation of the tsar, government, or a religious leader that had the force of law...
of December 9, 1804 allowed Jews for the first time in Russia to purchase land for farming settlements (Koloniya). Jews were provided exemption from military service, tax abatements, and reduced land prices as incentives. It was initially an attempt to demote Jews from their mechshanin or kupets ("urban commoner" or "merchant") sosloviye (social group) inherited from the Polish Partitions to the lower-ranking Krestyane (peasant
Peasant
A peasant is an agricultural worker who generally tend to be poor and homeless-Etymology:The word is derived from 15th century French païsant meaning one from the pays, or countryside, ultimately from the Latin pagus, or outlying administrative district.- Position in society :Peasants typically...
-agricultural) class. Other colonies in New Russia and Western Krai
Western Krai
Western Krai or Stolen Lands is an unofficial name, introduced in 1834 by a Polish historian Maurycy Mochnacki, of the westernmost parts of the Imperial Russia, but excluding the Kingdom of Poland...
followed. In 1835 an abortive attempt to establish Jewish colonies in Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
was made. Another major colonization was initiated in Yekaterinoslav Governorate
Yekaterinoslav Governorate
The Yekaterinoslav Governorate or Government of Yekaterinoslav was a governorate in the Russian Empire. Its capital was the city of Yekaterinoslav .-Administrative divisions:...
in 1846. In 1858, 18 Jewish agricultural colonies were registered in Podolia Governorate
Podolia
The region of Podolia is an historical region in the west-central and south-west portions of present-day Ukraine, corresponding to Khmelnytskyi Oblast and Vinnytsia Oblast. Northern Transnistria, in Moldova, is also a part of Podolia...
, involving over 1,100 families. One of the largest and most successful was Staro Zakrevsky Meidan
Staro Zakrevsky Meidan
Starozakrevsky Maidan , located between Derazhnia and Volkovintzi, near Kalnaya in the Podolia region of Ukraine was a Jewish agricultural colony established in 1844. It was the largest and most prosperous agricultural colony near Derazhnia, at one point in the late 19th century it had a...
. By 1900 there were about 100,000 Jewish colonists throughout Russia.
In early 1890s an English writer Arnold White
Arnold White
-Early life:In 1879, he married Helen Constance , only daughter of Lowell Price of Farnham Royal, Buckinghamshire. She predeceased him and they had one son.-Politics:...
visited the Kherson colonies to investigate the status of Russian Jews by commission from Baron Hirsch. He noted that colonies grew due to natural population increase since the inception despite hardships and after 80 years there was not enough land. He also made a note that Jewish women were not permitted to do field work.
Jewish agricultural colonies became more successful than the Russian government initially expected. Some Jewish agricultural colonies turned into full-fledged Jewish shtetls with thriving merchant businesses not related to the agricultural activities originally chartered. Other Koloniya became the centers for new cash crops such as sugar beets, winter wheat, sunflowers, which particularly made Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
the breadbasket for all of Europe. The sugar beet industry produced more sugar for Europe's insatiable sweet tooth than any other source, until tropical sugar cane crops took over in the 20th century. The Russian sugar beet industry was controlled by Jewish families associated with the Jewish agricultural colonies, such as the wealthy Brodsky family, financial magnates based in Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
.
Jewish agricultural colonies became models for communal agricultural efforts worldwide. Karl Marx
Karl Marx
Karl Heinrich Marx was a German philosopher, economist, sociologist, historian, journalist, and revolutionary socialist. His ideas played a significant role in the development of social science and the socialist political movement...
cited the Koloniya as examples of workers taking control and lifting themselves up through hard work. Jewish Zionists in the early 1900s used Koloniya as models for Kibbutz
Kibbutz
A kibbutz is a collective community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economic branches, including industrial plants and high-tech enterprises. Kibbutzim began as utopian communities, a combination of socialism and Zionism...
im in Israel, particularly in the Second Aliyah
Second Aliyah
The Second Aliyah was an important and highly influential aliyah that took place between 1904 and 1914, during which approximately 40,000 Jews immigrated into Ottoman Palestine, mostly from the Russian Empire, some from Yemen....
after 1904. After the Russian Revolution of 1917
Russian Revolution of 1917
The Russian Revolution is the collective term for a series of revolutions in Russia in 1917, which destroyed the Tsarist autocracy and led to the creation of the Soviet Union. The Tsar was deposed and replaced by a provisional government in the first revolution of February 1917...
, the Bolshevik
Bolshevik
The Bolsheviks, originally also Bolshevists , derived from bol'shinstvo, "majority") were a faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party which split apart from the Menshevik faction at the Second Party Congress in 1903....
government carried out collectivization efforts during 1920-1938, see Komzet
Komzet
Komzet was the Committee for the Settlement of Toiling Jews on the Land in the Soviet Union. The primary goal of the Komzet was to help impoverished and persecuted Jewish population of the former Pale of Settlement to adopt agricultural labor...
and OZET
OZET
OZET was public Society for Settling Toiling Jews on the Land in the Soviet Union in the period from 1925 to 1938. Some English sources use the word "Working" instead of "Toiling".- Background :...
articles. Many Koloniyas were turned into kolkhoz
Kolkhoz
A kolkhoz , plural kolkhozy, was a form of collective farming in the Soviet Union that existed along with state farms . The word is a contraction of коллекти́вное хозя́йство, or "collective farm", while sovkhoz is a contraction of советское хозяйство...
es during this period.
See also
- Jewish Colonization AssociationJewish Colonization AssociationThe Jewish Colonization Association was created on September 11, 1891 by the Baron Maurice de Hirsch. Its aim was to facilitate the mass emigration of Jews from Russia and other Eastern European countries, by settling them in agricultural colonies on lands purchased by the committee, particularly...
- Odessa Jewish Agricultural School
- Jewish agricultural colonies of Bessarabia
- Jewish gauchosJewish gauchosJewish gauchos were Jewish immigrants who settled in fertile regions of Argentina in agricultural colonies established by the Jewish Colonization Association....
- The Jewish SteppeThe Jewish SteppeThe Jewish Steppe is a 2001 documentary about a group of Russian Jews who, exhausted by prejudice and fearful of pogroms, left their homeland to farm the untamed Crimean Peninsula...
- KibbutzKibbutzA kibbutz is a collective community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economic branches, including industrial plants and high-tech enterprises. Kibbutzim began as utopian communities, a combination of socialism and Zionism...
- Kolonja IzaakaKolonja IzaakaKolonja Izaaka was a small Jewish farming village in what is now Belarus, founded in 1849 through government land grants to 26 poor Jewish families for the purpose of engaging in agriculture. The settlement existed continuously until liquidated by the Nazis in November, 1942...
- Kolonja Izaaka "Shtetlinks" Website