The Balkan Wars & The Jews

American Jewish Committee
THE BALKAN WARS AND THE JEWS

Source: The American Jewish Year Book, Vol. 15, THE JEWISH PUBLICATION SOCIETY 1888 1913 (October 2, 1913, to September 20, 1914 / 5674), pp. 188-206
Published by: American Jewish Committee
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188
THE
AMERICAN
JEWISH
BALKAN
WARS
YEAR
AND
BOOK
THE
JEWS
The Balkan
Wars form the most significant event affecting

the Jews during the past year. The war waged by Montenegro,
Servia, Greece, and Bulgaria against Turkey resulted in the

separation of 120,000 Jews from an empire under whose
tolerant sway they had lived for four centuries. The subse
quent conflict among the Balkan States, in which Servia,
Greece, and Boumania fought against Bulgaria, served to create
new
political
affiliations
for
the
in
Jews
the
greater
of
part
what had been Turkey in Europe.

This change, incident upon
the shifting of boundaries in the Balkans, was effected through
wars
the
exhausting
resources
of
the
states
actively
engaged,
and inflicting untold misery on the unfortunate inhabitants in

the field of hostilities. The Jews in Turkey and in the states
involved suffered in common with the rest of the population.
The
outcome,
however,
means
more
for
the
who lived under Turkish
Jews
than
for
the
Owing to
their religion and their economic and general position in the
Ottoman Empire, the elimination of the Turkish power carries
other inhabitants
rule.
1 The article
Wars
here presented
is in the main
on the Balkan
of the Union
des Associations
a summary
of the reports
Isralites,
for the
of Jewish
formed
an international
societies,
organization
of
of unifying
the work of relief in the Balkan
countries,
purpose
is a constituent
which
Jewish
Committee
the American
society.
dis
of the Union
were made
These
by the representatives
reports
the work.
The
of hostilities
to supervise
to the scene
patched
of the Jews in the Balkans
the general
situation
last part, depicting
of the report as published
is a free translation
and their outlook,
Juden.
H. G. F.
der Deutschen
by the Hilfsverein
THE
BALKAN
WARS
AND
THE
JEWS
!89
with it radical
changes for the Jews in the conquered terri

tory, and brings them face to face with a new situation, eco
nomic, social, and political.
The Treaty of London, signed May 30, 1913, closed a war
that had been waged since the middle of October, 1912. Under
its terms Turkey ceded to the Balkan allies all territory west
of a line drawn from Enos on the Aegean S'ea to Midia on the
Black Sea.
Albania was made autonomous, and Crete was
ceded to Greece.
The allies, unable to agree

of the conquered territory, resorted to arms.
June there had been fighting, in July war
clared. Roumania joined Greece and Servia
upon the division

During May and
was formally de
against Bulgaria.
The war was short, and resulted disastrously for Bulgaria.
Servia and Greece captured a number of the cities which
Roumania
had taken from Turkey.
occupied
Bulgaria
Silistria, to which she laid claim as the price of neutrality in
the first war. Turkish troops possessed themselves again of
Peace
Adrianople.
was
restored
in August,
when
known,
Roumania
a treaty
was
signed at Bucharest.
Under
its
terms,
far
so
as
receives
Silistria.
In the territory assigned to Servia there are about

10,000 Jews, in the new Bulgarian domain about 30,000, in
that of Greece about ,80,000. In what remains of Turkey in
Europe there are 75,000 Jews.
The wars were fought with wanton brutality.
so
ruthlessly
massacred
as
the
Mohammedans,
the
Though not
Jews
went
through all the horrors of war. Plundering, burning of houses

and shops were the common accompaniments of the occupation
of cities. Extortion and murder were not infrequent.
More widespread, if less acute, was the suffering due to the
total cessation of ordinary industrial activity. In consequence
AMERICAN
190
JEWISH
YEAR
BOOK
In centres of population like

Constantinople and Salonica, the distress was rendered more
intense by the influx of refugees from the scene of hostilities,
who herded together, idle and poverty-stricken. Jews in better
the masses were left destitute.
circumstances, representing largely the commercial class,

suffered particularly from army requisitions for supplies, for
which receipts were not always given, and from the extermina
tion or emigration of the Mohammedan population, among
whom their capital was invested, and with whom they had been
in intimate business relations.
The situation was made still
harder when the allies enforced upon Jews the closing of shops
on non-Jewish holidays, and changed the market-day from
to
Monday
thereby
Saturday,
excluding
Jews
from
par
ticipation.
The wars meant suffering also in the territory beyond the
scene of active military operations. In Bulgaria, out of a total
Jewish population of 45,000, more than 4200 served in the
army during the first war alone. The percentage of all adult
males
that
went
to
the
war
was
very
great.
Moreover,
the
majority were married men. As a result, one-fifth of the Jew

ish population was left in want. In Servia, more than 800
soldiers were furnished by a Jewish population of about 7000.
The proportion was thus even greater than in Bulgaria.

In
in
Servia,
Greece, where the Jewish population is smaller than
more than 400 Jews served in the war. With the assistance
rendered to all citizens alike by the government, the Servian

and Greek Jews were fortunately able to care for those rendered
The Bulgarian
destitute by the absence of breadwinners.
found
its
less
soon
resources
exhausted,
Jewry,
prosperous,
and was obliged to appeal
Europe
and
to the generosity of the Jews in
America.
THE
BALKAN
WARS
AND
THE
JEWS
!9!
The greatest distress prevailed in Constantinople.

After the
battles of Kirk-Kilisse, Luli Burgas, and Tchaldaia, refugees
from Adrianople, Burgas, Rodosto, Silivria, Kirk-Kilisse,
Tchorlu, and other towns fled to the Turkish capital. Between
three and four thousand persons, men, women, and children,
sought safety there, while the war lasted. Shelter, food, cloth
ing, and fuel had to be provided. They were housed in vacant
Enforced idleness and the

dwellings and factory buildings.
danger of disease in a cholera-stricken city added to the horror
of the situation.
Along the Sea of Marmora, the misfortunes

to communities like Gallipoli, Tchorlu, and
of war came
Bodosto, which had not yet recovered from the' serious earth
quake in August. Everywhere the war left behind a legacy of
disabled soldiers, widows, and orphans.
As there are few Jews in Montenegro and in the new
principality
of
Albania,
attention
may
be
concentrated
on
Servia, Greece, and Bulgaria.

Servian activities were confined to comparatively few towns
inhabited largely by Jews. Of thefcethe most important were
Uskub and Monastir in the war against Turkey, and Itchip and
Strumitza in the conflict with Bulgaria. The Greeks, in the war
against Turkey, occupied Salonica, for centuries the centre of
the Spanish-speaking Jewry and relatively the most Jewish city
in the world. Janina, Kalaferia, Kastoria, and Prevesa were
also taken from the Turks. In the second war they took a num
ber of towns which the Bulgarians had wrested from the Turks,
among which Kavala, Serres, and Drama have considerable
Jewish communities.
Bulgarian operations covered a territory

that for the most part was fought over twice. Adrianople, the
chief city in the Bulgarian area, underwent siege for four
months, and was re-occupied by the Turkish troops during the
13
192
AMERICAN
JEWISH
YEAR
BOOK
second
war.
Luli Burgas,
Kavala,
Serres, Kirk-Kilisse,
Drama, Itehip, and Strumitza, taken from the Turks in the
first war, were for the most part re-occupied by Bulgaria's
enemies in the second conflict.
Below are given the details of the war, and its effects on
various communities in the Balkans.
Servian
Operations.The
in Monastir
troops
entry of Servian
Jewish
(Nov.
19) was
looting.
accompanied
by much
Similarly
The
in the villages
near Monastir
were robbed
and burned.
shops
war here, as in Uskub
the cessation
of in
Oct. 26), meant
(taken
in the latter city, Jews
dustrial
To add to the suffering
activity.
from the neighboring
and from Kumanovo,
villages
Bojanovtsche,
Bazar
and Novi
sought
Mitrovitza,
Prishtina,
refuge
here, many
without
means
of support.
The Jews suffered
also from Turkish
were
for supplies,
for which
in many cases
no receipts
requisition
given.
most
Bulgarian
Pasha
Operations.At
Mustapha
18)
(Oct.
of the
of the Jewish
houses
More than one-half
were destroyed.
fled to Adrianople.
A series
of fires in May helped
population
further
to ruin the Jewish
The hostility
of the rest
community.
of the population,
held in check
not sufficiently
by the Bulgarian
added
of the wars.
to the hardships
authorities,
From
the entire Jewish
community
Itchip
(Oct. 27) practically
before the arrival
of the Bulgarians.
fled to Salonica
Only
(710)
behind.
Two of the old men
six old men and two youths remained
and demolished.
were killed.
All the Jewish
homes were plundered
and burned,
The synagogues
were desecrated
and likewise
twenty
the
In the conflict
between
four Jewish
houses
and six stores.
allies
the city was taken by the Servians.
At Strumitza,
two Jews were murdered,
nearly all the stores and
at
valued
the Jews
lost
houses
were
and
property
plundered,
To add to its
was ruined.
The entire Jewish
community
$100,000.
to Saturday,
from Monday
was
the market-day
changed
plight,
This town, too, was
the Jews from business.
excluding
practically
Doiran
the allies.
in the war between
occupied
by the Servians
of plunder.
likewise
the scene
of Kavala
by the robbery
The occupation
15) was attended
(Nov.
off by
were carried
of the most prominent
Seven
of many Jews.
and released
bandits
only after they had paid a ransom
Bulgarian
to
of Egypt
Assistance
was rendered
of $43,000.
by the Khedive
of the
As a result
Jews as well as to the rest of the population.
were left in want, and some
1000 of the community
war, nearly
was
THE
BALKAN
WARS
AND
THE
JEWS
193
families
in May
to
and
forty
emigrated
Smyrna,
Salonica,
Dardanelles.
At Serres
the Jews
were
saved
from excesses
(Nov.
20),
by
their coreligionists
in the Bulgarian
In the second
con
army.
flict (June)
four-fifths of the city was burned,
Jewish
117
including
and schools.
The entire community
was ruined.
houses,
synagogues,
The
fell to the lot of Adrianople.
From
greatest
suffering
October
26 to March
26 the city underwent
a siege.
were
Twenty
the bombardment.
killed
Five
hundred
were re
families
during
duced
to poverty
Not only the poor, but those
mod
by the war.
Three
well-to-do
were ruined.
thousand
Jews were obliged
erately
to seek refuge
in the schools,
and 9200 persons
were in a helpless
while
lasted.
With
the co-operation
situation
the siege
of the
Turkish
the Union
des Associations
Isralites
(see
authorities,
In
sent monetary
relief by wireless
the siege.
pp. 194-195)
during
of the fall of the city a depot of food supplies,
anticipation
clothing,
and
was established
and a physician
fuel, and medicine
outside,
two nurses
held
in readiness.
The
assistance
the
and
prompt
efforts of the representatives
of the Brussels
committee
served
also to save the Jews from threatened
outrages.
In Drama
and other places,
(Oct. 28), Kavala,
Bulgarian
occupa
tion enforced
the closing
of Jewish
on Christian
a
shops
holidays,
that wrought
serious
change
injury to Jewish tradesmen.
of Salonica
Greek
Operations.The
(Nov.
taking
9) was accom
and in a few cases even murder.
The
extortion,
by plunder,
panied
of all business
to the
cessation
brought
suffering
activity
naturally
Five
two hundred
Jewish
thousand
community.
persons
large
were made destitute
To add to the suffering,
Salonica
by the war.
a centre
in the
became
for refugees
from Itchip
and other towns
Assistance
had to be rendered
to Salonica
to
path of the armies.
the extent of $20,000.
Kastoria
was plundered,
and a loss inflicted upon the Jewish com
to $100,000.
Similar
was
visited
amounting
depredation
munity
villages.
upon the Jews in neighboring
underwent
4 to March
Janina
6. As in the
siege from November
of Adrianople,
made
case
were
des
arrangements
by the Union
Isralites
for the relief of the inhabitants
Associations
in advance
of the fall of the city.
assistance
was
made
Prompt
possible
the co-operation
of the Greek authorities.
through
In the territory
the market-day
was
occupied
by the Greeks,
from Monday
to Saturday,
to the great injury
transferred
of the
from participation.
it excluded
Jews, whom
The committee
in audience
with King George of Greece
requested
observances
be kept in mind in framing
that Jewish religious
busi
ness regulations,
as the failure
to do so in transferring
the market
to Saturday
had worked
The
great
day from Monday
hardship.
194
AMERICAN
JEWISH
YEAR
BOOK
of
consideration
relief.
The
also
king promised
king
promised
the request
of the war arrangements
be made
that in the settlement
made on Jews for supplies
to honor the receipts
for the requisitions
authorities.
by the Turkish
In the war
the Balkan
Greek
occupied
among
allies,
troops
and other towns,
Kavala
Serres
and Xanti
(2500),
(200),
(1800),
in a territory
four
with a Jewish
between
population
numbering
and five thousand.
families
Turkey.From
Tchorlu
Nov. 7) eighty Jewish
(taken
The Bulgarian
confiscated
the
fled to Constantinople.
authorities
at
valued
In one instance,
merchandise
of fugitives.
property
and in another
to the amount
of $20,000.
was taken,
$32,000
goods
Rodosto
Nov. 12) sixty families
From
sought
safety at
(occupied
The Jews of Silivria
who
suffered
from bandits,
Constantinople.
and destroyed
The greatest
suffer
plundered
many Jewish
shops.
the refugees
in Constantinople.
concentrated
ing was among
Belief
Work
and
the
Balkan
War
The distress entailed by the war brought an urgent appeal

to the Jewry of the world on November 14, signed by the
Chief Rabbi of Turkey, the President of the Regional Com
mittee of the Alliance Isralite Universelle, the representative

of the Hilfsverein, and the President of the Orient Grand
Lodge of the B'nai B'ritb. On December 16, there was organ
ized at Brussels the Union des Associations
Isralites for een
The societies associ

tralizing relief activity in the Balkans.
ated were the Alliance Isralite Universelle, the Israelitisclie
Allianz of Vienna, the Anglo-Jewish Association, the Board of
Deputies of England, the American Jewish Committee, the
German Lodges of the Independent Order B'nai B'rith, the
Hilfsverein der Deutschen Juden, the Comit fiir die Not
leidenden Ost-europaischen Juden of Frankfort-on-Main, Ger
Dr. Franz
many, and the Jewish Colonization Association.
Philippson, vice-president of the Jewish Colonization
tion, was elected chairman.
Associa
THE
BALKAN
WARS
AND
THE
JEWS
!95
Under the auspices of the associated organizations, a com

mittee consisting of Paul Nathan, of Berlin, Elkan 3ST.Adler,
of London, and Bernard Kahn, of Berlin, went to the Balkans.
During January and February they visited the chief cities and
towns affected by the war, and also Servia and Bulgaria.
Under their direction, central committees were organized in

Constantinople, Sofia, Salonica, and Belgrade, to carry on the
work of relief and rehabilitation.
Local committees were also
formed in the various cities and,towns, like Uskub, Monastir,
Kavala, Serres, Adrianople, Gallipoli, etc.
The representatives of the Brussels committee interviewed
the King and Queen of Bulgaria, the King of Greece, the
Governor-General of 'Macedonia, and secured the co-operation
and active assistance of the Greek, Servian, Bulgarian, and
Turkish authorities for the relief work.
Approximately $175,000 was contributed by the Jews in

Of this amount $58,000 came from the
Europe and America.
United States.
The greatest distress was in Constantinople.
Here $65,000 had to be expended for relief and the repatria

tion of the refugees. Though not the scene of conflict in the
first war, Bulgaria required assistance to the extent of $25,000.
Even
more
was
needed
to
meet
the
distress
in
Adrianople
during and after the siege. Salonica, Janina, and Serres to

In Itchip and
gether required the expenditure of $25,000.
other places occupied by the Bulgarians $10,000 was spent.
In Monastir, Uskub, and other places taken by Servia, a little

less than $2000 was used.
These amounts were expended
before the war broke out among the allies. The distress follow
ing the second conflict exhausted the funds of the Brussels
committee, and made necessary a further appeal to the gener
oeity of the Jewry.
AMERICAN
19e
19C
Civil
JEWISH
Rights
YEAR
op
the
BOOK
Jews
In connection with the Balkan
Wars, the Jewry, mindful

in Roumania, has felt most deeply concerned
about the civil rights of the Jews transferred from Turkey to
of conditions
It should be observed that in

Servia, Greece, and Bulgaria,
these three countries civil and religious freedom and equality
are secured by constitutional provisions. In the course of the
war, King George of Greece assured the representatives of the

associated Jewish organizations (Union des Association Isra
lites) that he had always championed the rights of the Jews in
his country, and that full rights of citizenship would as a matter
of course
be
accorded
to
the
Jews
in
the
conquered
territory.
Czar Ferdinand
of Bulgaria stated to the representatives of

the Union, whom he received in audience, that the Jews in
his dominion could count upon his good-will, that they had
hitherto enjoyed all rights of citizenship, and that they would
so continue. The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geshow, prom
ised them that, in the event territory was ceded to Roumania,
Bulgaria would stipulate that the full civil rights of the Jews
of the ceded territory would be respected by Roumania.
In a
communication
to the English Foreign Office, Roumania, too,

announced that the Jews in the annexed territory would con
tinue to enjoy all rights which they had had as citizens of
Bulgaria.
During the negotiations leading to the Treaty of London,

efforts were made to have a clause inserted in the treaty to
safeguard the complete civil and religious liberty and equality
of the Jews. The rivalries of the Balkan allies, it would seem,
gave little opportunity for the consideration of Jewish rights

in framing the Treaty of London.
While the Treaty of Bucha
THE
BALKAN
WARS
AND
THE
JEWS
!97
rest was being negotiated, the United States Government ex

pressed the wish that a provision be included that should
assure to all inhabitants, without distinction of race or creed,
the full enjoyment of civil and religious liberty. Majoresco,
Premier of Eoumania
and President of the' Peace Conference,

stated that such liberty was the law in every country participt
ing in the Conference, and under the provisions of international
law citizens of ceded territory ipso facto become citizens of the

The heads of the various
country to which they are annexed.
delegations agreed that a special clause in the treaty would be
superfluous.
The
Results
of
the
War
The extension of the boundaries of Servia, Greece, and Bui

garia necessarily involves important changes for the Balkan
Jewish
communities.
In
all,
they
had
before
the
war
a Jewish
population of 60,000 ; to-day their rule extends over 180,000.

For the first time in history, Greece has in its domains a very
large Jewish community, including Salonica.
Similarly for
the first time Servian territory embraces a considerable Jewish
The number of Jews in Bulgaria is also very
materially increased. As these states were originally provinces
of Turkey, the Jews within their former limits are of the same
type as those in the newly-conquered territory. They are alike
population.
Spanish-speaking Jews chiefly, the descendants of those exiled

from Spain and Portugal in 1492. The extent of the Jewish
community in each state before the wars, the position of the
Jews, and the population in each as constituted after the wars,
may be noted briefly.
Servia, before the war, the Jews numbered

Over
in a population of about 2,900,000.
7000
approximately
Servia.In
AMERICAN
198
YEAR
JEWISH
BOOK
four-fifths of the total number (5600) were in Belgrade, the

Servian capital, where they form six per cent of the entire
In the main, the Jews of Servia are prosperous.
population.
are
active
as merchants and bankers, they engage in the
They
export and import trade, deal in grain and other agricultural
With Monastir,
produce, and are shopkeepers and mechanics.
Uskub, Itchip, and other towns assigned to Servia, it will have

a Jewish population of about 17,000.
Jewish population of Bulgaria, before the
Bulgaria.The
war, was 45,000 out of a total of 4,035,575, according to the
census of 1905.
Sofia (17,000),
and
Philippopolis
(6000),
Rustchuk (4000) are the leading Jewish centres. In them are
found sixty per cent of the total number of Jews. As else
where, the Jews live mainly in the cities, and they consti
tute about eight per cent of the urban population.
Only two
per
cent
are
found
in the
country.
Jewish employments may be seen from the occupations given

by the recruits for the war. Out of 1421 Jewish soldiers from
Sofia,
44
were
men,
professional
254
merchants
and
tradesmen
including bankers, 326 petty tradesmen and employees in com

mercial establishments, 374 skilled mechanics or craftsmen,
371 unskilled laborers.
The economic position of the Jews is

not
as in Servia or in Greece. This is
so
favorable
apparently
indicated by the large number of unskilled laborers and the
inability of the community to meet the distress due to the war
with its own resources.
With the territory annexed as a result of the war, the Jewish
The
population under Bulgarian rule will be about 75,000.
most important addition is Adrianople, with 19,000 Jews in a
total population of 80,000/
Other towns in the conquered
1
This
city is, however,
still
occupied
by the Turks.
THE
BALKAN
WARS
AND
THE
JEWS
!99
territory in which the Jewish population is considerable are

Demotica (900), Kirk-Kilisse
(1200),
(1000),
Gumuldjina
Strumitza (650), and Mustapha Pasha (500).
Greece.In
Greece, the Jews numbered about 6830 among
a total of 2,630,000 inhabitants.
They are found in a few
cities and towns, chiefly in the northern part of Greece. The
leading communities are Corfu with 2800 Jews (in a total
population of 19,000), Larissa (1250), Yolo (1000), Trikala
On the whole, the Jews in Greece
(600), and Athens (500).
are
prosperous.
They
are
bankers,
wholesale
and
retail
mer
Volo
chants, importers and exporters, and skilled mechanics.
and Trikala have few who are poor. Larissa is less prosperous.
In Corfu,
Legally the Jews enjoy all rights of citizenship.
there are Jews in the City Council and Jewish notaries. Yolo
had at one time a Jewish councilman.
In Athens, a Jewish
judge sits in the highest court, and there is a Jewish pro
fessor at the University.
There are Jewish officials in the
postal and telegraph service, and Jews are employed in the rail
roads and in the hospitals. The head of the accounting depart
ment and the assistant manager of the Thessalian Railroad
are
Jews.
On
the
other
hand,
of anti-Jewish fanaticism
there
has
been
repeated
evidence
among the Greeks even in recent
times.
and its 70,000 Jews, Janina (3000), Serres
(1800), Kavala (2500), Kalaferia (800), and the other towns
conquered by Greece, there are in Greek territory, as constitu
With Salonica
ted after the wars, about 85,000 Jews.
in Europe.In
what remains of Turkey in Europe,
The
Jews
are
left.
most important centres of Jewish
75,000
are
population
Constantinople with 65,000, Gallipoli (2560),
Silivria (2000), Rodosto (1600), and Tchorlu (1300).
Turkey
AMERICAN
200
YEAR
JEWISH
BOOK
For purpose of reference there is printed below a table giv

ing the leading Jewish communities in Servia, Greece, Bui
garia, and Turkey in Europe.
JEWISH
IMPORTANT
IN
COMMUNITIES
2
SERVIA
THE
Territory:
...
Belgrade
New
92,000
5,600
Pirot
30,000
350
60,000
60,000
6,000
2,000
Itchip
Prishtina
25,000
10,000
750
450
Territory:
Monastir
....
UskubUskub
BULGARIA
2
Population
Total
Jewish
Population
Jewish
Total
Original
Territory:
Sofia
Philippopolis
Rustchuk
Varna
.....
...
Yamboli
..
Dubnitza
..
Kustendil
WiddlnWiddln
82,621
45,707
33,632
37,417
15,741
11,230
12,334
16,387
17,000
6,000
4,000
1,615
1,600
1,500
1,500
1,225
80,000
17,000
..
16,000
GumuldjinaGumuldjina
Demotika
...
16,000
19,000
1,200
970
900
New
Population
Total
Jewish
Population
Jewish
Total
Original
BALKANS
Schumla
SamcoS
Bourgas
Sliven
Stara
Zagora
Haskovo
Karnabat
Plevna
...
22,275
10,205
12,046
25,011
20,788
15,015
6,580
21,145
1,200
1,000
900
684
600
550
550
500
15,000
9,000
8,000
650
530
425
Territory:
Adrianople
Kirk-Kilisse
..
Strumitza
Pasha
Mustapha
Lull
Burgas....
1 The
in the following
table rests on infor
of towns
assignment
the final adjustment
available
at present;
may be different.
mation
250; Lesko
Minor Communities:
TerritoryShabatz,
Original
80;
200.
New
TerritoryFerisovitch,
Passarowitz,
vatz,
200;
220.
50; Novi Bazar,
50; Mitrovitza,
Kumanovo,
275 Do
'Minor
Communities:
TerritoryBerkowatz,
Original
400;
Nicopolis,
Lom,
Kazanlik,
424;
100;
Ferdinand,
175;
britch,
140;
Novi Zagora,
Sistova,
200;
440;
Rasgrad,
80; Provadia,
170;
80.
Tatar
Vratza,
275;
150;
Tchirpan,
Bazardjik,
Stanimaka,
150;
260; Kurdjali,
Djumaja,
New TerritoryDedeagatch,
250; Gornaja
195;
350; Sufli, 70; Usun Kopru,
70; Nevrokop,
110; Kuleli
Burgas,
50.
Xanthi,
200;
Ziljahova,
THE
BALKAN
WARS
AND
GREECE
THE
JEWS
Population
Total
Jewish
Population
Jewish
Total
Original
Territory:
Corfu
Larissa
Volo
New
Trikala
Athens
18,978
18,041
23,563
2,800
1,250
1,000
140,000
30,000
30,000
310,000
40,000
70,000
3,000
2,500
2,000
1,800
Kalaferia
Kastoria
Drama
Prevesa
TURKEY
IN EUROPE
Population
Total
Jewish
600
500
15,000
15,000
8,000
7,000
800
700
650
450
Population
Total
Jewish
Silivria
Rodosto
Tchorlu
Constants
noplenople
....
GallipoliGallipoli
1,200,000
13,000
Poverty
what
was
op
until
65,000
2,560
the
Jewish
recently
approximately 200,000 Jews.

more
17,809
167,479
Territory:
SalonicaSalonica
Janina
Kavala
Crete
Serres
In
201
poverty-stricken
and
5,000
40,000
18,000
2,000
1,600
1,300
Population
European
there
Turkey,
are
The great majority of them are
more
wretched
than
the
Jews
in
Eastern Europe generally. The Jewish quarters in the cities,

the hundreds of dwellings in which they were, left an impres
sion of indescribable poverty on the visiting relief committee
The wretched
Jewish organizations.
the associated
A small frame shack,
hovels can scarcely be called dwellings.
a few yards square, poorly nailed together, constitutes the home
of one and often of more than one family.
of
These hovels are bare of furniture or household utensils.
old iron pot serves as both stove and kitchen.

4Minor
Communities:
150.
New
Zante,
280;
65.
Langaza,
Original
TerritoryArta,
100;
TerritoryDoiran,
An
The smoke from

Chalcis,
250;
200;
Katerina,
AMERICAN
202
YEAR
JEWISH
BOOK
mingles with the other noisome smells in the

The floor is at the same time the bed. A small pillow,
Meals
filled with straw or hay for the head, is the bedding.
the charcoal
house.
are
served
on the
floor.
In
some
houses
a board
is set on
a few
logs, and around this table, six to eight inches high, the inmates
squat at meals. One other bit of equipment is seldom wanting
in the homes, an old cloth fastened to the ceiling in hammock
fashion, which serves as a cradle for one or two children. Ropes
attached to the rafters hold the scanty articles of clothing

and the still scantier cooking utensils and dishes. There are
thousands of such dwellings.

He lacks the
The Balkan Jew is a man without needs.
animates
even the
which
and
the
intense
ambition
energy
his lot
The
to
better
the
Eastern
Jews.
of
striving
poorest
is not so powerful. For this reason, emigration is compara
Only Monastir, Kastoria, and several other cities
tively slight.
Balkans
of the Western
are
affected
by any
extensive
movement
of emigration.
The middle class lives more in accord with European style,
but it too has few wants. There are Jews of wealth only in a
few of the large cities. Most striking is the absence of what
"
intelligenzia," a professional class. There
may be called an
are very few attorneys, physicians, and men in the liberal pro
fessions generally, in comparison with the number and propor
tion among Jews in other lands. This is true also of Salonica
and Constantinople, as well as Adrianople and Monastir.
Similarly there are few skilled workers in any trade.
other
hand
the
unskilled
are
very
numerous
in the
On the
large
cities,
and particularly in Salonica.

In spite of the poverty and misery in which the mass of
Balkan
Jews
live,
they
have
seldom
sought
assistance
from
their
THE
BALKAN
WARS
AND
THE
JEWS
203
more fortunate brothers in Europe.

Having few needs, they
are content with a hand-to-mouth existence.
Only in great
of
the
the
War
like
Russo-Turkish
1878,
disasters,
earthquake
last year, and great conflagrations, have they made appeals to
the charity of the European Jewry.
The Jews in general are merchants and tradesmen; the
poorer among them follow the street trades, deal in second
hand clothing, or own little shops or stands.
are
The
mechanics.
wealthier
were
army
Few of the Jews
contractors
under
the Turkish rgime, or catered to the Turkish officers. The

poorer plied their trade with the soldiers and peasants, peddled
in the villages, stood in the markets, or sold kniekknacks in
the streets.
In this way they managed to eke out an existence.
in the leading
cities
of the Balkans
illustrate
The occupations
the Jewish
conditions
economic
among
population.
are engaged
in the liberal
430 persons
In Salonica,
professions,
40 druggists,
30 attorneys,
20 physicians,
them 300 teachers,
among
There
10 journalists,
5 engineers.
are 1105 merchants
25 dentists,
on business
on a
bankers)
carrying
(including
independently
1200 owners
of shops and stands;
more or less considerable
scale;
in various
8000 employees
in commercial
2000 mechanics
trades;
male
8000
and
female
commissionaires,
etc.;
establishments,
in tobacco
factories
and in the tobacco
workers
industry
generally;
of cabs and other vehicles;
drivers
600 porters
500500
(hamals)
; 400
on boats
and docks;
150 employees
in the customs
ser
employees
in coffee houses,
2000 employees
and in the street
vice;
restaurants,
trades.
In Adrianople,
Jewish
are as follows:
12 bankers;
employments
100
20 wholesale
contractors;
army
army
subcontractors;
30 money changers
25 clothiers;
120 dealers
merchants;
(sarafs);
of all kinds;
in manufactured
articles
120 dealers
in hardware;
30
dealers
in groceries
wholesale
and drugs;
50 retail
in gro
dealers
and drugs;
60 gro'cers;
ceries
50 colporteurs;
20 barbers;
40 shoe
120 tailors;
20 tinners;
20 cabinet
60 blacksmiths;
makers;
makers;
30 wheelwrights;
10 moulders;
30 dealers
in glass and crockery;
50
in grain;
50 saloonists
dealers
and distillers;
25 cap (fez)
dealers;
30 employees
25 laundrymen;
in cheese
10 confectioners;
factories;
10
200
porters;
500
peddlers;
150
master
masons
and
helpers;
150
AMERICAN
204204
JEWISH
YEAR
BOOK
60 vegetable
30 old clothes
40 brokers;
butchers;
dealers;
men;
120 petty tradesmen;
500 employees
in commercial
establishments;
200 dependents;
30 "batlanim";
40 rabbis;
10 apothecaries;
10
and dentists;
100 manual
laborers
in various
trades.
physicians
In Bulgaria,
the occupations
of the 1421 recruits
from Sofia are
indicative
of the employments
in the Jewish
population
generally.
were
There
7 attorneys,
6 physicians;
4 dentists;
4 teachers;
3
1 journalist;
8 druggists;
12 students;
9
1 captain;
officials;
1 factory proprietor;
169 merchants;
21 petty tradesmen;
bankers;
12 dealers
in grain;
21 in fruit; 6 in eggs;
5 in leather;
3 in iron;
2 in brushes;
1 wine
2 collectors;
1 clothier;
1 coal
merchant;
35 agents;
2 commissionaires;
192 clerical
and other em
dealer;
in stores;
49 peddlers;
29 restaurant
6 col
ployees
keepers;
5 newspaper
3 old clothes
3 inn keepers;
porteurs;
sellers;
men;
57 shoemakers;
53 tailors;
47
45 tinsmiths;
31 cabinet
makers;
2 painters;
29 glaziers;
26 butchers;
23 printers;
whitewasherswhitewashers;
8 upholsterers;
12 barbers;
6 bakers;
6 harness
6 plumbers;
5 bookbinders;
5 technologists;
2 leather
1
makers;
workers;
1 boot-black;
1 musician;
2 photographers;
2 cooks;
2
shohet;
medical
1 waiter;
1 interpreter;
152 unskilled
assistants;
laborers;
156 in domestic
35 porters
and
28 drivers.
service;
hamals;
The remaining
few were without
occupations.
Outlook
for
the
Jews
in
the
Balkans
Will the Jews he able to go on living in this way under the

new conditions, as Bulgarian, Servian, and Greek citizens?
Conditions have been so radically transformed as to compel the
Jews to establish themselves on a new basis. The reprsenta
tives of the Brussels
committee have been assured
in audi
ences with Czar Ferdinand
of Bulgaria, and King George of

Greece, and many ministers, that the Jews need have no fear
of the new rgime ; their legal and political status will be safe
guarded, and they will enjoy full rights of citizenship.
Commercial and industrial conditions will be changed basic
ally.
face
The Jewish merchant and tradesman will find himself
to face
with
new
demands
and
a new
class
of consumers.
The Turkish Government, the Turkish official, and the Turkish
THE
BALKAN
WARS
AND
THE
JEWS
205
army have disappeared.

Many of the Turks and Albanians
have been exterminated, many have abandoned the country.
Thousands of dollars owed by them to Jews can never be col
lected.
What is more, it will henceforth be impossible to carry

on business in the old-fashioned way.
Entire callings followed by numerous Jews will disappear ; to
cite only one example, the money-changer's trade. Many Jews

in the Balkans were occupied as money-changers, the so-called
sarafs.
The trade was based on the paucity of small coins in

Every exchange of coins or bills of large denomi
for smaller denominations afforded some profit to
circulation.
nation
There will henceforth be no lack of money

in small denominations, and therefore there will be no further
need for the trade of the money-changer.
Petty trade with
the soldiers will shrink in importance, and the trade with the
the money-changer.
peasantry
altogether.
from
will
decline;
many
other
pursuits
will
disappear
Moreover, Jewish tradesmen will face competition
Bulgarians,
Servians,
and
Greeks
more
intense
than
ever
before.
The outlook for the Jews in the Balkans is thus very gloomy.
What must be done
They will be confronted with a new world.

to help them ?
Loan
Banks
The representatives of the Union were convinced that one

thing absolutely necessary is the establishment of loan banks to
make advances to the Balkan
Jews and tide them over until
they can adjust themselves to the new situation. A beginning

has been made in Adrianople, Salonica, Monastir, and Con
stantinople, but the available funds are far from adequate.
JEWISH
AMERICAN
206
Provision
for
Widows,
YEAR
Orphans,
BOOK
and
Cripples
Next, provision must be made for the direct victims of the

war. The war leaves a legacy of helpless, disabled soldiers,
of widows, and of orphans. Among the Bulgarians alone four
hundred Jews died in the first war.
More than half of those
called to arms were married. A large number of widows and

orphans will be dependent for a long time. Among the Turkish
Jews no small number of the war's victims leave behind widows
and orphans.
Schools
More
thap
ever
and
it will
Other
be necessary
Institutions
to establish
and
extend
system of schools which will afford an education for Jewish

children and give them a preparation that will make for eco
nomic independence.
In the comparative absence of skilled
workmen in the western part of the Balkans, the need is par

For years to come the Balkan
ticularly for trade schools.
Jewry will require moral support and financial help in main
taining charitable organizations.
It is most essential that the work of reconstruction be under
taken for the 200,000 Jews in the Balkans, to make them self
supporting and economically independent and obviate a perma
nent problem of poor relief in the Balkans similar to that

If the work
among the Jews in Russia, Galicia, and Roumania.
of rehabilitation is successful, and the Jews in the Balkans are
enabled to resume their former pursuits or adopt new occu

pations, a development may be hoped for which will make them
independent
of
outside
desired by all Jews.
charityan
outcome
most
sincerely

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American Jewish Committee

THE BALKAN WARS AND THE JEWS

Wars form the most significant event affecting

Servia, Greece, and Bulgaria against Turkey resulted in the

what had been Turkey in Europe.

and inflicting untold misery on the unfortunate inhabitants in

who lived under Turkish

changes for the Jews in the conquered terri

The allies, unable to agree

upon the division

In the territory assigned to Servia there are about

through all the horrors of war. Plundering, burning of houses

In centres of population like

circumstances, representing largely the commercial class,

majority were married men. As a result, one-fifth of the Jew

The proportion was thus even greater than in Bulgaria.

rendered to all citizens alike by the government, the Servian

to the generosity of the Jews in

The greatest distress prevailed in Constantinople.

Enforced idleness and the

Along the Sea of Marmora, the misfortunes

Servia, Greece, and Bulgaria.

Bulgarian operations covered a territory

The distress entailed by the war brought an urgent appeal

mittee of the Alliance Isralite Universelle, the representative

Isralites for een

The societies associ

Under the auspices of the associated organizations, a com

Under their direction, central committees were organized in

Approximately $175,000 was contributed by the Jews in

Here $65,000 had to be expended for relief and the repatria

during and after the siege. Salonica, Janina, and Serres to

In Monastir, Uskub, and other places taken by Servia, a little

In connection with the Balkan

Wars, the Jewry, mindful

It should be observed that in

war, King George of Greece assured the representatives of the

of Bulgaria stated to the representatives of

to the English Foreign Office, Roumania, too,

During the negotiations leading to the Treaty of London,

gave little opportunity for the consideration of Jewish rights

rest was being negotiated, the United States Government ex

and President of the' Peace Conference,

law citizens of ceded territory ipso facto become citizens of the

The extension of the boundaries of Servia, Greece, and Bui

population of 60,000 ; to-day their rule extends over 180,000.

Spanish-speaking Jews chiefly, the descendants of those exiled

Servia, before the war, the Jews numbered

four-fifths of the total number (5600) were in Belgrade, the

Uskub, Itchip, and other towns assigned to Servia, it will have

Jewish employments may be seen from the occupations given

including bankers, 326 petty tradesmen and employees in com

The economic position of the Jews is

city is, however,

territory in which the Jewish population is considerable are

among the Greeks even in recent

ted after the wars, about 85,000 Jews.

For purpose of reference there is printed below a table giv

approximately 200,000 Jews.

The great majority of them are

Eastern Europe generally. The Jewish quarters in the cities,

These hovels are bare of furniture or household utensils.

old iron pot serves as both stove and kitchen.