Solomon Hirschell (12 February 1762 – 31 October 1842) was a British rabbi who served as the

chief rabbi of the United Kingdom The following list of chief rabbis of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth gives information regarding the Chief Rabbi of the United Synagogue, which is represented through the mainstream majority Orthodox Judaism, Orthodox community ...

from 1802 to 1842. He is best known for his unsuccessful attempt to stop the spread of

Reform Judaism Reform Judaism, also known as Liberal Judaism or Progressive Judaism, is a major Jewish religious movements, Jewish denomination that emphasizes the evolving nature of Judaism, the superiority of its Jewish ethics, ethical aspects to its ceremo ...

in Britain by excommunicating its leaders. Hirschell's father was a

Polish Jew The history of the Jews in Poland dates back at least 1,000 years. For centuries, Poland was home to the largest and most significant Jews, Jewish community in the world. Poland was a principal center of Jewish culture, because of the long pe ...

from Galicia,

Hirschel Levin Rabbi Hirschel Ben Arye Löb Levin (also known as Hart Lyon and Hirshel Löbel; 1721 – 26 August 1800) was Chief Rabbi of Great Britain and of Berlin, and Rabbi of Halberstadt and Mannheim, known as a scholarly Talmudist. Life He was born i ...

, Chief Rabbi of London and Berlin and a friend of

Moses Mendelssohn Moses Mendelssohn (6 September 1729 – 4 January 1786) was a German-Jewish philosopher and theologian. His writings and ideas on Jews and the Jewish religion and identity were a central element in the development of the ''Haskalah'', or 'J ...

. His older brother was the Talmudist

Saul Berlin Saul Berlin (also Saul Hirschel after his father; 1740 at Glogau – November 16, 1794 in London) was a German people, German Jewish scholar who published a number of works in opposition to rabbinic Judaism. Early life He received his general ...

. He died on 31 October 1842 (27th of Cheshvan 5603), and was buried in the Brady Street Cemetery near

Whitechapel Whitechapel () is an area in London, England, and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in east London and part of the East End of London, East End. It is the location of Tower Hamlets Town Hall and therefore the borough tow ...

in East End of London.

References

External links

"Solomon Hirschel – High Priest of the Jews"
(Susser archive) ttp://www.oztorah.com/2009/02/the-british-chief-rabbinate/ The British Chief Rabbinate; 1762 births 1842 deaths English people of Polish-Jewish descent Chief rabbis of the United Kingdom English Orthodox rabbis 19th-century English rabbis Rabbis from London Date of birth unknown English people of German-Jewish descent Burials at Brady Street Cemetery 18th-century English rabbis {{UK-rabbi-stub