Berek Joselewicz (17 September 1764 – 15 May 1809) was a Polish

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

colonel of the

Polish Army The Land Forces () are the land forces of the Polish Armed Forces. They currently contain some 62,000 active personnel and form many components of the European Union and NATO deployments around the world. Poland's recorded military history stret ...

during the

Kościuszko Uprising The Kościuszko Uprising, also known as the Polish Uprising of 1794 and the Second Polish War, was an uprising against the Russian Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia led by Tadeusz Kościuszko in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Pr ...

. Joselewicz commanded the first Jewish military formation in modern history excluding Prince Potemkin's Israelovsky.M. Kasprzyk (2007)
Berek Joselewicz : The Partitions of Poland: 1772 - 1795.

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

. He was also a merchant and financial agent of the Polish

magnate The magnate term, from the late Latin ''magnas'', a great man, itself from Latin ''magnus'', "great", means a man from the higher nobility, a man who belongs to the high office-holders, or a man in a high social position, by birth, wealth or ot ...

Prince Massalski.

Early life

Dow Baer (Berek) Joselewicz was born in

Kretinga Kretinga (; german: Crottingen) is a City in Klaipėda County, Lithuania. It is the capital of the Kretinga district municipality. It is located east of the popular Baltic Sea resort town of Palanga, and about north of Lithuania's 3rd largest c ...

, in the

Duchy of Samogitia The Duchy of Samogitia ( lt, Žemaičių seniūnija, sgs, Žemaitėjės seniūnėjė, pl, Księstwo żmudzkie)Grzegorz Błaszczyk, ''Żmudź w XVII i XVIII wieku: zaludnienie i struktura społeczna'', Uniwersytet im. Adama Mickiewicza w Pozn ...

of the

Grand Duchy of Lithuania The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state that existed from the 13th century to 1795, when the territory was partitioned among the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Habsburg Empire of Austria. The state was founded by Li ...

, a member country of the

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and, after 1791, as the Commonwealth of Poland, was a bi-confederal state, sometimes called a federation, of Crown of the Kingdom of ...

. He worked as a financial agent for a local Lithuanian

, the Lord of Kretinga and

Bishop of Vilnius Bishops of Vilnius (Vilna, Wilna, Wilno) diocese from 1388 and archdiocese (archdiocese of Vilnius) from 1925:

Prince Massalski. Joselewicz often travelled abroad in pursuit of various tasks, during which he learned to speak French. He spent some time in Paris during the beginning of the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...

, and it is thought that this may have later inspired him to join

Tadeusz Kościuszko Andrzej Tadeusz Bonawentura Kościuszko ( be, Andréj Tadévuš Banavientúra Kasciúška, en, Andrew Thaddeus Bonaventure Kosciuszko; 4 or 12 February 174615 October 1817) was a Polish Military engineering, military engineer, statesman, an ...

, who advocated similar causes of brotherhood and equality.

Kościuszko Uprising

Joselewicz initially served in the militia before petitioning Kościuszko for permission to form an all-Jewish unit. On September 17, 1794, Kościuszko officially announced the creation of the unit. Joselewicz, along with another Jew named Józef Aronowicz, issued a patriotic call-to-arms in

Yiddish Yiddish (, or , ''yidish'' or ''idish'', , ; , ''Yidish-Taytsh'', ) is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated during the 9th century in Central Europe, providing the nascent Ashkenazi community with a ver ...

denouncing Russia and Prussia, eliciting hundreds of volunteers, mostly poor trade workers and artisans. Five hundred men were eventually accepted and formed into a . At Joselewicz's request, they were allowed to keep their religious customs, including access to

kosher foods Kosher foods are foods that conform to the Jewish dietary regulations of ''kashrut'' (dietary law). The laws of ''kashrut'' apply to food derived from living creatures and kosher foods are restricted to certain types of mammals, birds and fish m ...

, abstaining from combat on the

Sabbath In Abrahamic religions, the Sabbath () or Shabbat (from Hebrew ) is a day set aside for rest and worship. According to the Book of Exodus, the Sabbath is a day of rest on the seventh day, commanded by God to be kept as a holy day of rest, as G ...

when possible, and growing their

beard A beard is the hair that grows on the jaw, chin, upper lip, lower lip, cheeks, and neck of humans and some non-human animals. In humans, usually pubescent or adult males are able to grow beards. Throughout the course of history, societal at ...

s. Joselewicz's unit was popularly known as "the Beardlings". They took part in the

Battle of Praga The Battle of Praga or the Second Battle of Warsaw of 1794 was a Russian assault on Praga, the easternmost suburb of Warsaw, during the Kościuszko Uprising in 1794. It was followed by a massacre (known as the Massacre of Praga) of the civilian ...

, in which the unit was wiped out, with only a few men (including Joselewicz) surviving the battle. Joselewicz himself was taken prisoner by the Russians.

Polish Legions

After the defeat of the

, Joselewicz left for Galicia and then for

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

. There he joined the Polish Legions under

Henryk Dąbrowski Henryk may refer to: * Henryk (given name) * Henryk, Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, a village in south-central Poland * Henryk Glacier, an Antarctic glacier See also * Henryk Batuta hoax, an internet hoax * Henrykian articles The Henrician Article ...

. As a commander of a sabre company in Polish cavalry units, he fought in various battles of the

Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...

period. Among them were the battles of

Trebbia The Trebbia (stressed ''Trèbbia''; la, Trebia) is a river predominantly of Liguria and Emilia Romagna in northern Italy. It is one of the four main right-bank tributaries of the river Po (river), Po, the other three being the Tanaro River, Tanar ...

, Novi,

Hohenlinden Hohenlinden (meaning "high linden trees"; colloquially: ''Linden''; in the Bavarian dialect: ''Hea-lin'') is a community in the Upper Bavarian district of Ebersberg. The city of Lynden, Washington is named after it, as is Linden, Alabama. Hohe ...

Austerlitz Austerlitz may refer to: History * Battle of Austerlitz, an 1805 victory by the French Grand Army of Napoleon Bonaparte Places * Austerlitz, German name for Slavkov u Brna in the Czech Republic, which gave its name to the Battle of Austerlitz a ...

and Friedland. Berek joselewicz

Army of the Grand Duchy of Warsaw

He remained in the army as a squadron leader in the following the creation of the

Duchy of Warsaw The Duchy of Warsaw ( pl, Księstwo Warszawskie, french: Duché de Varsovie, german: Herzogtum Warschau), also known as the Grand Duchy of Warsaw and Napoleonic Poland, was a French client state established by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1807, during ...

in 1807. From 1807 he fought in various battles in

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

Austro-Polish War

He was killed in the Battle of Kock in 1809 during an encounter with a unit of Austrian

hussar A hussar ( , ; hu, huszár, pl, husarz, sh, husar / ) was a member of a class of light cavalry, originating in Central Europe during the 15th and 16th centuries. The title and distinctive dress of these horsemen were subsequently widely ...

s, and today his grave has become a popular tourist attraction.

Legacy

The historical Polish proverb "Perish like Berek at Kock" ("''Zginął jak Berek pod Kockiem''.") describes someone disappearing without a trace. Another historical folk song describes Berek:

"This was Berek, famous Jew, Man of duty, righteous Pole. Not with wine, not with swindle but with blood he paid for glory!"

Original text: "''Był to Berek, sławny Żyd, Człek sumienny – Polak prawy. Nie kwaterką – ni szacherką, Lecz się krwią dorobił sławy!''". He was honored by a postage stamp as "A Jewish Fighter for Polish Freedom", issued jointly by Polish and Israeli postal services. According to

Derek Penslar Derek Jonathan Penslar, (born 1958) is an American-Canadian comparative historian with interests in the relationship between modern Israel and diaspora Jewish societies, global nationalist movements, European colonialism, and post-colonial states. ...

, Berek was not a Polish patriot but rather "an adventurer and activist".

"Berek was not so much a Polish patriot as an adventurer and activist who sought to enhance his own personal honor as well as that of the Jews under his command. Although Berek is most famous for his service for Poland, in 1796 he proposed to the Habsburg emperor the raising of a corps of six thousand to eight thousand Jews who would be divided into cavalry and infantry units to fight against the French.”

Awards

He was awarded the Knight's Cross of the

Virtuti Militari The War Order of Virtuti Militari (Latin: ''"For Military Virtue"'', pl, Order Wojenny Virtuti Militari) is Poland's highest military decoration for heroism and courage in the face of the enemy at war. It was created in 1792 by Polish King Stan ...

medal and the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon, ...

with a Golden Cross for his merits.

Family

Berek's son, Józef Berkowicz (1789–1846), also fought in the Battle of Kock, and later served as a squadron chief during the

November Uprising The November Uprising (1830–31), also known as the Polish–Russian War 1830–31 or the Cadet Revolution, was an armed rebellion in the heartland of partitioned Poland against the Russian Empire. The uprising began on 29 November 1830 in W ...

of 1830, during which he also attempted to convince Jewish soldiers to desert the Russian army and join the Poles. Berkowicz later moved to England and wrote a novel. Berek's widow and son received a pension until 1831.

References

External links

Diapositive: Traces of the Past

Jewish Encyclopedia: Berek Joselewicz

Jewish Encyclopedia: Josef Berkowicz

This Month in Jewish History: September
from the

World Zionist Organization The World Zionist Organization ( he, הַהִסְתַּדְּרוּת הַצִּיּוֹנִית הָעוֹלָמִית; ''HaHistadrut HaTzionit Ha'Olamit''), or WZO, is a non-governmental organization that promotes Zionism. It was founded as the ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Joselewicz, Berek 1764 births 1809 deaths People from Kretinga 18th-century Lithuanian Jews Jewish military history Jewish military personnel Kościuszko insurgents Recipients of the Legion of Honour Polish commanders of the Napoleonic Wars Polish Army officers Knights of the Virtuti Militari 18th-century Polish–Lithuanian businesspeople 19th-century Polish businesspeople Military personnel killed in the Napoleonic Wars