Szendrő is a small

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

in Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén county, Northern

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

, from county capital

Miskolc Miskolc ( , ; ; Czech language, Czech and ; ; ; ) is a city in northeastern Hungary, known for its heavy industry. With a population of 161,265 as of 1 January 2014, Miskolc is the List of cities and towns in Hungary#Largest cities in Hungary, ...

History

Szendrő was first mentioned in 1317. It was named after its owner Szend. Szendro is a Hungarian last name. The first stone-built

castle A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...

of the county was built there, and it was an important border fortress during the Turkish occupation of Hungary, until Prince

Francis II Rákóczi Francis II Rákóczi (, ; 27 March 1676 – 8 April 1735) was a Hungarian nobleman and leader of the Rákóczi's War of Independence against the Habsburgs in 1703–1711 as the prince () of the Estates Confederated for Liberty of the Kingdom of ...

had it destroyed in 1707. Szendrő was the capital of the

comitatus Comitatus may refer to: *Comitatus (warband), a Germanic warband who follow a leader * ''Comitatus'', the office of a Roman or Frankish comes, translated as count. * ''Comitatus'', translated as county, a territory such as governed by medieval cou ...

between 1613 and 1660, and the centre of the Szendrő district between 1615 and 1930. The

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

line of the Bódva valley (built in 1896) strengthened its role as a market town. Szendrő obtained town status in 1996.

The Jewish Community

Early Years

Jews settled in the town during the second half of the 18th century, mainly engaging in commerce and viticulture. They built a

synagogue A synagogue, also called a shul or a temple, is a place of worship for Jews and Samaritans. It is a place for prayer (the main sanctuary and sometimes smaller chapels) where Jews attend religious services or special ceremonies such as wed ...

, educational institutions, and charitable organizations, and a Chevra Kadisha operated there. Following the schism in Hungarian Jewry (1868-1869), the community joined the Orthodox stream. In 1929, the Jewish community included 42 merchants, three farmers, two industrialists, a teacher, a lawyer, two doctors, an engineer, three clerks, and six craftsmen. The town also had an ancient Jewish cemetery.The Register of Communities - an encyclopedia of the Jewish settlements from their founding to after the Holocaust of World War II, Yad Vashem Publishing House, Jerusalem, 1975, pp. 403-404

World War II Era

On the eve of World War II, 277 Jews lived in the town. The pro-German Hungarian government restricted the rights of Jews starting in 1938. In 1942, 15 community leaders were imprisoned and later conscripted for forced labor in Ukraine, where most perished. In March 1944, German soldiers took community leaders as hostages. A ghetto was established in May 1944, and Jews were forced into labor. They were eventually transferred to Miskolc and then sent to Auschwitz.

Post-World War II Community

After the war, about 30 Jews returned and renewed community life under Rabbi Yitzchak Zvi Deutsch. In 1948, a memorial was erected for the 280 martyrs, and the synagogue was renovated. However, due to local harassment, many Jews emigrated from Hungary. Jewish cemeteries remain in the town.

Twin towns – sister cities

Szendrő is twinned with: *

Leutershausen Leutershausen is a municipality in the district of Ansbach, in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated on the river Altmühl, 12 km west of Ansbach. History Leutershausen was probably founded by Frankish settlers around 800. For the first time it ...

, Germany

References

External links

* in Hungarian {{DEFAULTSORT:Szendro Populated places in Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén County