A fortress synagogue is 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 ...

built to withstand attack while protecting the lives of people sheltering within it. Fortress synagogues first appeared in the

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, also referred to as Poland–Lithuania or the First Polish Republic (), was a federation, federative real union between the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland, Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania ...

in the 16th century at a time of frequent invasions from the east by Ottoman,

Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...

and Wallachian troops.''Historic Cities and Sacred Sites: Cultural Roots for Urban Futures''. By Ismail Serageldin, Ephim Shluger, Joan Martin-Brown, World Bank Publications, 2001, pp. 307-8. The now-destroyed Old Synagogue, Przemyśl was a typical example. The region also had

fortified church A fortified church is a church that is built to serve a defensive role in times of war. Such church (building), churches were specially designed to incorporate military features, such as thick walls, battlements, and embrasures. Others, such as t ...

es, of which St. Andrew's Church, Kraków is a surviving example. The

Old Synagogue, Kraków Old or OLD may refer to: Places *Old, Baranya, Hungary *Old, Northamptonshire, England *Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD) *OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Mai ...

, a rare surviving fortress synagogue, was rebuilt in 1570 with an attic wall featuring loopholes and windows placed far above ground level, features borrowed from military architecture. It has been altered many times since. Walls were thick masonry, with heavy buttressing to withstand assault. Like other fortifications, the synagogues were often built on hills.''Erased: Vanishing Traces of Jewish Galicia in Present-day Ukraine''. By Omer Bartov, Princeton University Press, 2007, p. 105 ff. The

Szydłów Synagogue The Szydłów Synagogue () is a former Orthodox Judaism, Orthodox Judaism, Jewish congregation and synagogue, that is located at 3 Targowa Street, in Szydłów, in the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship of Poland. The stone fortress synagogue with heav ...

is another example of a surviving, 16th-century fortress synagogue with rare combination of Gothic and

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

structural elements.''Architektura obronna w krajobrazie Polski'' (in Polish). By Janusz Bogdanowski, PWN, 1996, p.550.

References

{{reflist Architecture in Poland Architecture in Ukraine Ashkenazi Jews topics

See also

References