Lectures on „History of the Jewish Community in the Čachtice – Nové Mesto nad Váhom – Trenčín Region“
For two days – 14.12.2022 and 16.12.2022 – two lectures of historian Mgr. Martin Vincurský from the Trenčín Museum in Trenčín, a partner of the project, were held at Piarist Gymnasium of Jozef Branecký in Trenčín. The first of the lectures, entitled „The Arrival and Presence of Jews in Považie in the Middle Ages “, took place on 14.12.2022 and was attended by students of 1.B and Kvinta (fifth year of an eight-year grammar school).
The students learned about when and how Jews came to our territory since the early Middle Ages and what laws applied to them in medieval Hungary. They also learned in detail about the first written records of the presence of Jews in the region of Považie, approximately in the area from Trnava to Trenčín.
The second lecture was entitled „From speeches to pogroms. Anti-Jewish conspiracy theories from the Middle Ages to the present “. During the lecture Mgr. Vincurský told the students of 3.A and 3.B about the three most widespread conspiracy theories connected with Jews, which originated in the Middle Ages (ritual murders, desecration of hosts, poisoning of wells). The presentation traced their development up to the 21st century, with a special focus on how the attitude of the authorities (municipal or state) who had to deal with such accusations against Jews has changed over time. At the same time, they learned a number of concrete, often unfortunately tragic examples, both from European history, but especially from our history. The lectures are one of the activities of the project „Revitalization of Draškovič Manor House in Čachtice “, which was supported by grants from the EEA and the state budget of the Slovak Republic.
We are looking forward to continuation of the lectures for schools and the public in 2023.
