Documents on Jewish History in Austria 1339-1365

A remarkably high number of medieval sources on the history of Jews can be found in Austria. This huge amount of sources provides information on the economic, legal and personal situation of the Jews as well as on the interactions between Christians and Jews. Therefore, the Institute for the History of Jews in Austria has engaged in preparatory work to publish this source material. In the course of the FWF project P 15638, the first volume of these sources (from the beginnings until 1338) has been published, and research for the second volume has begun. The goal of the project "Documents on Jewish History in Austria 1339-1365" is to finish this second volume. Charters as well as historiographic and literary sources containing references to both Jews and Austria are being collected and processed according to scientific criteria. This material includes a number of texts which have not been published at all or treated with regard to the Jewish aspect yet. The publication consists of a chronological series of document summaries. Additionally, an extensive index as well as detailed comments will be added to the relevant document to make the source texts accessible to the reader. The sources which are collected and processed in preparation of the second volume cover a critical period of time for the Austrian Jews. It is of crucial importance that any comprehensive study of this period is based on the entirety of the source material. Both the consequences of the persecution that started in Pulkau in 1338 and the impact which the plague had on the Austrian Jews are reflected in these sources. Besides, these sources will allow a more detailed analysis of the policies which the dukes Albrecht II and Rudolf IV pursued towards the Jews, which in turn will provide insights into the legal, social and economic situation of the Austrian Jews during this period.

A remarkably high number of medieval sources on the history of Jews can be found in Austria. This huge amount of sources provides information on the economic, legal and personal situation of the Jews as well as on the interactions between Christians and Jews. Therefore, the Institute for Jewish History in Austria has engaged in preparatory work to publish this source material. In the course of the previous FWF project P 15638, the first volume of these sources (from the beginnings until 1338) was published, and research for the second volume was begun. In the course of the now finished project "Documents on Jewish History in Austria 1339-1365", this research was completed and the volume prepared for publication. Charters as well as historiographic and literary sources containing references to both Jews and Austria were collected and processed according to scientific criteria. This material includes a considerable number of texts which have not been published at all or treated with regard to the Jewish aspect yet. Research was carried out in archives both in Austria and abroad; furthermore, previously published material was also collected. The resulting manuscript consists of a chronological series of about 700 document summaries. Additionally, an extensive index as well as a scientific commentary were added to the relevant document to make the source texts accessible to the reader. Given the volume`s topic, the Jews mentioned in the source text were the main focus of these commentaries. The sources which were collected and processed in preparation of the second volume cover a critical period of time for the Austrian Jews. It is of crucial importance that any comprehensive study of this period is based on the entirety of the source material, which is now readily available in the finished volume. Both the consequences of the Pulkau persecution of 1338, which wiped out a number of smaller Jewish settlements, and the impact which the plague had on the Austrian Jews are reflected in these sources. Besides, these sources allow a more detailed analysis of the policies which the dukes Albrecht II and Rudolf IV pursued towards the Jews, which in turn provides insights into the legal, social and economic situation of the Austrian Jews during this period.