The Drama of Slavuta by Saul Moiseyevich Ginsburg

Drawing on Jewish sources and official Tsarist government archives, this is an account of the shutdown of a major 19th-century Jewish printing establishment during the reign of Tsar Nicholas I, when the persecution of Jews and suppression of Jewish culture reached unprecedented heights in Russia.

Available for the first time in English, The Drama of Slavuta draws on Jewish sources and official Tsarist government archives in providing insight into the shutdown of a major nineteenth-century Jewish printing establishment during the reign of Tsar Nicholas I (1825-1855), when the persecution of Jews and suppression of Jewish culture reached unprecedented heights in Russia. The eminent historian Saul M. Ginsburg, who authored the original manuscript, successfully weaves an account of the persecution of the printing establishment''s Hasidic owners, the Brothers Shapiro, into the larger scheme of official persecution of all Jews and thereby provides chilling insight into contemporary Russian attitudes towards Jews and Jewish culture. Contents: Volhynia Gubernia; Accusations Continue; The War Against Hasidism; "Yore-Deah"; Yakob Lipps; Forced Testimonies; The Imperial Decree; The Ushitza Story; The Military Commission''s Verdict; "So Shall It Be"; "Araktsh Stones"; Moral Victors.