Crkveno-śkolska everejska opśtina, Beograd Jewish Synagogue and school community in Belgrade Jüdische Synagogen-Ausbildung, Gemeinde Belgrad (Fond 1429)

Rossiĭskiĭ gosudarstvennyĭ voennyĭ arkhiv 

The legal status of the Jewish community of Belgrade was formalized by an official charter in 1866. Its first president was Jahiel Ruso, and its rabbi during the period 1886-1894 was a famous Berlin scholar Simon Bernfeld. Ashkenazi Jews, whose religious autonomy was recognized by the Serbian government, established their own community in 1892. In 1939, there were 10,388 Jews in Belgrade, 8,500 were Sephardim; 1888 were Ashkenazi. Jewish membership in religious community was required by law. The Sephardic community’s primary mission consisted of religious meetings, educational, social and cultural activities for its members. Both communities were liquidated after the Nazi occupation in April 1941. After the war, the Jewish community was reconstituted. The Federation of Jewish Communities in Yugoslavia, formed in the aftermath of World War II to coordinate the Jewish communities of post-war Yugoslavia, also lobbied for the right of Jews to immigrate to Israel. More than half of Yugoslav survivors settled in Israel after World War II. 

Crkveno-śkolska everejska opśtina, Beograd Jewish Synagogue and school community in Belgrade Jüdische Synagogen-Ausbildung, Gemeinde Belgrad (Fond 1429) 

49 microfilm reels (partial), 16 mm 102,959 digital images, JPEG 

Contains bylaws, minutes, lists of members of the Jewish community of Belgrade, correspondence with Jewish charitable societies and with various individuals on the construction of buildings, on establishing Jewish schools, shelters, and choir, on raising funds for the community fund, and on providing material aid to community members in need; birth registers and marriage contracts (1866-1940); a resolution on the payment of pensions to community employees; contracts with various firms and private individuals regarding the purchase of equipment and the leasing of buildings; lists of persons making donations; financial documents; and correspondence with Yugoslav authorities regarding permits for a construction of synagogue, prayer houses, and other community buildings as well as regarding the payment of taxes and Jewish emigration from Yugoslavia. Note: USHMM Archives holds only selected records. 

Copyright Holder: Rossiĭskiĭ gosudarstvennyĭ voennyĭ arkhiv 

Fond 1429 (1815-1941). Opis 1; Dela 351. Arranged in five subject series: 1. Correspondence, minutes of meetings, and invitations; 2. Vital records of the community members; 3. Financial documents and notebooks with dues of the community members; 4. Lists of community members and lists of Jewish refugees from Germany; 5. Musical notes and sheets, brochures, and photographs. Note: Location of digital images; Reels 767-816; Reel 767: Image #747-Reel end; Reels 768-816: Reel start-Reel end (Entire reels)