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| Rhodes |
| The Square of Jewish Martyrs |
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| The Square of Jewish Martyrs in Rhodes. |
Rhodes' Jewish community does not number but about 40 today, but its history in this celebrated island of the eastern Aegean stretches for more than a thousand years. It has left it mark in the magnificent old town of Rhodes and even today the visitor can clearly see Jewish symbols in the narrow streets of the Tzouderia neighborhood.
The community grew significantly in 1280, when Spanish Jews from Aragon moved here, after the island fell under the rule of the Knights of Saint John. A contemporary Italian rabbi who was traveling through the area in 1467 wrote in his memoirs: "I never saw a Jewish community where everybody, from the youngest to the oldest, are so intelligent […] have long hair and look like princes. The leaders of the Knight of Rhodes visit Jewish homes often to admire the craft of the magnificent embroideries."
In the 16th century many Jews were deported from the island following a decree by the Council of Knights. After the capture of the island by the Ottoman Turks, only 22 Jewish families remained, which went on with life after an initial period of scare of reprisals from the new masters.
The new regime brought new families from Thessaloniki and Rhodes became an important center of Sephardic Jewry. The community was home to wealthy textile and silk merchants, arms makers, artisans, book binders and weavers. Rhodes had become a hub of international commerce.
The prospering Jewish community occupied two neighborhoods of the walled city and maintained two synagogues, prompting travelers to remark in admiration on their piety and deep theological study.
By 1941, there were 2 thousand Jews in Rhodes, supporting 4 synagogues. In 1944, the Nazis rounded up the Jews of Rhodes and Kos and shipped them to Auschwitz via Piraeus. The Jewish community of Rhodes was wiped out but for 151 survivors. Today, there are 40 Jews on the island, continuing the tradition of a thousand-year old presence.
In June 2002, the authorities dedicated a monument honoring the memory of Rhodes Jews who perished during the Holocaust. The monument stands at the Square of Jewish Martyrs, in the heart of Rhodes’ Old Town. |
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