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Jews in Grodno, Belarus

Grodno is the center of the region of the same name in Belarus. The city was founded in the XI century. From the 13th to the 16th centuries, it was part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, from the 16th to the 18th centuries - the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. From the end of the XVIII century - under the rule of the Russian Empire, then Soviet Russia. From 1920 to 1939 it was part of Poland.

According to researchers' assumptions, Jews settled in Grodno from the 12th century. The first documentary source mentioning the Jewish community, the privileges of Prince Vytautas, lists a synagogue and two Jewish cemeteries in Grodno. From 1495 to 1503 Jews were expelled from Grodno.

The community did not suffer during the Khmelnytsky uprising. Jews from the lands controlled by the rebels found refuge in Grodno. Pogroms in the 17th century were carried out by Russian and Swedish troops.

In the 17th century, the Grodno community was one of the most influential in Lithuania and had representatives in the Vaad.

By the time of the seizure of Polish territories by Russia and the establishment of control over Grodno, the majority of the city's population were Jews. At the beginning of the 19th century, 8.4 thousand Jews lived here, who accounted for 85% of the townspeople.

By the end of the 19th century, the share of Jews in the local population had decreased to 48.8%. At the same time, they played an important role in the urban economy. Jews owned more than 80% of commercial events, more than 70% of factories. They owned more than 60% of the city's real estate.

At the beginning of the 20th century, 100 cheders, seven male and five female Jewish schools and the first Jewish teacher training courses in the empire worked in Grodno.

With the outbreak of the First World War, the imperial authorities pursued a policy of resettlement of Jews from the Grodno province to the interior regions of the country.

During the period of Polish rule (1920-1939), the share of Jews in the population of Grodno decreased from 53 to 42.6%.

In 1939, after the departure of the Polish and before the arrival of the Soviet troops, a Jewish pogrom took place in the city.

The Nazis occupied the city at the end of June 1941. In November, two closed-type ghettos were created. More than 20 thousand Grodno Jews died at the hands of the invaders.

In the post-war years, the Jewish population of Grodno decreased from 2.4% in 1959 to 0.8% in 1979. According to 1999 data, more than 600 Jews lived in the city.