City on the Oder River in Lower Silesia; it was part of Germany until 1945, when it was annexed to Poland. In 1925, the Jewish population was 23,240, making it the third-largest Jewish community in Germany; in 1933, it declined to 20,202. It was a centre of Reform Judaism and Zionism. The Nazi Rise to power led to more riots and the murder of young Jews active in the Social Democratic party. In March 1933 SA men stormed into the district courts and evicted Jewish judges and lawyers. Nazi discriminatory laws were applied severely as was the policy of Aryanization. The Breslau Jewish community did its best to solve the problems caused by the ongoing changes, by supporting artists; helping sports clubs set up a gym and swimming pool; expanding "Haksharot" and vocational training centres; and promoting emigration and Aliyah (immigration to Palestine). During Kristallnacht, all the synagogues were destroyed except the Orthodox Storch Synagogue, which was not set on fire lest the conflagration spread to adjoining buildings. In the pogrom's wake, more and more Jews emigrated. On March 31, 1941, only 9,184 Jews remained in the city. In September of that year, Jewish apartments were confiscated and Jews were relocated into special Judenhaeuser (Jewish houses). In November, the first groups of Jews were sent to transit camps in Silesia (Riebnig, Gruessau and Tomersdorf). Between November 25, 1941, and April 1944, the Jews of Breslau were deported in fifteen transports, primarily to Theresienstadt and Auschwitz. The only Jews spared were 150 married to "Aryan" spouses.
