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Chania Synagouge
Chania Synagouge. The Jews of Crete are mentioned in 2 Maccabees and apparently some lived in Gortys (now Matala), the port of Gortyn. The Roman Tacitus actually claimed the Jews were originally Cretan in origin. In 430 AD a Jew false messiah appeared in Crete. When the Nasi or Patriarch of the Jewish community in the Levant was abolished (Gamaliel II being the last one) in the 5th century the Jews of Crete suffered under anti-Jewish Roman legislation. Jews show up again at Candia (now Heraklion) in the 11th century under Byzantine rule. Under Venetian rule, which began in the 13th century, Jews found success in trade and were viewed with no less scorn than the Catholic Venetians had for the Orthodox inhabitants of the island. In the 14th century Cretan rebellions caused the massacre of Jews at one village and the Ventians forced Jews to wear special clothing marking them as Jews. In 1538 Jews were accused of collaborating with the Turks who often raided the island. With Ottoman rule in the 17th century, the Jewish community flourished and one church was ahnded over to them for use. By 1858 there were only 907 Jews on the island. A blood libel took place in 1887. During the Nazi occupation from 1941 to 1945 some Jews were imprisoned outside Chania and shot in 'revenge' for British raids and Greek resistance on the island. Later in 1944 the Jews were rounded up and shipped to the manland but on the way their prison ship was torpedoed by a British sub and sank with all hands. Only in the 1990s was there interest in refurbishing the last remaining synagouge in Chania (another had been destroyed by German bombing of the town in 1941). It has an old Mikvah, and old graves dating from the 18th century and a refurbished interior.
Chania Synagouge
Chania Synagouge. The Jews of Crete are mentioned in 2 Maccabees and apparently some lived in Gortys (now Matala), the port of Gortyn. The Roman Tacitus actually claimed the Jews were originally Cretan in origin. In 430 AD a Jew false messiah appeared in Crete. When the Nasi or Patriarch of the Jewish community in the Levant was abolished (Gamaliel II being the last one) in the 5th century the Jews of Crete suffered under anti-Jewish Roman legislation. Jews show up again at Candia (now Heraklion) in the 11th century under Byzantine rule. Under Venetian rule, which began in the 13th century, Jews found success in trade and were viewed with no less scorn than the Catholic Venetians had for the Orthodox inhabitants of the island. In the 14th century Cretan rebellions caused the massacre of Jews at one village and the Ventians forced Jews to wear special clothing marking them as Jews. In 1538 Jews were accused of collaborating with the Turks who often raided the island. With Ottoman rule in the 17th century, the Jewish community flourished and one church was ahnded over to them for use. By 1858 there were only 907 Jews on the island. A blood libel took place in 1887. During the Nazi occupation from 1941 to 1945 some Jews were imprisoned outside Chania and shot in 'revenge' for British raids and Greek resistance on the island. Later in 1944 the Jews were rounded up and shipped to the manland but on the way their prison ship was torpedoed by a British sub and sank with all hands. Only in the 1990s was there interest in refurbishing the last remaining synagouge in Chania (another had been destroyed by German bombing of the town in 1941). It has an old Mikvah, and old graves dating from the 18th century and a refurbished interior.