Trochenbrod
Encyclopedia
Trochenbrod or Trohinbrod in Russian was a Jewish shtetl
(village) with an area 1728 acres (7 km²) once located in western Ukraine
, about 30 kilometers northeast of Lutsk
, the nearest now existing villages are Яромель (Yaromel) and Клубочин (Klubochyn).
It was also known as Sofievka or Zofiówka, named after Sofia, a Russian princess who donated land for the Jewish settlement.
During the Polish-Soviet War
, the town was captured by Poland. By 1938 the town's exclusively Jewish population had grown to at least 3,000. Most of the population were engaged in farming, dairy farming, or tanning
.
There were seven synagogue
s in Trochenbrod. In 1939, the town, along with the rest of western Ukraine, was invaded by the Soviet Union
(see Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact
). The rabbi
at this time was Rabbi Gershon Weissmann. The Communists exiled him to Siberia
after accusing him of being involved in underground salt trading.
When Nazi Germany
later occupied Ukraine, they established a ghetto
at Trochenbrod, bringing in Jews from nearby villages and towns. The Trochenbrod ghetto was annihilated by the Nazis in August and September 1942. Most of the Jews of Trochenbrod as well as of the neighbouring village Lozisht
were killed, as were the other Jews of Volhynia
. The local police force consisting mostly of Ukrainians helped to round up the Jews; however, Ukrainian partisans from the nearest village, Klubochyn, assisted a Jewish resistance group in Trochenbrod and took up military action against the Nazis. No more than 200 Jews from the Trochenbrod ghetto and nearby areas survived the massacre. The village itself was totally destroyed by fire. Now only fields and a forest can be found there. The Ukrainian residents of Klubochyn were also murdered for their assistance to Trochenbrod Jews and the Klubochyn partisans.
A few of the inhabitants managed to escape the murder and destruction. At the end of the war, the survivors numbered between 33 and 40; most were found in the area near Lutsk.
by Jonathan Safran Foer
as well as in the 2005 film
based on the novel.
Safran Foer's story describes fictional events in the village between 1791, the year in which the shtetl was first named, and 1942, when it was destroyed in the war. Safran Foer's protagonist (who goes by the author's name and also by the name "The Hero", or "The Collector" in the film version) comes to Ukraine to look for a woman named Augustine, who saved his grandfather in the war. A reviewer from The Prague Post
laments that the book misrepresents the history of Jews in Ukraine and that the factual history of the massacre at Trochenbrod "...stands in a sharp contrast to claims made in the book."
Shtetl
A shtetl was typically a small town with a large Jewish population in Central and Eastern Europe until The Holocaust. Shtetls were mainly found in the areas which constituted the 19th century Pale of Settlement in the Russian Empire, the Congress Kingdom of Poland, Galicia and Romania...
(village) with an area 1728 acres (7 km²) once located in western Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
, about 30 kilometers northeast of Lutsk
Lutsk
Lutsk is a city located by the Styr River in northwestern Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Volyn Oblast and the administrative center of the surrounding Lutskyi Raion within the oblast...
, the nearest now existing villages are Яромель (Yaromel) and Клубочин (Klubochyn).
It was also known as Sofievka or Zofiówka, named after Sofia, a Russian princess who donated land for the Jewish settlement.
History
Trochenbrod was founded in 1835, initially a farming colony which grew into a small town. The population grew from around 1,200 (235 families) in 1889 to 1,580 in 1897. The name is Yiddish for "Dry Bread" or "Bread without Butter".During the Polish-Soviet War
Polish-Soviet War
The Polish–Soviet War was an armed conflict between Soviet Russia and Soviet Ukraine and the Second Polish Republic and the Ukrainian People's Republic—four states in post–World War I Europe...
, the town was captured by Poland. By 1938 the town's exclusively Jewish population had grown to at least 3,000. Most of the population were engaged in farming, dairy farming, or tanning
Tanning
Tanning is the making of leather from the skins of animals which does not easily decompose. Traditionally, tanning used tannin, an acidic chemical compound from which the tanning process draws its name . Coloring may occur during tanning...
.
There were seven synagogue
Synagogue
A synagogue is a Jewish house of prayer. This use of the Greek term synagogue originates in the Septuagint where it sometimes translates the Hebrew word for assembly, kahal...
s in Trochenbrod. In 1939, the town, along with the rest of western Ukraine, was invaded by the Soviet Union
Soviet invasion of Poland (1939)
The 1939 Soviet invasion of Poland was a Soviet military operation that started without a formal declaration of war on 17 September 1939, during the early stages of World War II. Sixteen days after Nazi Germany invaded Poland from the west, the Soviet Union did so from the east...
(see Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact
Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact
The Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, named after the Soviet foreign minister Vyacheslav Molotov and the German foreign minister Joachim von Ribbentrop, was an agreement officially titled the Treaty of Non-Aggression between Germany and the Soviet Union and signed in Moscow in the late hours of 23 August 1939...
). The rabbi
Rabbi
In Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
at this time was Rabbi Gershon Weissmann. The Communists exiled him to Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
after accusing him of being involved in underground salt trading.
When Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
later occupied Ukraine, they established a ghetto
Ghetto
A ghetto is a section of a city predominantly occupied by a group who live there, especially because of social, economic, or legal issues.The term was originally used in Venice to describe the area where Jews were compelled to live. The term now refers to an overcrowded urban area often associated...
at Trochenbrod, bringing in Jews from nearby villages and towns. The Trochenbrod ghetto was annihilated by the Nazis in August and September 1942. Most of the Jews of Trochenbrod as well as of the neighbouring village Lozisht
Lozisht
Lozisht was a Jewish shtetl located in what is now western Ukraine but which used to be a part of Poland and was called then Ignatowka....
were killed, as were the other Jews of Volhynia
Volhynia
Volhynia, Volynia, or Volyn is a historic region in western Ukraine located between the rivers Prypiat and Southern Bug River, to the north of Galicia and Podolia; the region is named for the former city of Volyn or Velyn, said to have been located on the Southern Bug River, whose name may come...
. The local police force consisting mostly of Ukrainians helped to round up the Jews; however, Ukrainian partisans from the nearest village, Klubochyn, assisted a Jewish resistance group in Trochenbrod and took up military action against the Nazis. No more than 200 Jews from the Trochenbrod ghetto and nearby areas survived the massacre. The village itself was totally destroyed by fire. Now only fields and a forest can be found there. The Ukrainian residents of Klubochyn were also murdered for their assistance to Trochenbrod Jews and the Klubochyn partisans.
A few of the inhabitants managed to escape the murder and destruction. At the end of the war, the survivors numbered between 33 and 40; most were found in the area near Lutsk.
Trochenbrod in fiction
A fictional version of the shtetl, Trachimbrod, was featured in the 2002 novel Everything Is IlluminatedEverything Is Illuminated
Everything Is Illuminated is the first novel by the American writer Jonathan Safran Foer, published in 2002. It was adapted into a film by the same name starring Elijah Wood and Eugene Hütz in 2005.-Plot summary:...
by Jonathan Safran Foer
Jonathan Safran Foer
Jonathan Safran Foer is an American author best known for his novels Everything Is Illuminated and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close...
as well as in the 2005 film
Everything Is Illuminated (film)
Everything Is Illuminated is a 2005 adventure/dramedy film, written and directed by Liev Schreiber and starring Elijah Wood and Eugene Hütz...
based on the novel.
Safran Foer's story describes fictional events in the village between 1791, the year in which the shtetl was first named, and 1942, when it was destroyed in the war. Safran Foer's protagonist (who goes by the author's name and also by the name "The Hero", or "The Collector" in the film version) comes to Ukraine to look for a woman named Augustine, who saved his grandfather in the war. A reviewer from The Prague Post
The Prague Post
The Prague Post is an English language weekly newspaper covering the Czech Republic and Central and Eastern Europe.It is the only English-language newspaper in the Czech Republic...
laments that the book misrepresents the history of Jews in Ukraine and that the factual history of the massacre at Trochenbrod "...stands in a sharp contrast to claims made in the book."
External links
- Trochenbrod & Lozisht community website Zofiówka (8.) in the Geographical Dictionary of the Kingdom of Poland (1895)