How Awe-Inspiring It Is: A Galician Maskil Responds to the Revolutions of 1848–1849

Abstract

While the practical results of the revolutions that engulfed Europe in 1848–1849 were largely ephemeral, they elicited great excitement and anticipation. In particular, some enlightened Jews saw the revolutions and ensuing political developments as a great opportunity, hoping that they would lead to emancipation, equality, and brotherhood with their non-Jewish neighbors. Spurred on by the events, Abraham Mendel Mohr, a Galician maskil and author, established a Yiddish newspaper, Tsaytung (the first Yiddish weekly), through which he disseminated news and information about the revolutions. He not only sought to inform, however, but also to motivate his readers to seize this unique opportunity, and to change and adapt themselves accordingly (expounding a typically maskilic program). An examination of Mohr’s Tsaytung, which was published between May 1848 and September 1849, provides a rare glimpse into how a Galician maskil responded to the tumultuous events of the Spring of Nations.