Persecutions of Jews in Breslau, as well as in other areas of the Reich, began after the Nazis came to power in 1933. In April, the Civil Service Law was introduced, which mandated the dismissal of Jews from civil service and prohibited them from engaging in various professions, including law. Many people lost their livelihoods, and among them was the Breslau collector Ismar Littmann, who committed suicide in 1934.
In September 1935, the Nuremberg Laws were enacted, allowing Jews to be deprived of citizenship, legal protection, and property. They were burdened with special taxes when leaving German territory.
From 1938, a large-scale “Aryanization” campaign began, based on laws that placed the property of Jews at the disposal of the state treasury. As a result of these events, residents of Breslau also took dramatic steps.
Another means of stigmatizing and socially isolating Jews was the introduction of the obligation to wear the Star of David from September 1938, along with the progressive exclusion of this group from public life. Two months later, during the November pogrom, Jewish synagogues, homes, and shops were vandalized and burned. Jewish youth and children were prohibited from attending German schools.
The next stage involved mass deportations to extermination sites and concentration camps, where collectors such as Max Silberberg and his wife Johanna perished.
