Zwei Welten

A shortt documentary. The fistory of the Jewish Community in the city of Bytom in the region of Upper Silesia. The history of the Jews of Bytom is divided into two parts; from the 14th Century till the Second World War and from the end of the war till today. u The emancipation edict of 1812, nder the rule of the Hapsburg Monarchy, the Jewish community thrived. ssynagogues and shops were opened shops, and also social services such as a Jewish cemetery. Prominent Jews being part of the City Council. There were good relations between the Jewish and German inhabitants of the town. The Geneva Convention on minorities of 1922 protetd th Jews. After the Kristallnacht a number of Jews were sent to Buchenwald. During the war Jews were deported to Auschwitz. After the war Polish Jews returned from the Soviet Union and setteled back reviving the Jewish community. The large waves of emigration from the town culminatedin 1968. The documentary concludes a testimony of one of the Jews, Henryk Akselrod.