John Doyle Klier – författare

The reform era in Russia (1855-1881) witnessed the emancipation of the serfs, economic and social change, the reform of all imperial institutions, and the growth of national identity among Russians and the Empire's expanding Jewish population. Consequently, the 'Jewish Question' became one of most hotly debated topics in Russia. Attitudes toward the Jews which evolved during this period persisted up to the Revolution and beyond. This book, based on exhaustive archival research of materials published during the period, studies the interplay of public opinion and official policy. The author examines the attitudes of all sectors of Russian educated society towards the Jews. He also explores how a new group, the Russian Jewish intelligentsia, sought to define a modern Jewish identity in the midst of a multi-ethnic Empire.

Three major waves of anti-Jewish rioting swept southern Russia and Russian Poland in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. In this book, distinguished scholars of Russian Jewish history explore the origins and nature of these pogroms, which were among the most extensive outbreaks of antisemitic violence before the Holocaust. Using new approaches to the study of Russian history, the contributors examine each wave of violence in turn. They look at the role of violence in Russian society; the prejudices, stereotypes, and psychology of both the educated society and the rural masses; the work of the Tsarist regime, especially the police and the army as agents of order and control; and the impact of the pogroms on the sense of Jewish identity and security in the Empire. In his conclusion, Hans Rogger compares these riots with both pogroms elsewhere in Europe and anti-Negro violence in the United States during the same period.

Anti-Jewish pogroms rocked the Russian Empire in 1881-2, plunging both the Jewish community and the imperial authorities into crisis. Focusing on a wide range of responses to the pogroms, this book offers the most comprehensive, balanced, and complex study of the crisis to date. It presents a nuanced account of the diversity of Jewish political reactions and introduces a wealth of new sources covering Russian and other non-Jewish reactions to these events. Seeking to answer the question of what caused the pogroms' outbreak and spread, the book provides a fuller picture of how officials at every level responded to the national emergency and irrevocably lays to rest the myth that the authorities instigated or tolerated the pogroms. This is essential reading not only for Russian and Jewish historians but also for those interested in the study of ethnic violence more generally.

Klier's analysis of the motivations behind government policies and attitudes is well documented and convincing.... [An] important and well-researched monograph.― The Journal of Modern HistoryThis classic study by the late John Doyle Klier is considered a seminal text in modern Jewish history by one of the foremost scholars in the field. In this, his first book, Klier offers an important analysis of Russia's early acquisition of, attitudes toward, and administration of its Jewish population. He argues that the Russian response to the Jewish Question was based less on a tradition or religious antipathy than on the failure to develop a consistent, well-articulated policy in the face of a new and unusual problem. This failure led to ineffective social legislation and became the legacy of Russia's first encounter with the Jews.This essential book will be of enduring interest to scholars of modern Russian and Jewish history.

Klier's analysis of the motivations behind government policies and attitudes is well documented and convincing.... [An] important and well-researched monograph.― The Journal of Modern HistoryThis classic study by the late John Doyle Klier is considered a seminal text in modern Jewish history by one of the foremost scholars in the field. In this, his first book, Klier offers an important analysis of Russia's early acquisition of, attitudes toward, and administration of its Jewish population. He argues that the Russian response to the Jewish Question was based less on a tradition or religious antipathy than on the failure to develop a consistent, well-articulated policy in the face of a new and unusual problem. This failure led to ineffective social legislation and became the legacy of Russia's first encounter with the Jews.This essential book will be of enduring interest to scholars of modern Russian and Jewish history.