Endingen

Town of Baden, near Freiburg, famous in Jewish history through the blood accusationof 1470. In that year three Jews were burned at the stake upon a charge of having murdered eight years previously a Christian family of four persons. The accused, subjected to torture, acknowledged the crime. The bones of their supposed victims are still preserved in the Church of Saint Peter, and are believed to work miracles. In consequence of this event Jews were banished from Endingen; and it was not till the time of Emperor Joseph II. that the decree of banishment was annulled (1785).

A writer of the period made the incident the subject of a drama, which was represented for the first time at Endingen April 24, 1616. Karl von Amira recently published this drama with the records of the trial under the title "Das Endinger Judenspiel." The editor in his preface proves the weakness of the case for the prosecution.

Bibliography:

  * Urkundenbuch der Stadt Freiburg, No. 699;
  * Karl von Amira, Das Endinger Judenspiel, in the collection Neudrucke Deutscher Litteraturwerke, Halle-on-the-Saale, 1883;
  * Zeitschrift für die Gesch. der Juden in Deutschland, ii. 358;
  * Rev. Etudes Juives, xvi. 236;
  * Feilchenfeld, Josel Rosheim, p. 5, Strasburg, 1898.



D. I. Br.