New Book by Yosef Mendelevich

Interview by Tzvi Fishman

A scholarly book on a fascinating yet little known subject in the chronicles of Jewish History has recently been published: “The Cantonists – Jewish Boys in the Russian Military 1827-1856.” No less interesting than the subject itself is the fact that it was written by Rabbi Yosef Mendelevich, the former “Prisoner of Zion” who was incarcerated for eleven years in Soviet prisons for attempting to hijack an airplane to fly to freedom in the Land of Israel. His own dramatic ordeal has been recorded in many articles, interviews, documentary films, and books. He and his comrades in the Jewish Underground helped topple the Iron Curtain and lead to the freedom of countless Jews. To learn more about the book and why he wrote it, I met with him after a day of his teaching at the Machon Meir Institute of Jewish Studies in Jerusalem.

“I wrote the book as part of my thesis for a Master’s Degree at Touro College in Jerusalem. At the time, I also served as the head of the school’s Student Immigrant Department. While I was searching for a subject, Professor Aryeh Morgenstern advised me to investigate the newly available material from Russian military archives. This led me to research the fate of Jewish children who were conscripted into the Russian Imperial Army in the nineteenth century. These boys, aged 13 to 18, and known as Cantonists, were sent to military schools where they received military training. Of course, they were all Orthodox Jews – secularism in Russia was to come later, largely as an outgrowth of this conscription. At the age of 18, these young people continued in regular military service. Unlike the majority of soldiers who were conscripted into the army without formal schooling, these young recruits received a solid education. As a result, these boys advanced quickly in their military careers and obtained officer ranks, including senior officer positions.”

Sounds like a good deal.

“There was a darker side. Children were conscripted even younger than age 13, sometimes as young as 9 or 10. They did not speak Russian; they only spoke Yiddish and could not understand anything. They had no way to observe Torah commandments and had no access to kosher food. In addition, they were forced to participate in Christian rituals because most students were Christian. Gradually, they forgot how to practice Judaism and were pressured into converting to Christianity. Often, attempts were made to forcibly convert them through torture.”

Before getting back to the interview, it is important to note that while the 400-page book is filled with historical research, parts of it read like a suspense-filled novel. For example, the testimony of Chaim Merimzon, who was abducted to serve as a cantonist in 1854, two years before the abolishment of compulsory conscription of minors, and who served for twenty-five years. He writes:

“I remember myself from the age of five. My mother dressed me in tẓiẓit and gave me coins to put in the pushke of the beit midrash, and if I met beggars on the way, I should give to them, too. Of all the children, I was my mother’s favorite because I was called........

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)