-40%
Judaica Antique photo of a Jewish Cantonist, 19th cen. Russian Empire
$ 39.6
- Description
- Size Guide
Description
JudaicaJudaica Antique photo of a Jewish Cantonist, 19th cen. Russian Empire
Size: 16.5x 11.5cm.
CANTONISTS,
Jewish children who were conscripted to military institutions in czarist Russia with the intention that the conditions in which they were placed would force them to adopt Christianity. The "cantonist units" were properly barracks (cantonments) established for children of Russian soldiers. They provided instruction in drill and military training, as well as a rudimentary education. Discipline was maintained by threat of starvation and corporal punishment. At the age of 18 the pupils were drafted to regular army units where they served for 25 years. Enlistment for the cantonist institutions, which originated in the 17th century, was most rigorously enforced during the reigns of *Alexander I (1801–25) and *Nicholas I (1825–55). It was abolished in 1856 under *Alexander II.