Die ›Judenoffnung‹ von 1743. Ein Quellenfund zur jüdischen Geschichte von Randegg

Abstract This article deals with an archival find from the Sigmaringen State Archives. The focus is on an early modern source from the middle of the 18th century, which sets out rules for the organization of the coexistence of a rural Jewish community amid the Christian majority of a southwest German village. Randegg, not far from the western shores of Lake Constance on the Swiss border, belonged to the Augustinian monastery of Beuron on the Upper Danube, whose abbot Martin issued a so-called Judenoffnung on February 1, 1743. The document is unique for the wider region and for this period. Its 20 articles provide interesting insights into rural life by touching on various aspects such as business hours, livestock trade, community representatives, taxes and duties, religious practices, and synagogues. The historical commentary is accompanied by a slightly modernized transcription of the source text.