ABSTRACT
Partitions of Poland In eastern Europe, Jewish life began to undergo a period of radical change in the last quarter of the eighteenth century. Of the many developments to have an impact on Jews, the Partitions of Poland proved to be of utmost significance. Poland, not for the last time in its history, became a battleground for European power struggles and succumbed to economic crisis, political impotence, and war. Austria, Prussia, and Russia partitioned Poland among themselves on three occasions during the eighteenth century: 1772, 1793, and 1795. Having inherited the Jews of the now-defunct Polish state, Russia took in approximately 750,000 Jews, while Austria became home to 260,000 and Prussia, 160,000.
