Persecution of Jews in Poland

Persecution of Jews during the Black Death
Jews were falsely blamed for the Black Death in Europe during the mid-1300s; Jews were often used by Christians to blame due to their resentment of them considering their belief that Jews are the killers of Christ. Thousands of Jews were murdered in France, Spain, Germany, Switzerland, and Poland.

John of Capistrano
During the 1450s, Franciscan John of Capistrano's sermons incited Christians to burn Jews at the stake and expel the others.

Russian Empire
Catherine II, Empress of Russia (1762 to 1796), segregated Jews and restricted them to the Pale of Settlement. She doubled the taxes on Jews; the added taxes were lifted if they converted to Orthodox Christianity.

In 1827, Emperor Nicholas I (reigned from 1825 to 1855) required by law that Jews from 12 to 25 years old join the military and were required 25 years of service. Jews were also compelled to convert to Christianity.

Emperor Alexander III (reigned from 1881 to 1894) favored Orthodox Christianity. He supported pogroms and attacks on Jews, and imposed various rules and bans on Jews: they weren't allowed land and property ownership in rural areas, they weren't allowed to hold government office, run schools, or appeal against a court sentence, they could be deported if they lived outside the Pale of Settlement, they weren't allowed to work in the legal, military, and medical professions, they were restricted in their entrance to universities and secondary schools, they weren't allowed to vote in zemstva and municipal elections, they were forced to sell up businesses, and their rights to trade or sell products were restricted.