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Synagogue at Orleansville, Algeria
Although, in 1844, the Jewish community of Orléansville numbered only ten members-- approximately half of whom came from Miliana, a town 70 kilometers up river--they played a large role in the town's economic and commercial success. By 1881 their number had grown to 3,000. The Orléansville Synagogue stood as a testament to this growing Jewish community [1].
Description
ORLEANSVILLE: Orléansville, or Ech-Cheliff, is a northern Algerian town situated along the Chelif River and south of Ténès. Founded by the French in 1843, Orléansville was built upon the site of the ancient Roman settlement of Castellum Tingitanum. Today, Orléansville is an agricultural center, best known for its wheat and barley crops, as well as a rail junction between Algiers and Oran. Orléansville experienced two major earthquakes in 1954 and 1980: the 1980 earthquake registered at a magnitude of 7.3 and destroyed over half of the city’s buildings. As such, the town changed its name from El-Asnam to Ech-Cheliff or Orléansville in order to avoid associations with the devastating earthquakes [2].
CONSTRUCTION: In 1882, the Presbytery of Algiers requested an allocation of 980 square meters in Orleansville for the construction of a synagogue. In 1889, the Presbytery was offered only 26,000 of the 31,000 francs it had originally requested. Due to these budget constraints, the synagogue committee considered architectural changes to reduce costs before beginning construction on the synagogue. The committee proposed the allocation of an emergency 3000 francs, but could not accept the grant because relief funds were reserved for buildings that were communal property. However, the presbyteries of Algeria had legal personality, and therefore the ability to receive funds, since 1861, suggesting that the decision was an overt choice to reduce the funds given to Jews [3].
FIRE: During the Algerian fight for independence from France, a Jewish synagogue was reported burned down in Orléansville on June 4, 1956 [4].
Sources
[1] Richard Ayoun, "Orléansville (El Asnam, Ech-Chelif, Ar. al-Shalif)," Encyclopedia of Jews in the Islamic World, Executive Editor Norman A. Stillman, Brill Online, 2014, Reference, Wellesley College, 19 June 2014 <http://referenceworks.brillonline.com/entries/encyclopedia-of-jews-in-the-islamic-world/orleansville-el-asnam-ech-chelif-ar-al-shalif-SIM_000132>
[2] "Ech-Cheliff," Britannica School, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 2014, accessed July 10, 2014, <http://0-school.eb.com.albert.aa.edu/levels/high/article/22759>.
[3] Valérie Assan, "Les synagogues dans l'Algérie coloniale du XIXe siècle," Archives Juives, 1/2004 (Vol. 37), p. 70-85, accessed July 10, 2014, <www.cairn.info/revue-archives-juives-2004-1-page-70.htm>.
[4] "Developments of the Quarter: Comment and Chronology," Middle East Journal, 10.4 (1956): 395-426, JSTOR, accessed July 10, 2014, <http://www.jstor.org/stable/44322849>.